A Lange & Söhne has introduced new limited edition versions of their 1815 Up/Down model, one of the brand’s key references for years. The Up/Down is a true enthusiast favorite, prized by Lange collectors for its unique and very German presentation of the power reserve on the dial, located within a circular subdial at the 8:00 position. This style of power reserve indicator is traced back to German pocket watches made in the late 19th century, and I personally have always loved the way it looks on Lange 1815s.
The new references are newsmaking primarily because they are sized down from the brand’s current standard 1815 Up/Down, which measures in at 39mm. The original Up/Down, which is highly collectible today, had a 35.9mm case when it debuted. The case size of these new limited editions, in either white or pink gold, comes in at 37.5mm. That seems to me to be a pretty good compromise for a watch like this, which has always been conceived as a pure dress piece. It remains impressively thin, with a case height of 8.7mm.
The dial is a cool, desaturated blue, with silver subdials for the power reserve and running seconds at 8:00 and 4:00, respectively. The color here would appear to be a bit of a tribute or callout to the original Up/Down, which was available in a similar but not quite identical shade. Blue is a color Lange frequently returns to for special editions and limited releases. Otherwise, the dial is fairly standard 1815 Up/Down fare, which is to say it’s heavily inspired by those aforementioned German pocket watches, with railroad minute tracks and ornate Arabic numerals.
The 1815 Up/Down is powered by the manually wound L051.2 caliber, which is also found in the current 39mm versions of the watch. Of course it’s on display via the exhibition caseback (and fills the case in a much more satisfying manner in these smaller versions). The German silver movement, like all Lange movements, is finished immaculately, with gold chatons, a meticulously engraved balance cock, and bold Glashutte striping. The caliber has a 72 hour power reserve.
It’s notable, I think, that this release marks the second novelty of the year that has seen Lange markedly downsize a watch to a more enthusiast oriented case size. You’ll recall that at Watches & Wonders earlier this year, the brand released a Saxonia Annual Calendar in a compact 36mm case, a reduction from the previous standard of 38.5mm. This kind of downsizing of course is part of a broader trend we’ve seen across the spectrum, but there’s something particularly refreshing about seeing a brand like Lange once again embrace these more traditional sizes that have always been part of their DNA. It won’t stop them from continuing to release comparatively massive watches like the Triple-Split (also reintroduced last week) and Zeitwerk, but it’s a good development to have more small/medium dress watches to choose from in the Lange catalog, even if they are limited.
These new references are limited editions of 300 pieces in each metal. The pricing is set at EUR 45,000. A. Lange & Söhne
