A. Lange & Söhne Grand 1815, 2018

Dealer description — Analog/Shift

Born in 1815, Ferdinand Adolph Lange received a rigorous education at the hands of nurses and governesses. At the age of 15, he became a student at the Saxon Technical school in Dresden. Following that, he pursued training under Johann Christian Friedrich Gutkaes, Sr, royal clockmaker to the King of Saxony. In 1846 he and his brother-in-law formed A. Lange & Söhne. Lange’s use of precision tools and instruments allowed the manufacture to attain a level of precision that was heretofore unknown in mass-produced watches. After his death in 1878, his sons Richard and Emil would carry on his legacy. However, the Soviet occupation of East Germany at the end of the Second World War saw an end to A. Lange & Söhne. But after Reunification in the 1990s, the manufacture would make its triumphant return. At the helm of the company would be another Lange, Ferdinand’s great-grandson Walter. The 1815 collection honors this watchmaking legacy. Simple and elegant, it’s a careful distillation of Saxon watchmaking and design — adorned with just enough decoration to be beautiful, its otherwise minimalist look mixes Bauhaus principles with classical aesthetics. This particular example, a Grand 1815 Reference 233.021, dates to 2018 and features a 40mm 18K yellow gold case, a sapphire crystal, a sapphire exhibition caseback, a signed crown and a beautiful polished bezel, An equally gorgeous satin silver dial features a set of printed ‘Arabic’ indices, a peripheral ‘railroad’ minute track, a constant-seconds subsidiary register at 6 o’clock and a matching, blued-steel ‘lance’ handset. But this 1815 wouldn’t be a Lange without a stunning in-house movement — in this case, the manually-wound Caliber L051.1. From its detailed finishing to its city-like architecture, this movement is utterly captivating to behold, and serves as a quick explanation as to Lange’s elevated status in the watch world. Paired to a signed black alligator leather strap with a yellow gold pin buckle, this 1815 comes with a factory books and guarantee paperwork confirming case, serial and movement numbers. If you can spend your hard-earned money on art or watches, why not spend it on both?