A. Lange & Söhne 1815 Tourbillon
Written July 2020 – Updated December 2025
A hole in a clean dial is almost never attractive, and kind of unoriginal, right? In the end, it has been done for decades, over a dozen models at least, from Breguet to Audemars Piguet to Vacheron Constantin… And doing something has been done over and over again is something we do not expect from A. Lange & Söhne, right? Simply because it is a brand built on being meaningfully different. However, the two words written in italic is the reason why this piece deserves an in-depth article on its own. Simply because this is a watch that offers much more than its look, for the one who is a true watch enthusiast, like a true A. Lange & Söhne: 1815 Tourbillon.
Quick Facts:
- Introduced in 2014
- Available in platinum and gold
- Measures 39.5 mm in diameter and 11.1 mm in thickness
- Combines the patented hacking-tourbillon and seconds’ zero-reset mechanism
- Part of the Handwerkskunst collection
The 1815 tourbillon was introduced in 2014, when A. Lange & Söhne turned 20 years old. The pathway to this stand-alone Tourbillon piece was paved by the likes of the legendary Tourbillon Pour le Mérite in 1994 to the rather ambitiously priced but currently a complete steal Cabaret Tourbillon in 2008… We can summarize the 1815 Tourbillon as the naked version of its predecessors, the Tourbillon and Tourbograph Pour le Mérite. Without the fusée, without the split-seconds, just a pure marvel of tourbillon.
Measuring at a reasonable 39.5 mm in diameter, 1815 Tourbillon demonstrates that it is a modern descendant of its predecessors. On top, it has a sleek 11.1 mm thickness, in case one would like to hide such ostentatious pieces under the cuff when necessary. It is there when you want it, especially in platinum, but disappears easily when you get onto something else.
The case construction is classic A. Lange & Söhne, done over three-steps with welded, notched and generously angled lugs. While the pink gold 1815 Tourbillon carries a fully polished case band, all the other metals feature alternating polish / brush finish. Though I believe this was changed around 2018, so, the current 1815 Tourbillon models in pink gold also carry alternating finish.
A delightful detail that I like in the 1815 collection pieces after 2013 is the stepped bezel, started with the 1815 Up/Down collection. Such an extra touch adds another beautiful layer. The case gets narrower towards the bezel step by step rather than a single slope. An extra work never hurts. It also accentuates the welded lugs even more.
Seen here is the stepped bezel, angled and notched lugs. Courtesy of the 1916 Company.
Now, the hole on the dial… We have been seeing the tourbillon on the front-side of the wristwatches since the 1980s. Franck Müller claims the throne for the first ever exposed tourbillon in 1984. To me, however, the protagonist of the era is Audemars Piguet who offered the first tourbillon with automatic winding with the caliber 2870. The slimmest of its time, an absolutely brilliant piece. Then, the likes of Daniel Roth with Breguet, upped the ante, followed by A. Lange & Söhne, etc.
Among all brands, it was Patek Philippe who always refused to expose the tourbillon since its foundation. Mr. Barat, head of complications at Patek Philippe, explains it as follows: A tourbillon is not an indication, it is a complication. That’s why we issue a certificate with our watches with tourbillon guaranteeing an accuracy of -1/+2 seconds a day (super cool btw). The reason we did not want to put on front is because the UV lights get through the sapphire glass and dry up the lubricants.
Patek Philippe launched the reference 5303 and put the tourbillon on the front for the first time ever. Mr. Barat explains the reasoning as now they have the possibility to treat the glass to block the UV light, therefore the sunlight cannot hurt the lubricants. An admirable mindset to say the least.
If we take a general look over the early tourbillons, what we see is that the watches are designed around the tourbillon, not the other way around. When we look at Breguet 3450, or Journe for example, or early Audemars Piguet tourbillons, we see that the tourbillon is given its own space on the dial, meaning it does not interfere with the overall design. 1815 Tourbillon on the other hand is a hole within the basic 1815 model, which is the reason I dissed at it, calling not very original – or just because of this, it is original?
On the other hand, the 1815 Tourbillon is in perfect harmony with A. Lange & Söhne’s overall design in tourbillons. So, I believe it just depends on where you see it. Albeit the design originality can be questionable, the craft is not, and 1815 Tourbillon has a couple of reasons why it is above and beyond of many, many other high-end watches with a tourbillon. However, before getting into that, let’s examine the dial.
