A. Lange & Söhne, Glashütte
Triple Complication | A very fine and rare gold hunting cased keyless lever perpetual calendar minute repeating double chronograph watch with register, moon phases and original certificate, spare glasses, springs and presentation box, No. 82003 | Circa 1928
Auction Closed
May 10, 02:36 PM GMT
Estimate
150,000 - 300,000 CHF
Lot Details
Description
Dial: white enamel with sunken centre, Arabic numerals with black minute ring above, outermost ring calibrated to fifths for chronograph seconds and with red Arabic 5-minutes/seconds divisions beneath, four sunken subsidiary dials for day, month with leap year cycle and 30-minute register, date and subsidiary seconds combined with aperture for moon phases, gilded Louis XV-style hands, signed A. Lange & Söhne, Glashütte I/SA
Calibre: 1a quality, cal. 43 damascened German silver ¾ plate with polished steel chronograph and split second work visible above, gold lever and escape wheel, bi-metallic compensation balance, 44 jewels, diamond endstone, balance cock decoratively engraved with scrolling foliage, swan-neck regulation, signed and numbered A. Lange & Söhne, Glashütte,
Movement number: 82'003
Case: "Louis XV" 18ct gold, polished covers, chronograph/split pushers and repeating slide to the band, gold slide beneath bezel between 11 and 12 o'clock to advance the day/date/month in tandem, gold slide beneath 8 o'clock to independently adjust the days of the week, short steel slide beneath bezel between 5 and 6 o'clock to advance moon phases, gold slide beneath 4 o'clock for hand-setting, glazed movement cover, plain polished gold cuvette, front and back covers signed A. Lange & Söhne, Glashütte, covers and cuvette numbered 82003
Case number: 82'003
Size: 60.5mm diameter
Box: yes
Papers: yes
Accessories: A. Lange & Söhne Certificate of Origin and fitted case including spare springs and spare crystals, the crystals wrapped in numbered papers
Sotheby's, Geneva, Masterworks of Time: Adolf Lange, The Golden Era of Glashütte, November 2019, Lot 27
Auktionen Dr. H. Crott, no.71, 19 November 2005, lot 556
Martin Huber, Die Uhren von A. Lange & Söhne Glashütte Sachsen, 1988, p. 181, table 66
Martin Huber, Die Lange Liste, 2000, pp. 218-219, table 74
Reinhard Meis, A. Lange & Söhne the Watchmakers of Dresden, Vol II, p. 284, figs. 931-932
The present lot is one of approximately 15 perpetual calendar minute‑repeating split‑seconds chronograph watches with registers and moon‑phase display, collectively known as the legendary “Triple Complication” pieces, produced by A. Lange & Söhne either with or without registers between 1888 and 1924. Completed in 1924, the present example is of exceptional importance, as it represents the final watch produced within this extraordinary series, marking the culmination of the manufacture’s most ambitious horological endeavor.
Uniting a perpetual calendar, minute repeater, split‑seconds chronograph, and moon‑phase display within a single movement, these watches embody the absolute pinnacle of Glashütte watchmaking, both technically and artistically. The movement is executed to 1A quality, crafted in Maillechort, the finest ébauche material of the period and reserved only for the manufacture’s most prestigious creations. All steel components are meticulously black polished, while the movement’s 44 jewels represent the highest jewel count ever employed by A. Lange & Söhne—an unequivocal statement of technical refinement and excess precision.
Such a movement was deemed worthy only of the most imposing setting. The watch is housed in an oversized Louis XV case, with a remarkable gross weight of 143 grams, a distinction reserved exclusively for the firm’s most exceptional works. The case itself stands as a testament to the importance accorded to the movement it protects.
The dial further confirms the watch’s elite status. Executed as a German three‑stepped enamel dial, it already surpasses the complexity of standard Swiss enamel production. The presence of four subsidiary dials—for calendar, chronograph, and astronomical indications—raises the level of difficulty considerably, resulting in a dial that represents the very summit of contemporary dial‑making craftsmanship.
Archival records reveal that the watch was originally sold in 1924 to Joh. Qunat of Hamburg for the extraordinary sum of 4,000 Goldmarks, positioning it among the most expensive timepieces of its time. In 1928, A. Lange & Söhne repurchased the watch and subsequently resold it for 2,800 Rentenmarks, still an exceptionally high price given the severe social and economic conditions of the period. This remarkable pricing history underscores the enduring recognition of its value, even in times of great uncertainty.
This is only the third occasion that the present watch has appeared on the public market, further emphasizing its rarity and continued desirability among the most discerning collectors.
Remarkably, the watch is preserved with its original certificate and presentation box, surviving exactly as it would have been delivered in the 1920s—an extraordinarily rare occurrence that significantly enhances both its historical importance and its status as one of the most complete and important A. Lange & Söhne complicated pocket watches ever to be offered.