From left: The LANGE 1 and LITTLE LANGE 1 in 950 platinum with black onyx dial

Almost every modern luxury watch brand has a watch collection that is intrinsic to its brand identity. And for A. Lange & Söhne, it is undoubtedly the LANGE 1. The LANGE 1 is one of the few watches in history that can truly be considered an icon of modern watchmaking. The asymmetrical layout of its dial is not just representative of Lange’s brand DNA but it quite literally represents the cornerstone on which the contemporary version of A. Lange & Söhne was built upon. In 1994, when Günter Blümlein and Walter Lange unveiled the rebirth of Glashütte watchmaking, there stood Blümlein next to a giant print of the LANGE 1 Ref. 101.001. Therefore, to celebrate the LANGE 1’s 30th anniversary is to also celebrate 30 years of A. Lange & Söhne’s new era.

The LANGE 1 (left-most) was present ever since the brand relaunched in 1994 after the reunification of Germany

In an interview that Blümlein did with the famed author of watch books, Gisbert Brunner, in 1994, he said: “The 1994 A. Lange & Söhne wristwatches and all upcoming models are anything but epigones of watchmaking legends.” This was the mindset of the brand ever since it was revived. Creating watches that follow the attention to detail and craftsmanship of traditional watchmaking only in spirit. Everything else had to be befitting of the times. The LANGE 1 was a great example of this, as its now iconic asymmetrical design was practically unheard of back in the 1990s and represented a great risk, especially for a first collection. Back then, watchmaking in Germany, more specifically in Glashütte, was nowhere near what it is today with sometimes multiple manufactures lining the same street in this small town. And for a German brand to try and penetrate the upper echelons of watchmaking, a realm mostly conquered by the Swiss back then, they definitely received their fair share of scepticism and criticism.

A. Lange & Söhne, however, were confident of what they had with the LANGE 1 because, despite the irregular positions of its dial elements, they had put a considerable amount of thought into its design. According to Alp Sever of Langepedia, Helmut Geyer, Annegret Fleischer, and Kurt Klaus, the team behind the LANGE 1 along with Blümlein spent years perfecting the proportions. “Once they arrived at the asymmetric layout, countless hours were dedicated to refining the placement of each indication, rotating and adjusting until they achieved the design that is now widely regarded as an icon.” Interestingly, when you overlay a grid of golden-ratio guidelines over the LANGE 1’s dial, each component falls at intersecting or important points of this mathematical ratio that guides the most beautiful occurrences in nature.

From left: The LANGE 1 and LITTLE LANGE 1 in 750 pink gold with a blue dial in 925 silver

In the last 30 years, the design of the LANGE 1 has barely changed, even when they launched a smaller version with the LITTLE LANGE 1. Its design identity is widely associated with German watchmaking, to the point that there are other brands with Glashütte on the dial that try to create a similar asymmetry to their dials. The design however remains distinctly Lange as there is even an anecdote that the big-date aperture was, in fact, inspired by the five-minute clock that sits in the Semper Opera House in Dresden. The original clock in this building was built by Johann Christian Friedrich Gutkaes with the help of his soon-to-be son-in-law, F. A. Lange.

Today, 30 years after the first LANGE 1, the brand is launching two new references of the LANGE 1 and LITTLE LANGE 1 to mark this momentous milestone. The first reference combines the elegance of a 950 platinum case with the shimmering jet-black nature of Onyx. This marks the first time that this rare gemstone has been used in the LANGE 1 collection. Next comes a version clad in the warm tones of 750 pink gold. For this version, the dial is crafted out of 925 silver in blue, also a rare feat in watchmaking.

Despite both the LANGE 1 and LITTLE LANGE 1 having different case sizes, 38.5mm and 36.8mm respectively, both are still powered by the same Lange manufacture calibre L121.1 movement. This fantastic hand-wound movement offers all the hallmarks of German watchmaking including the use of a three-quarter plate. Additionally, all the intricacies specific to Lange are also present, such as the use of untreated German silver, the screws held in place by gold chatons and blued screws, along with the hand-engraved balance cock. And yes, as per Lange’s practice, each of these movements is also assembled twice. The LANGE 1 references are limited to only 300 watches each while for the LITTLE LANGE 1 each is limited to only 150 pieces worldwide.

“The LANGE 1 is a timepiece that unites everything that distinguishes a refined mechanical watch: originality, timeless elegance and horological precision, down to the last detail,” explains Wilhelm Schmid, A. Lange & Söhne CEO. “When it was launched thirty years ago, it broke the existing design rules and defined its very own style. This innovative force is embodied by our ambition to never stand still.”