Even though there’s no doubt that the darlings of A. Lange & Söhne’s lineup are the more contemporarily styled pieces like the Lange One and the Zeitwerk, there’s still a place for deeply traditional design the catalogue of Glashütte’s favourite son – and that’s the 1815 collection. Named for the year of founder Ferdinand A. Lange’s birth, the 1815 family of watches takes as its inspiration early marine chronometres. First developed in the 18th Century, these ship-bound timepieces were extremely accurate, and a vital tool in navigation. And while the design isn’t what we’d associate with tool watches these days, make no mistake, legibility and reliability were the name of the game. It’s logical that Lange, those masters of function and style, adopt this distinctive look as the trademark for their 1815 collection. With the blued sword-style hands, railroad minute track (with the brand’s distinctive triple dot at the cardinal points) and the ornate, Jugendstil numerals the 1815 Up/Down would look just as stylish in 1915 as it does today. For me though, the most charming feature of this watch is the bottom-heavy subdial layout, a sure sign (if any were needed from Lange) that the L051.2 movement definitely…
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