A. Lange & Söhne releases the Datograph UP/DOWN with Blue Dial

0 0 Monday 29 April 2024 Edit this post

The Datograph, one of the most admired chronographs by watch experts, celebrates 25 years in 2024. To mark this significant milestone, A. Lange & Söhne has unveiled a special edition of the Datograph UP/DOWN model in 18-carat white gold with a captivating blue dial, limited to just 125 timepieces. It was presented, along with the Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon Honeygold Lumen, at the Watches and Wonders Geneva 2024 exhibition (April 9-15).

A. Lange & Söhne Datograph UP/DOWN Blue Dial ref. 405.028

Introduced five years after the first A. Lange & Söhne collection of the modern era was launched, the Datograph showcased the brand's inaugural chronograph movement, the Calibre 951.1 combining a column-wheel chronograph with a flyback function, a jumping minute counter and the typical Lange outsize date.

The Datograph was the prelude to a range of currently 13 innovative models with a chronograph function. For more insight into this evolution, explore our in-depth feature article titled “From Datograph to Odysseus: A. Lange & Söhne's Chronographs 1999-2023”.

The 951.1 evolved into the Calibre L951.6 of the Datograph UP/DOWN presented in 2012, introducing a power-reserve indicator and an increased power-reserve of 60 hours.

The flyback mechanism allows two quick consecutive time measurements, with virtually no delay between these. The chronograph is stopped, reset to zero, and restarted again in next to no time.

The precisely jumping minute counter makes the chronograph minute hand jumps to the next increment at the precise moment when the chrono seconds hand completes the 60th second.

The twin date aperture positioned below 12 o'clock forms the tip of an equilateral triangle. Situated below the horizontal center axis of the dial, the subsidiary dials for the small seconds at 9 o'clock and for the jumping minute counter at 3 o'clock create the base of the triangle.

This characteristic, axially symmetric dial design ensures optimal legibility. In the latest iteration of the Datograph UP/DOWN, the dial is presented in blue for the first time: the rhodié-colored subsidiary dials, luminous hands, and baton hour markers create a sharp contrast against the elegant blue hue.

Consisting of 451 parts and assembled twice, the hand-wound calibre L951.6 is a benchmark among chronograph movements, distinguished by its technical sophistication, complex architecture, and superior degree of finishing.

The balance wheel with eccentric poising weights beats at a frequency of 18,000 vibrations per hour (2.5 Hz), enabling time measurements with an accuracy of one-fifth of a second.

Through the sapphire-crystal caseback, the minute counter mechanism and the column wheel, which controls the start and stop sequences, can be admired in action.

The dimensions of the new model version remain unchanged: the case maintains a diameter of 41 mm and a height of 13.1 mm. In addition to the new Datograph UP/DOWN in white gold with a blue dial, limited to 125 pieces, the model is also still available in a platinum case with a black dial and a pink gold case with a black dial.