In the picture is the splendid A. Lange & Sohne Grand Complication No. 42500, whose restoration has taken nearly 9 years. To give a second birth to this historic Lange pocket watch is a painstaking task yet a magnificent feat for the whole industry.
It is in 2001 that the worm-eaten original watch was brought to Jan Sliva, head of the in-house studio for historic Lange pocket watches. It was particularly large and heavy, and its case was engraved with an intricate motif designed by Professor Graff. At first sight judging from the appearance, Jan Sliva was sure about that the timepiece was an exceptional one. However, he was astonished and scared when he opened the artistically decorated caseback. What he found is a movement that at best could be called “scrap heap”. All parts were grimy, many were rusted, some were missing altogether, others were broken or so heavily corroded that their original shape could merely be surmised. Only the eight-part enamel dial was in relatively good condition. Just as what Jan Sliva said, the original watch was an inestimably precious junkyard.
The A. Lange & Sohne Grand Complication No. 42500 is a unique piece in the world. The one and only model was sold to a resident of Vienna for 5,600 marks in 1902. At that time, the amount of money was equivalent to the price of a stately house. The watch was really worth the price. It unites a host of fascinating complications: a chiming mechanism with a grand strike and a small strike, a minute repeater, a split-seconds chronograph with a minute counter and flying seconds (seconde foudroyante), as well as a perpetual calendar with a moon-phase display. Its nickel-plated German silver movement in 1A quality consists of an incredible 833 parts. In face of such a venerable of great historic value, Jan Sliva and his colleagues decided to study and document the functions and interactions of the individual components on the basis of what was left and to fully restore the functionality of all the mechanisms. “This is the only chance we had,” says the master watchmaker, “to preserve the ingenuity of our fathers and forefathers for coming generations. What good is a heap of rust, however authentic it might be, if no one knows what it once looked like and how it worked?”
Finally, in 2009, the A. Lange & Sohne Grand Complication No. 42500 made a stunning comeback as a complicated star. It has been completely restored to its former splendour. And now, it is on public display for the first time at the SIHH 2010 in Geneva. The restoration of the breathtaking watch symbols the building of a bridge that connects the ingenuity of the Lange watchmaking dynasty with the virtuosity of the current generation of watchmakers. “After this, I can’t imagine what might still lie ahead,” Jan Sliva says. “Only very, very few people get a chance during their lifetime to restore such a treasure.” As a monument of horological expertise and human passion, this watch is indeed the highlight of Jan Sliva’s horological career.
