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A. Lange & Sohne

Zeitwerk Striking Time in Platinum

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DETAILS

The Zeitwerk Striking Time, which was launched in 2011, occupies a special place in the history of the modern manufacture A. Lange & Söhne, as it is the brand’s first wristwatch with a striking mechanism. The Zeitwerk Striking Time movement is designed as a continuation of the Zeitwerk concept introduced two years earlier and features a digital time display in hours and minutes as well as a one-minute constant forсe escapement that instantly advances the digital time display. The design of the Zeitwerk Striking Time movement logically uses pockets under the hour and minute windows on the dial – as if it had been designed specifically for this purpose – to accommodate the two hammers of the striking mechanism on the dial side. The hammer on the right strikes a high note every 15 minutes (but not at the start of the hour), while the left hammer strikes a low note at the start of each hour. There are four versions of the Zeitwerk Striking Time. The series began with the Ref. 145.029 (white gold, black dial) and Ref. 145.025 (limited edition 100 in platinum, rhodium-plated dial – this watch), which were launched in 2011, and ended with the Ref. 145.032 (rose gold, silver dial), which was launched in 2014. An offshoot, which we nevertheless consider to be a revised version of the Zeitwerk Striking Time, is the Zeitwerk Decimal Strike Ref. 143.050 in honey gold, a limited edition of 100 pieces launched in 2017, whose striking mechanism runs six times per hour, i.e. every ten minutes, rather than four times per hour, i.e. every quarter of an hour. This sub-collection of four references was reportedly produced until December 2022, of which only two models, Ref. 145.029 and Ref. 145.032, had an unlimited production. Market research shows that the most successful was the Ref. 145.029 in white gold with a black dial (aka Black Zeitwerk Striking Time), which we estimate had about the same production volume as the other three references combined.

REASONS TO BUY

This Zeitwerk Striking Time Limited Edition 100 Ref. 145.025 in platinum is a magnificent example of the heritage of the modern incarnation of the renowned A. Lange & Söhne manufacture, crafted in the uncompromising manner of this brand. This is best demonstrated by its caliber, which is equipped with four complications: a digital display of hours and minutes with instantaneous function, a one-minute constant-force escapement, an hour and minute strike and a power reserve. The significance of this watch is determined by the fact that this reference is the first wristwatch from A. Lange & Söhne with a striking mechanism. The platinum case, which turns down the volume, allows you to enjoy a quiet but very beautiful sound that rounds off the perception of this outstanding watch.

ABOUT THIS WATCH

In view of the rarity of the reference and its collectability, we believe that all references are worthy of consideration, but especially this platinum Ref. 145.025. When it comes to watches with acoustic functions, A. Lange & Söhne does not reject the use of platinum, even if platinum as an acoustic material in a watch case leads to a loss of sound volume. A. Lange & Söhne does not see this as a disadvantage, but prefers to regard the platinum case as a kind of acoustic filter that blocks out parts of the acoustic spectrum while leaving those that produce the most pleasing sound for the human ear.

The Zeitwerk Striking Time in platinum not only impresses with its esthetic sound, but also with its caliber L043.2, which is decorated in Lange’s prestigious style and represents the second iteration of the basic movement originally developed for the Zeitwerk series. As the striking mechanism is located on the dial side, the L043.2 looks pretty much identical to the basic version thanks to the transparent caseback. As our research shows, all four Zeitwerk Striking Time references were equipped with the same Zeitwerk base caliber, namely L043.1 Mk2. It has clearly recognizable features: a modernized hairspring attachment and the presence of pre-arming mechanism of the hour and minute discs. Interestingly, the Mk2 movement is even used as the basis for the Zeitwerk Decimal Strike Ref. 143.050, which was launched in 2017, while the non-stricking Zeitwerks have already been converted to the third-generation Mk3 movement in 2017.

The movement of this Zeitwerk Striking Time Ref. 145.025 shows the typical gold-grey patina that is typical of untreated nickel silver bridges. This is entirely in line with expectations, as the early case number 005 almost certainly indicates that this example was produced in the first batch in the year of its market launch, resulting in a rich patina. The undeniable appeal of this caliber lies in the hand-engraved balance and escape wheel cocks in free style as well as the beautifully polished and beveled constant-force escapement bridge made of steel, whose shape is reminiscent of a sea anchor. Another undeniable advantage of this watch is the Geneva stopwork, which has two stopwheels set into the cover of the winding barrel – it is made of nickel silver with a colimaçonnage decoration and a gold-plated engraving of the brand logo.