Lange’s 1815 Annual Calendar

With a manually wound movement, analogue date, day and month indications as well as a moon-phase display, the 1815 Annual Calendar presents itself as the classic interpretation of a complication that is both attractive and useful.

The 1815 Annual Calendar is the second A. Lange & Söhne timepiece endowed with the eponymous calendar function. But in contrast to the self-winding Saxonia Annual Calendar with an outsize date presented in 2010, the new model features a manually wound movement and an analogue date, following the classic design and style principles of the 1815 watch family.

The manual winder is also a subtle homage to Ferdinand Adolph Lange. In 1866, he obtained a patent in the USA for his development of a crown winder that would replace the hitherto commonplace key-operated winding works, referring to it as “a useful mechanism for winding and setting watches.”

Hovering over the argenté-colored background of the classic dial, blued-steel hands indicate the time, complemented by the contrast-rich black Arabic numerals and the peripheral railway-track minute scale. Calculated to remain accurate for 122.6 years, the moon-phase display is integrated into the subsidiary seconds dial at 6 o’clock.

The calendar indications are easily legible thanks to the golden hands of the two subdials that are precisely aligned with the horizontal center axis. On the left, they display the day and on the right the month. From March to January, all month durations are correctly indicated. Although it is shorter, the mechanism treats February as a 30-day month, so on 1 March, a manual correction must be performed. A button at 2 o’clock makes it possible to collectively advance all indications, for instance if the watch has stood still for a longer period of time. Additionally, three recessed push pieces allow separate corrections of the day, month and moon phase. For the first time in a Lange calendar model, the date can also be separately advanced with an additional recessed push piece.

Because the calendar module is only 1.4mm high, the complete movement is very slender. Despite its compactness, the new manually wound caliber L051.3 has a maximum power reserve of 72 hours. One detail is instantly noticeable at a glance through the sapphire-crystal caseback: as a pointer to manual winding, the ratchet and crown wheels are visibly integrated into the German-silver three-quarter plate and decorated with solarization. Screwed gold chatons, the screw balance, the whiplash spring and the hand-engraved balance cock harmoniously round out a movement finished to the ambitious standards of traditional Saxon watchmaking artistry.

Technical Specifications

Movement

• Hand-wound Lange manufacture caliber L051.3
  
• Decorated and assembled by hand
  
• Precision-adjusted in five positions
  
• Plates made of untreated German silver
  
• Balance cock engraved by hand
  
• Power Reserve: Approximately 72 hours
  

Case

• 40mm diameter
  
• 10.1mm height
  
• 18-karat white or rose gold
  
• Sapphire crystal caseback
  

Dial

• Solid silver, argenté
  
• Blued steel hand for time indication
  

Strap

• Hand-stitched alligator leather
  
• Prong buckle
  

References

• 238.026: 18-karat white gold
  
• 238.032: 18-karat rose gold