By Dhananjay Pathak
Germans are known worldwide for their engineering, and while a large part of it has to do with automobiles, the influence is certainly evident in the field of watches as well. In my opinion, Germans produce some really high-quality watches that certainly compete with their Swiss counterparts in all aspects of watchmaking and today we have some interesting news for you from prolific German watch brand A. Lange & Söhne. The Saxony based watch brand is known for making some really exquisite luxury timepieces and the breaking news is that a unique version of the A. Lange & Söhne 1815 “Homage to Walter Lange” got sold for a whopping $852,525 at the recently held Geneva watch auction.
The Homage to Walter Lange collection was introduced towards the end of 2017 featuring a very unusual mechanical complication: the independent seconds. This complication basically comprises of a seconds hand which can be started, stopped and then started again at the push of a button. In a nutshell, this is quite similar to how a chronograph hand operates with the exception that a normal chronograph boasts of a reset to zero function. A. Lange & Söhne watches, for the most part, are crafted out of precious metals and it is seldom that one comes across a Lange in stainless steel and when it does it ends up being a collectible item. The Homage was announced in white, pink and yellow gold, but there was a single version of the watch slated to be produced in stainless steel and it is that very watch which got auctioned.
The Grand Feu enamel dial on this watch is black in color and is beautifully executed in pure Lange fashion. The hour markers have been presented in the form of printed Arabic numerals whereas for the minutes the brand has gone with a railroad style track which suits the dressy style of the watch. Then there is the centrally mounted hand which can be used for timing purposes and can be operated using the pusher at 2. And finally, there is a subsidiary running second’s dial at 6. The watch is powered by Lange’s manually wound caliber L1924 which as expected has been finished immaculately.
Coming back to some more auction related information. While there have been quite a few Lange’s which have been auctioned in the past, this 1815 Homage to Walter Lange seems to have broken all records to become the most expense Lange watch ever sold at an auction. To put things into perspective, the last time a rare steel version of a Lange was auctioned was in 2016 and it went for a price of $233000. Another point worth noting is that all the proceeds from the sale of this watch would go towards the Children Action Foundation, a charity committed towards the physical and mental well-being of disadvantaged children and young people around the world. Last but not the least, the individual who wins the bid would have the opportunity to purchase the number “1” pieces of the precious metal versions of the Homage if they wish to do so. Interesting isn’t it?
