A. Lange & Sohne Grand Lange 1 Luminous (115.029)

Tribune des Arts - A. Lange & Söhne Special Issue - June 2010

The true meaning of a simple word

The word "manufacture" has its roots in Latin and literally means "make by hand". But if we look at the modern watchmaking industry, the term is misleading and according to the philosophical views of Confucius causes the kind of confusion that can wreak havoc in the world. This is because today, only extremely few movements are actually made by hand. Even at Lange in Saxony, latest-generation machines that produce parts with an accuracy of just thousandths of a millimetre are indispensable in component manufacturing.

But the difference between these parts and what becomes of them when they have passed through hundreds of adept hands in Glashutte is like the difference between night and day. No other manufactory that produces such a comparatively small number of sublime timepieces employs so many specialised crafts-people. Incidentally, there are some unwritten rules in this community of individuals dedicated to the measurement of precious time. One of them stipulates that watchmaking companies are only allowed to adopt the prestigious title "manufacture" if they make the frame, which is to say the plates, bridges, and cocks, of at least one of their movements in-house. Other standards apply at A. Lange & Söhne. Every single timepiece that bears this signature contains a proprietary movement that was developed and manufactured in Glashutte.
Since 1990, Lange engineers and watchmakers devised no fewer than 35 exclusive calibres, beginning with the legendary L901.0 for the Lange 1. The series continues with the L902.0 for the Tourbillion "Pour le Merite", the L951.1 for the Datograph, the current L043.1 for the Lange Zeitwerk, and the L021.1 for the Lange 1 Daymatic.
A brief note concerning the system that is used to name Lange calibres: The first two digits stand for the year in which the long development process of the respective movement began. For the L901.0, it is, logically enough, the year 1990. The third digit represents the sequence in the given year. Thus, the L901.0 comes before the L902.0.
Impressive: 35 proprietary calibres in just 20 years

In 1990, Lange reinvented itself - like the legendary phoenix rising from the ashes. From the very beginning, it presented its very own manufacture calibres L901.0, L902.0, and L911.4, which, initially - as Lange readily admits - were developed with a little bit of help from Switzerland. The reasons are quite obvious: after 50 years of state control, the economy was in shambles, and skills and talents long cultivated in Glashütte had faded into oblivion because there was no demand for them. Then again, people never really forget what they once learned. Swimmers are able to swim even if they spend years without ever taking a plunge. Thus, it took thorough and intensive refresher courses conducted by competent Swiss affiliates to successfully revive long-lost expertise and know-how in Saxony. The effort was worthwhile and bore fruit as evidenced by the broad spectrum of 35 proprietary, manually wound and self-winding Lange calibres and with nearly all conceivable horological complications. For the time being, the many Lange enthusiasts around the world still have to wait for the acoustic dimension of time- keeping - wristwatches with chiming mechanisms.

But this should become reality some day as well, in a typically unconventional Lange fashion.
A brief, incomplete list of Lange calibres:
Lange 1 - L901.0
Tourbillon "Pour le Mérite" - L902.0
Tourbograph "Pour le Mérite" - L903.0
Arkade form movement - L911.4
Sax-0-Mat with three-quarter rotor - L921.2
Cabaret with form movement - L931.3 1815 - L941.1
Datograph - L951.1
Datograph Perpetual - L952.1
Lange 1 Tourbillon - L961.1
Double Split - L001.1
Lange 1 Daymatic with central rotor - L021.1
Richard Lange "Reference Watch" with Zero Restart - L033.1
Lange 31 - L034.1
Richard Lange - L041.2
Cabaret Tourbillon - L042.1
Lange Zeitwerk - L043.1
Richard Lange "Pour Le Mérite" - L044.1
1815 (version 2009) - L051.1
Saxonia Annual Calendar - L085.1