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(Click image for gallery - 11 photos)A. Lange & Sohne recently released a book about their most complicated timepiece ever. The book tells how the Grand Complication No 42500 was originally brought into the Lange workshop to be evaluated for restoration. Jan Silva, head of Lange's historical watches department, gives an excellent first hand account of the restoration, which he personally conducted over a period of five years. He explains every detail of the restoration process, from breaking it down, to *** new parts to replace those that couldn't be salvaged, and up until the point when the watch was in perfect working order, with its original luster. I recently finished reading the entire book and definitely recommend that you read it.Lange Press Release"The book about A. Lange & Sohne's most complicated pocket watchA book dedicated entirely to one watch must be quite extraordinary. Indeed: The Grande Complication with the serial number 42500 crafted by A. Lange & Sohne is a horological opus with an eventful history now spanning over one hundred years. The report that describes its inception, its restoration, and its comeback is a revelation for every Lange collector and an enriching diary for everyone with a penchant for precision watch***.In 2001, a unique horological treasure returned to the place where it had been made nearly one hundred years earlier. The rarest, most complicated, and most significant timepiece that had ever left the A. Lange & Sohne manufactory was originally sold to a Viennese gentleman of independent means. It came back in a pitiful state. Many of the 883 parts had corroded or were broken and needed to be painstakingly reconstructedThe famous front-lid "Graff engraving" adorns the cover of the book.by the master watchmakers in the restoration atelier. But from the very beginning, Lange's experts realised that the historic value of the watch justified every conceivable effort. During the carefully documented restitution process, the watch divulged many of its long-kept secrets and repeatedly challenged its saviours with seemingly insurmountable problems. But just in time for the kickoff of the 2010 anniversary events that commemorate the establishment of the German precision watch*** industry by Ferdinand A. Lange 165 years ago, "the 42500" presented itself to the public in its original splendour. Today, all components of its complicated mechanisms function as flawlessly as they did over 100 years ago.The book about the "Grande Complication No 42500" portrays the watch as a monument to horological prowess and human passion. It describes the work expended to restore it as a journey of discovery that brings together the ingenuity of the masters of old with the artistry of our generation's watchmakers. The anthology of full-page macro images offers a breathtaking account of how the 42500 unites the aesthetic beauty of an idea with artisanship at its finest. In a conversation with auctioneer Stefan Muser, readers learn how to gauge the value of an irreplaceable pocket watch. The narrative of the restoration process is an in-depth exploration of the complex movement. Experts explain the significance of the Grande Complication in the history of watch*** as well as the design and function of horological extravagances like minute repeaters, rattrapante chronographs, and perpetual calendars." (I'll be in Germany touring the Lange manufacture and museum next month, and I should be able to take some photos of the 42500 to share.)Press Release PDFSource: A. Lange & Sohne

Ludwig van Beethoven's prodigious reputation is due in large measure to his Symphony No. 5 with its four-note fanfare opening. The fate motif now ushers in a new chapter in the history of A. Lange & Sohne: the most recent sibling in the LANGE ZEITWERK family is endowed with a chiming mechanism that is visible in its face. It strikes the quarter-hours with high-pitched tones and the full hours at a lower pitch. Played fast-forward, the result is the famous leitmotif. The LANGE ZEITWERK STRIKING TIME is the first Lange wristwatch with an acoustic signature.Nearly two years ago, when A. Lange & Sohne announced the beginning of a new epoch with the LANGE ZEITWERK and its unusual design hallmarks, the declared objective was to depart from the beaten track. So it is no coincidence that the first chiming Lange watch is a "ZEITWERK" as well. Additionally, its mechanical design concept offers ideal prerequisites for the integration of a strike train. When the numeral discs are advanced, a sizeable force vector is unleashed, so after the switching cycle, enough energy remains for other purposes. These reserves are now used by the chiming mechanism to tension the springs that actuate the two hammers. They are made of black-polished steel and are integrated in the dial layout on either side of the subsidiary seconds. The one on the left strikes the hours, the one on the right the quarter-hours. The two gongs are also readily discernible: they are suspended in a recess between the dial and the bezel. In quarter-hour intervals, the mechanism triggers a strike on one of the two gongs. A higher-pitched tone signals the quarter-hours and a lower-pitched one sounds at the top of the hour.In precision watch***, the quarter-hour chime is a rare and decidedly useful function. The ability to turn it on or off is just as welcome: Actuating the push piece at 4 o'clock causes the chiming mechanism to remain mute. The mode is easy to verify, because a glance through the sapphire-crystal glass shows whether or not the hammers are deflected away from the gongs. Incidentally, the hammers are also retracted when the crown is pulled. This allows the time to be set in either direction without activating and inadvertently jamming the chiming mechanism.With its precisely jumping numeric display, the LANGE ZEITWERK STRIKING TIME also stands for uncompromising lucidity in style. The large hour and minute numerals in adjacent apertures always deliver an unambiguous reading of the current time. Accompanied by a soft click and hardly perceivable by the human eye, the numerals advance minute by minute, powered by the patented constant-force escapement. The grand jump takes place at the top of the hour when all three numeral discs advance simultaneously by exactly one increment. Now, the captivating progression of time is enriched by an acoustic accent every fifteen minutes.Needless to say, the manufacture calibre L043.2 inside the LANGE ZEITWERK STRIKING TIME fulfils all expectations that watch lovers around the world associate with the venerable marque A. Lange & Sohne, including the lavish manual decoration of all movement parts as well as the balance wheel with eccentric poising weights and Lange's proprietary balance spring. The sonorous timepiece comes in a 44.2-millimetre white-gold case with a black dial or in a limited edition of 100 platinum-cased watches with rhodiumed dials. With its bold design vocabulary and its exceptional quarter-hour chime, the third stroke of genius that bears the name LANGE ZEITWERK takes centre stage as a resonant masterpiece.