Digging Der Digital

by Elizabeth Doerr

In 1994, A. Lange & Söhne entered the German market with the Lange 1, a watch that was ahead of its time. A few years later, fairly well established on the world’s various markets and undisputed luxury leader in Germany, it became incredibly clear that this model had become one of the most iconic wristwatches, establishing an understated, though high-profile, face for the brand in collector circles spanning the globe.
Now well established as the brand that many say is in the top tier of serial watchmaking, A. Lange & Söhne’s management, and above all CEO Fabian Krone, finds the timing perfect to launch the next remarkable face—and a mechanical technology to match.
“You can really only say in hindsight if something is a classic,” Krone philosophizes. “We couldn’t predict it with the Lange 1; it came with time—and fifteen years down the road it remains as fresh as the first day.”
 
Lange Zeitwerk
The name of this timepiece might be a mouthful, and its complicated technology a handful, but its beautiful displays are immediately understandable. Zeitwerk is an artificial German compound noun made up of the nouns Zeit and Werk: “time” combined with a second word with several different meanings, among them “(watch) movement,” “work,” or even “opus.” According to Krone, it is up to each individual to discern the real meaning for himself or herself.
The timepiece is striking because it combines much that is familiar about A. Lange & Söhne with a few things that are unfamiliar. Digital display watches have not enjoyed great popularity among serious watch collectors and aficionados, and, with one exception, the few that have appeared in recent years have been almost direct copies of vintage timepieces. Regardless, A. Lange & Söhne has with this new model founded a whole new philosophy based on the digital display and asymmetry. 
“When the Lange 1 was introduced, it was a fully new face in the world of watches,” Krone explains. “It was heatedly discussed; the large date was unheard-of then and no other watches had an asymmetric look. I think that the Zeitwerk is also a watch that has not yet existed: a face, a technology that is nowhere else to be found, and thus an influential watch for A. Lange & Söhne at this time.”
The uncompromising look is clear and digital, with the hours on the left and the double-digit minutes on the right in instantaneously jumping windows. A German silver bridge connects the two, symbolically shaped like unfolding wings. An “auf und ab” power reserve display smiles out at the wearer from the top of the dial, while subsidiary seconds balance out the dial at 6 o’clock—a familiar element since it also graces almost all other A. Lange & Söhne watches.
The font of the very large and legible digital numerals is also the same as the double-digit large date introduced on the Lange 1 and continued throughout the collection. The look of these elements is based on Gutkaes’s famous five-minute clock hanging above the stage in Dresden’s Semper Opera.
“We kept to our design code, and thus we didn’t look to older or other digital watches with the hours on top and the minutes on the bottom. Our design keeps the numerals in an organic reading flow,” Krone explains.
The 41.9-mm case, available only in precious metals, is a little larger than what Lange has previously issued.