Reviewing a Modern Classic: Hands-On with the A. Lange & Söhne Lange 1

Originality is a fleeting thing in an increasingly crowded landscape of watch brands. Great designs are often recycled, altered, modernized, and re-packaged. It’s a similar story across many industries, from the films playing in theaters, to the cameras we carry around, to the fashions that shape our wardrobe. While not inherently a bad thing, this backdrop provides a striking contrast against which truly original ideas stand apart. Today, over 30 years after its initial introduction, A. Lange & Sohne’s Lange 1 design continues to stand on its own as a wholly original idea, and with it an ethos that has come to define a brand. 

Vanishingly few watches released survive the long term with their original design fully intact. Evolution is a natural process, and nearly all watches are subjected to it in a bid to remain relevant to new audiences over generations. While the Lange 1 has grown into a full-fledged collection over its years, and now includes a range of materials and complications, the original design remains unchanged. The Lange 1 was one of the four original watches revealed by Günter Blümlein and Co. in late October of 1994, and it is the only one that has been a consistent mainstay within A. Lange & Söhne’s stable. 

The Lange 1 boasts a unique, asymmetric design that feels a bit mysterious at a glance. There is a quality of the design that can feel beyond recognition, a bit like taking in a great piece of art in some ways. In response to a question posed by journalist Gilsbert Brunner at the launch in 1994, Blümlein stated that “One of our goals is watchmaking beauty and perfect craftsmanship. On the other hand, innovations and differentiating design are important parameters for us.”

In images, it’s easy to decipher the balance of the Lange 1 dial in cold, hard mathematical terms. The layout aligns nicely with the “Golden Ratio” spiral, and the center of the hand stacks of the running seconds and the power reserve perfectly align with the big date aperture, which all together form an equilateral triangle. Clearly, a lot of thought went into this design, and the most important part of this watch is that Lange didn’t compromise the design for the sake of a more accessible movement. 

To that end, Lange developed its own movement, the L901.0, using a heavily modified gear train from Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Caliber 822. The architecture would go on to set the aesthetic tone of Lange movements, with a large German-silver three-quarter plate, blued screws, gold chatons, and a hand-engraved balance cock. Just as importantly, it would set a precedent of the movement serving the design goals, rather than the other way around. As a result, nearly all A. Lange & Söhne watches use their own movements, as the designs are developed first, and the movement needs are made in service to that design. 

The Lange 1 is a very technical watch, and perhaps even clinical in its approach, especially on paper. However, there’s something that all of the above doesn’t really capture about using the watch every day. The design is delicate, subtle, and dynamic in person. It feels cohesive, and usable, but it’s also more than the sum of its parts. This extends to what might be the most overlooked element of the Lange 1, and that is the case. 

Since the beginning, the standard Lange 1 has measured 38.5mm in diameter and 9.8mm in thickness. As you’d expect, it wears beautifully, but the case itself feels more robust than those numbers let on. There is a presence here that’s owed to the very intentional design at work. The top and bottom sections of the case are polished, sandwiching a fully brushed midcase. The proportions are confident, with each given enough real estate to make the desired statement. This serves as a base for the lug to make its own impression, with tapered angle as it meets the case. This is a signature feature of all Lange watches, and I feel that it works best on smaller watches such as this. There’s confidence here that underlies the otherwise formal dimensions. 

Each area of the watch offers its own intrigue. The dial, the case, and the movement can each be taken on their own and enjoyed for what they accomplish. Taken together, they rise to another level — not only visually, but practically, in how accessible the watch feels in use. And that’s where the Lange 1 shines. 

The Lange 1 presents as a formal watch, but you could easily make a case for daily wear, even if you’re not the type to dress up. As a guy with a penchant for funky tool watches with chunky bezels and brushed cases, I found the Lange 1 to be surprisingly fun to wear. In fact, the biggest thing holding the watch back, if you ask me, is the alligator leather strap. It feels and looks a bit old fashioned and formal, but the watch takes to other options surprisingly well. When dressed down with something like a suede or cordovan strap, it changes the entire personality depending on how it’s specced. Sure, a pink-gold case with an argenté dial will always feel more formal than a white-gold case with a black dial, for instance, but the watch is more versatile than it’s given credit for. I’d go so far as to say it would work well with a satin-finished case to tone it down even further. 

Everything that appears on the dial of the Lange 1 serves a purpose. The largest subdial displays the hours and minutes with a set of polished, Alpha-shaped hands. Roman numerals appear at the cardinal positions, with a minute index defining the perimeter. The texture of this subdial differs from the background ever so slightly depending on the viewing angle, making it easier to track against at a glance. For right wrist wearers, this subdial can be read without pulling the entire watch from under a sleeve, which is a nice bonus. The other subdial displays the running seconds hand. The power-reserve hand directly above tracks the status of the 72-hour reserve, which is a handy feature on a manually winding watch. Finally, there are the large date windows at the top right, which can be adjusted with the press of the button along the left hand side of the case. 

As with many watches in this category, there is no lume here. Additionally, the high polish of the hands can make them tricky to find in some environments. Short of the brand’s Lumen style watches, I’m not sure what an appropriate fix for that would be. But on the whole, this is a remarkably easy watch to get along with, day in and day out. It’s comfortable thanks to its size, but still manages to have plenty of presence thanks to the use of precious metals. It’s one of those watches you’ll find yourself glancing at often without ever really getting a read on the time because you managed to get lost in some small detail you hadn’t noticed before. 

While this genre may not be in my regular wheelhouse, there is one thing that the Lange 1 has in spades that does resonate with me deeply, and that is character. This is an original design with plenty of character, and one that’s unusual compared to the kinds of watches I regularly encounter. Stepping back, I find myself looking at the watch as a whole and pondering why we don’t see more brands taking risks with their own original layouts. Of course, the vast majority of brands operating today are bound to what their movements will allow. Short of the MB&Fs and Urwerks of the world, we’re bound to a finite set of possibilities here. The more time I spend with the Lange 1, the more I appreciate its maker’s approach to “innovations and differentiating design.” This is the true magic of A. Lange & Söhne, and the Lange 1 is emblematic of those goals first set forth by Blümlein. 

It’s easy to hold up Lange’s more complicated references as champions of this ethos, with watches like the Datograph and Zeitwork serving as champions of this endgame, but what the Lange 1 lacks in drama compared to those two, it makes up for in accessibility and focus. The ideals that A. Lange & Söhne is built upon is expressed succinctly with the Lange 1, and the fact that it exists today much the same as it did in 1994 speaks volumes to the brand’s long term commitments being untethered from more localized trends.

A Lange & Söhne has come a long way since re-forming 30 years ago, with a remarkably impressive stable of collections on offer today, and while the Lange 1 is the only remaining watch from that initial lineup, the ideas it represents are still firmly a part of the brand’s foundation. The Lange 1 holds up as exciting, and yes, as original today as it did in 1994. If anything, it’s a design that has only gotten better with age.