It’s a tough job being a watch designer at A. Lange & Söhne. Almost every collection is considered sacred to the manufacture and bears design codes that are practically sacrilegious to change. With the exception of the Zeitwerk, of course, as this watch had been introduced much later and thus is exempted from the kind of zealous overprotection faced by the Lange 1, the 1815, Richard Lange, and the Saxonia. Yes, even the Saxonia.

But critics would be quick to swoop in and correct that indeed it is the Saxonia that should be guarded from superfluous enhancements or senseless modifications. Especially senseless modifications. For this is the very watch, introduced as one of the four key collections marking the relaunch of A. Lange & Söhne in 1995, that was inspired by and bears the greatest likeness to the early pocket watches made by none other than founder Ferdinand Adolph Lange himself. Embodying the German style of austerity and simplicity, those pocket watches, and correspondingly the Saxonia, represents true German watchmaking as fashioned by Lange. Even its name harkens to Lange’s place of birth – Saxony – the region where the A. Lange & Söhne manufacture today stands.

The Saxonia models of 2015 – the date of the last update – have retained most of their original flavor but feature some discreet updates that lift them out of the 1990s and straight into the 21st century. Firstly, A. Lange & Söhne adjusted the proportions of the manual-winding Saxonia and the Saxonia Dual Time such that they remind one of a time when watches did not consume the wrist with their sheer magnitude. At 35mm and 38.5mm respectively, even the slender wrist of a waif wouldn’t flinch from these watches. The third model, Saxonia Automatic, equals the Saxonia Dual Time in diameter and appears to mirror the hand-wound one in appearance save for very minute differences in the running seconds sub-dial. Another subtle update is the minute track, which is more pronounced in these models, where they are either absent or markedly less prominent.

As serene as they are, these watches reveal a riot of details as soon as you flip them over. Obviously, the most stunning of the three would be the hand-wound Saxonia’s Calibre L941.1 because it is completely exposed through the sapphire crystal case back. All the trappings of classic A. Lange & Söhne watchmaking can be enjoyed here: Glashütte ribbing, three-quarter plate in untreated German silver, gold chatons with blued screws, and most of all the hand-engraved balance cock. Both self-winding, the Saxonia Automatic uses Calibre L086.1 and the Saxonia Dual Time, Calibre L086.2.

Specs

Saxonia

• Dimensions: 35mm
• Functions: Hours, minutes, small seconds
• Power Reserve: 45 hours
• Movement: Manual-winding Calibre L941.1 with 45-hour 
power reserve
• Water Resistance: 30 meters
• Material: White or pink gold
• Strap: Black or red brown hand-stitched alligator leather with Lange prong buckle in matching material

Saxonia Automatic

• Dimensions: 38.5mm
• Functions: Hours, minutes, small seconds
• Power Reserve: 72 hours
• Movement: Automatic Calibre L086.1
• Water Resistance: 30 meters
• Materials: White or pink gold
• Strap: Black or red brown hand-stitched alligator leather with Lange prong buckle in matching material

Saxonia Dual Time

• Dimensions: 38.5mm
• Functions: Hours, minutes, small seconds, second time zone
• Power Reserve: 72 hours
• Movement: Self-winding Calibre L086.2
• Water Resistance: 30 meters
• Material: White or pink gold, water resistant to 30m
• Strap: Black or red brown hand-stitched alligator leather with Lange prong buckle in matching material

Story Credits
Text by Celine Yap

This article was originally published on World of Watches