First introduced in 1994, the Lange 1, with its signature off-center dial, is the most iconic timepiece in the A. Lange & Sohne collection. Last month in Geneva, Lange revealed the most complicated Lange 1 timepiece ever – the Lange 1 Tourbillon Perpetual Calendar.
Today is Leap Day (February 29th – as it is a leap year), so it is fitting that this timepiece’s perpetual calendar function automatically corrects for the extra day (apart from perpetual calendars – mechanical timepieces require the date to be manually corrected).
The Lange 1 Tourbillon Perpetual Calendar comes in a 41.9 mm by 12.2 mm case, in either pink gold or platinum. Housed inside is self-winding manufacture caliber L082.1 which has 68 jewels (including one diamond endstone), 624 parts, 4 screwed gold chatons, a frequency of 21,600 vph (3Hz) and a 50-hour power reserve. Each piece is decorated and assembled by hand (all Lange timepieces are assembled twice to ensure the utmost quality) and precision adjusted in five positions.
The plates and bridges are made of untreated German silver. The central element of the unidirectional winding rotor in 21-carat gold, with a platinum centrifugal mass. The intermediate-wheel and tourbillon cocks are engraved by hand. The balance is shock-resistant with eccentric poising weights and a superior-quality balance spring manufactured in-house.
Functions include hours, minutes, subsidiary seconds, tourbillon with patented stop-seconds mechanism; perpetual calendar with outsize date, day of week, month, and leap year; day/night indication; moon-phase display. Crown for winding the watch and setting the time; recessed push pieces for collectively advancing all calendar indications or for individually correcting the month, the day of the week, and the moon-phase. Dial in solid silver argenté (pink gold) and rhodié (platinum). Sapphire crystal front and back.
Hand-stitched crocodile strap red-brown (pink gold) and black (platinum) with matching deployant buckle. Water-resistant 30 meters. The Lange 1 Tourbillon Perpetual Calendar has the timeless look of the original Lange 1 — with the addition of a hidden tourbillon and perpetual calendar, along with the benefit of automatic winding. (Ref. 720.032, pink gold / Ref. 720.025, platinum)
