REVIEW: WATCHES AUCTION 14 JUNE

The success of this circa 2017, 1815 Flyback Chronograph, by Lange & Söhne at Noonans on 14 June reflects the return to glory of a firm lost behind the Iron Curtain for over 40 years.

The £20,000 hammer price was a just tribute to the craftsmanship and engineering revived under the founding family in 1940 after the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Established in Glashütte, Saxony by Ferdinand Adolph Lange in 1845, the firm became A. Lange & Söhne when his son Richard joined the business in 1868 and together they set out on their path to international success.

Five years later the expanding company moved to new premises at the Stammhaus, still used as the company's headquarters today.

Richard continued to focus on inventions, inspired by his father’s example, while his brother Emil looked after the business side.

Richard patented a pocket watch with minutes counter and improved chronometer restraints, among other successful applications.

The company attracted Royal patronage when, in 1898, German Emperor Wilhelm II commissioned a pocket watch as a gift to Sultan Abdul Hamid II of the Ottoman Empire, which remains in the collection of the Topkapi Palace.

As others turned to machine-made watches in the early 20th century, Lange & Söhne remained committed to more expensive hand-made pieces.

The trauma of Germany’s economic collapse in the 1920s, following World War One, had its impact on the company, but its fortunes were restored by the need for precision observation watches during the military expansion of the 1930s.

The factory was almost completely destroyed during a Soviet air raid on 8 May 1945, the last day opf the war, and then nationalisation under Soviet rule in 1948 effectively put an end to the family-run business for a period of 40 years until, in 1990, Walter Lange, the great grandson of Ferdinand Adolph Lange, revived the brand.

Building on the company’s historic traditions of engineering and design, the new management ensured that every part of each watch was designed and made in-house.

Renowned for its chronograph movements, the Lange & Söhne is sought-after today all over the world.

Noonans Watch specialist Joanne Lewis, says: “Quality will always attract a premium. The Lange family’s continuing devotion to that original vision of Ferdinand Adolph Lange in 1845 shows how a commitment to creating the best will win out in the end.”