A. Lange & Sohne Lange 1 Moonphase Platinum 109.025
Adding a moonphase complication to a watch poses an interesting design conundrum. Some brands choose to give the moonphase its own subdial, adding to the complexity of a design. Others will replace a certain element of the design, such as the sub-seconds, with the lunar aperture. A. Lange & Soehne, however, has managed to integrate this complication into their Lange 1 designs in a way that retains the watch's visual identity and integrity. Instead of taking up an entire subdial, half of the sub-seconds is cut away in order to reveal the moonphase. This means that the overall proportions of the dial remain completely unchanged, and lets the original genius of the dial design remain whole and untouched.
A strong case could be made that the Lange 1 is one of the most iconic watches to have emerged in the last few decades.
The defining feature of the Lange 1 is the asymmetrical 'big date' windows. This display emulates one of the world's first digital time displays, from a clock at the Semper Opera House in Dresden. A decidedly bold look, the 'outsize date' sits off centre from the dial but retains a strong sense of place due to the use of the golden ratio in the overall design.
A. LANGE & SÖHNE
From the ashes of the Cold War, A. Lange & Söhne's relaunch in 1994 reintroduced the world to both the brand and the concept of fine German watchmaking. When its first four watches debuted, they formed the crest of a resurgent wave of high-end watchmaking. This period marked the high tide of the watchmaking renaissance that began in the late 1970s as a response to the Quartz Crisis. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Lange has since gone from strength to strength, building up a highly-focused range of watches that show off its signature complications and Teutonic aesthetics.
While other brands look to their own history for inspiration, Lange takes a broader view. The brand prides itself in being a thought leader, being one of the first manufactures to produce an in-house manually wound chronograph from scratch a full decade before Patek Philippe. At the same time, Lange also draws design cues from its surroundings, with the most famous example being the 'outsized date' window being inspired by the Five-Minute Clock at the Semper Opera House in Dresden.
This unique combination gives Lange a unique position. While the brand is part of a large luxury group and produces more watches than the highly-revered independent watchmakers, Lange collectors are arguably more passionate than their contemporaries who focus on other brands. The brand's positioning as a challenger while adhering to traditional watchmaking created an alluring combination that managed to excite even the most cynical of collectors, and continues to do so over 25 years after its revival.
LessAdding a moonphase complication to a watch poses an interesting design conundrum. Some brands choose to give the moonphase its own subdial, adding to the complexity of a design. Others will replace a certain element of the design, such as the sub-seconds, with the lunar aperture. A. Lange & Soehne, however, has managed to integrate this complication into their Lange 1 designs in a way that retains the watch's visual identity and integrity. Instead of taking up an entire subdial, half of the sub-seconds is cut away in order to reveal the moonphase. This means that the overall proportions of the dial remain completely unchanged, and lets the original genius of the dial design remain whole and untouched.
A strong case could be made that the Lange 1 is one of the most iconic watches to have emerged in the last few decades.
The defining feature of the Lange 1 is the asymmetrical 'big date' windows. This display emulates one of the world's first digital time displays, from a clock at the Semper Opera House in Dresden. A decidedly bold look, the 'outsize date' sits off centre from the dial but retains a strong sense of place due to the use of the golden ratio in the overall design.
A. LANGE & SÖHNE
From the ashes of the Cold War, A. Lange & Söhne's relaunch in 1994 reintroduced the world to both the brand and the concept of fine German watchmaking. When its first four watches debuted, they formed the crest of a resurgent wave of high-end watchmaking. This period marked the high tide of the watchmaking renaissance that began in the late 1970s as a response to the Quartz Crisis. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Lange has since gone from strength to strength, building up a highly-focused range of watches that show off its signature complications and Teutonic aesthetics.
While other brands look to their own history for inspiration, Lange takes a broader view. The brand prides itself in being a thought leader, being one of the first manufactures to produce an in-house manually wound chronograph from scratch a full decade before Patek Philippe. At the same time, Lange also draws design cues from its surroundings, with the most famous example being the 'outsized date' window being inspired by the Five-Minute Clock at the Semper Opera House in Dresden.
This unique combination gives Lange a unique position. While the brand is part of a large luxury group and produces more watches than the highly-revered independent watchmakers, Lange collectors are arguably more passionate than their contemporaries who focus on other brands. The brand's positioning as a challenger while adhering to traditional watchmaking created an alluring combination that managed to excite even the most cynical of collectors, and continues to do so over 25 years after its revival.
As part of our commitment to transparency, we're showing you this watch on our timegrapher. Testing is done in six positions, covering how the watch is worn in daily use.
Timegraphers listen to the ticks which a movement make. Professional machines like ours can take more measurements, create a graph, and support more escapement types.
"Accuracy" refers to how many seconds a movement gains or loses each day. COSC standards require -4/+6 seconds a day, while vintage watches may read closer to -60/+60s.
"Amplitude" tells you how much the balance wheel is moving each rotation. Certain escapements have a higher amplitude, while some will have a lower value by default. A below-average reading for your watch's escapement suggests there is friction in the movement from a lack of lubrication.
"Beat error" is an indication of the alignment between the timekeeping components. In modern watches, a reading under to 1.0ms should be expected, while vintage watches may have a reading of up to 3.0ms.