Langepedia & The 1916 Company: The Zeitwerk Renaissance

Since the 1980s, the Académie Horlogère des Créateurs Indépendants (AHCI) has championed the cause of independent watchmaking. While some AHCI members—such as Philippe Dufour, Vianney Halter, François-Paul Journe, and Kari Voutilainen—have grown in popularity, others have not. As with every entrepreneurial endeavor, building an independent brand is an act of courage. But today’s market understands these artisans. And almost every year, a growing number of craftspeople take their own path to put their names on the dial. What’s behind independent watchmaking’s popularity?

Well, many things: the booming number of watch enthusiasts enticed by the chance to meet and be a part of a watchmaker’s legacy and the lack of bundling drama that comes with big brands, to name a couple. But, perhaps the most important factor is the sheer innovation and craft going into these watches in both design and mechanics. For decades, collectors had become bored with the same classic designs and the brands were no longer pushing the envelope. This boredom led to a market for exciting new undertakings like the Opus Series, MB&F, Voutilainen, Urwerk, F.P. Journe, and more. Soon, the word “innovation” became synonymous with independents, not the big brands, or, for that matter, a public company such as A. Lange & Söhne.

As with any big organization, thinking outside the box is difficult for established brands. The risks are too great, the fear of making a misstep is understandably greater. Yet, aside from the Independents’ extraordinary creations, one watch emerged from a big brand with a novel approach toward watchmaking. This was the second renaissance of A. Lange & Söhne: the Zeitwerk.

Introduced in 2009, the Zeitwerk marks a major chapter in the brand’s modern history. It is proof that the spirit that inspired the 1994 launch of the Lange 1 and the 1999 launch of the Datograph still lives on, and is still as crazy as ever. That this watch came during a financial crisis goes to show that A. Lange & Söhne never stands still. So, what is it?

The Zeitwerk is a mechanical digital wristwatch which first stemmed (as did 90% of all Lange creations) from the mind of Günter Blümlein. It was developed by a team of brilliant watchmakers including Jens Schneider, with design attributed to Nils Bode.

To get a better understanding of why the Zeitwerk matters, let’s take a look from the back to the front.

A standard mechanical watch has a rather straightforward working principle. The mainspring releases the energy, and, via a wheel, delivers it to the center wheel, making one full turn in 12 hour. Then the energy is transferred to the intermediate wheel and the fourth wheel (the seconds hand), and finally the escape wheel, which releases the energy transmitted via the gear train to the pallet lever at a certain frequency—and woila, there’s your watch with hands. However, as you might’ve noticed, the Zeitwerk doesn’t have hands, and this brings its own set of problems.

For time indication, our time (zeit) machine (werk) relies on three discs that are much heavier than hands. Therefore, the classic principle of moving hands doesn’t apply. To make life harder for themselves, and more joyful for us enthusiasts, the designers of the Zeitwerk wanted an instant switch, too. How did they accomplish this? Name something that stores energy and releases it in certain intervals in a watch movement: Remontoir.

In order to “jump” the discs, the mechanism needs an impulse rather than a continuous flow. The mainspring barrel of the Zeitwerk releases the energy, like all other watches, and the watch runs at a 2.5Hz. The difference is that the caliber L043.1 of this gem utilizes not one, but two intermediate wheels in a complex arrangement. While the energy flows, the remontoir spring sandwiched between these two stores the exact amount of energy to switch all three discs when the seconds hand hits 60.

However, there is another problem. The remontoir releases the energy needed to turn all three discs, but the watch only requires that much power once every hour. What happens to the rest? That’s where windbreak comes in, a literal revolving door that depletes the excess energy by air-friction so the movement, and the watch, can continue to run unharmed. Right, I agree with you, caliber L043.1 is a micro-engineering masterpiece in 34 mms.

There’s an aesthetic coherence between what the caliber L043.1 does and how it looks. It’s apparent that it is a mechanical watch, but with distinct touches like the anchor-shaped and flat polished remontoire bridge, it feels futuristic. Parts like the blocking lever that you won’t see in any other piece contrast the hand-engraved balance cock from 175 years ago. A delightful contrast, indeed.

A. Lange & Söhne introduced the Zeitwerk in three metals: platinum, white gold and pink gold; a sign of the brand’s trust in the future of the design. The case is as odd as the watch itself. The first thing that catches the eye is the crown at 2 o’clock. This is a result of the movement architecture, as the balance occupies the usual 3 o’clock position. The crown is justifiably bigger than usual. Try winding the Zeitwerk and feel the resistance of the thick mainspring.

The case measures 41.9 mm in diameter and 12.6 mm in thickness. Given the complexity and A. Lange & Söhne’s tendency to build table-clock-sized wristwatches, I’d say the measurements are just perfect. The case is built on three levels, as usual, with alternating finish (except the pink gold case), reinforcing the industrial nature of the watch. Even better,like other complicated pieces from the brand, the case back doesn’t protrude much, and it sits on the wrist just right, without any wobble.

The dial is another shining point of the Zeitwerk. Looking deceptively simple, only a real watch enthusiast knows what it takes to make this simple face work. The Zeitwerk is a watch of utter precision. This is apparent in its fully symmetrical dial. On the vertical axis we have two windows on each side residing under the bat-wing shaped movement bridge, and on the horizontal axis, we have the power reserve indication and the sub-seconds.

The Zeitwerk was intended to display the time the same way we read. Even though the idea of placing the hours and minutes this way goes back to Pallweber in the 19th century, A. Lange & Söhne is the first to execute such a challenge. The windows are inspired by the 5-minute clock of the Dresden Opera House, made by Johann Christian Friedrich Gutkaes. This watch is a masterclass in merging tradition and modernity in a non-gimmicky way.

Watching the discs jump at exactly 60 seconds is a delight every time. You can feel the tension on the wrist. Later pieces, like Vianney Halter’s Opus, or the IWC Pallweber come close, but to me, no watch makes you feel the movement like this one.

Since its introduction in 2009, the  Zeitwerk has received  one rather big update, around 2017. With this update, the pre-jump that occurs 10 seconds before the actual jump was eliminated. The watch became perfect, but I love the quirky detail of pre-jump. Like a jet ready to take off, it alarms you that it has been building power and cannot contain it anymore!

All that said, the Zeitwerk is just one of the icons this rather young, but bold, and creative house has given us. From its looks to its mechanical coherence, it is a watch with few alternatives. A. Lange & Söhne deserve a round of applause for such a creation, and I’m looking forward to what we’re going to see next!

Thank you.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me via [email protected] for any questions you might have or simply to chat.