1815 Tourbillon carries all the hallmarks of an1815 collection watch. Thick, printed Arabic Numerals, blued steel Alpha hands, rail-way minute track, three-dots on each quarter, and of course stepped, silver dial. But most importantly, it carries possibly the most beautiful tourbillon made by A. Lange & Söhne.
The tourbillon carriage is an identical copy of the A. Lange & Söhne pocket watch number 82013, sold at Sotheby’s in 2019. Meaning, three arms with closed, curved ends, offering a delightful number of inward angles. The classic Glashütte style, or the most famous I should say, is Alfred Helwig’s obviously, which features the same three-armed construction with open ends. A. Lange & Söhne used this construction only for Lange 1 Tourbillon editions. 1815 Tourbillon, however, has just the best one.
Held by a multiple faceted, black polished bridge with black polished screws, the 1815 Tourbillon recovers its lack of originality, and offers a craft that only a few can match – at an independent watchmaking level. The amount of time and mastery required to create such a masterpiece is immense, no wonder, there’s a lady who constructs tourbillons at A. Lange & Söhne, and only a few who can give such delightful angles to such delicate construction.
Apart from the regular production models, however; there are three special 1815 Tourbillon editions. Two of them are special, and the other one is very, very special.
1815 Tourbillon "Enamel"
1815 Tourbillon is offered in platinum cases with white (730.079) and black (730.094) enamel dials. The white enamel dial variant is limited to 100 pieces and was introduced in 2018, whereas the black enamel dial is the latest addition to the family and is limited to 50 pieces. To be frank, I think the 100 pieces limitation is too much for such a complicated and special piece, which is one of the reasons it sat on the boutiques’ vaults for quite a while.
The 1815 white enamel Tourbillon arrived with a delightful detail: A red “12” marker. A subte nod to the first white-enamel dial watch of A. Lange & Söhne, the Langematik Anniversary from 2000. The harmony of the red with the smooth and subtle white enamel is just spectacular. The deeper you go, the more fascinating it gets. However, I wished that A. Lange & Söhne would offer the enamel 1815 Tourbillon with a fully covered dial and perhaps just subtly hint that there is a tourbillon beating inside. Would not that be very cool? A truly special edition all around, further differentiating the piece from the previous editions, alas…
The black enamel version was introduced in October 2025. It is just a marvelous gem. The peak of A. Lange & Söhne’s in-house enamel craft, that started with the Lange 1 Tourbillon Handwerkskunst back in 2014. The black enamel version is further enhanced with white-gold chapter ring, adding a delightful depth to the jet-black dial. Just an exquisite piece – though I must admit, I hope this is the last one, at least in this livery. Below photos are from my dear friend who goes by the name @langelust on Instagram, and his baguette bezel variant.
The very, very special 1815 Tourbillon has a long name after it: A Handwerkskunst. Surely one of the finest watches that ever left the manufacture in Glashütte. Introduced in 2016 as a limited edition of 30 pieces and was paired with a rhodiumed rose gold dial with tremblage engraving. To catch the randomness is the demanding part of the tremblage, and 1815 Tourbillon Handwerkskunst is the echelon of this craft. Just an inimitable depth on the dial.
In addition, to truly deserve the “Handwerkskunst” title, the reference 730.048 advances the movement finish over the standard production pieces with myriad of inward angles and a special treatment.
Now, what makes the 1815 Tourbillon really special? Indeed, we discussed that it is not the most original watch around, etc. but it is A. Lange & Söhne. I wouldn’t expect them to just put a tourbillon and leave as it is – we never see them doing something like this. Right, 1815 Tourbillon offers something unique in its technicality and that was the reason I called this watch only for the real enthusiast. For this, we need to go deeper into the movement.
Caliber L102.1
Caliber L102.1 is the beating heart of the 1815 Tourbillon. It is a classic Glashütte style movement covered with a big plate, decorated with gold chatons and blued screws with a hand-engraved tourbillon bridge and a diamond end-stone, just like the pocket watch tourbillons of the past.
The tourbillon itself however makes the difference. 1815 Tourbillon is the world’s first watch to combine the zero-reset complication with the hacking tourbillon mechanism, which both are patented by A. Lange & Söhne.
Starting with the zero-reset: Introduced in 1997 with Langematik Big Date, it is one of the most German inventions in watchmaking one can see around. You know, when do we use the crown other than winding it? To set the watch. So, why not make it even more precise to the second? This mindset brought a patent to A. Lange & Söhne. When the crown is pulled, the seconds’ hand travels back to zero so the owner can set the time to the second. Brilliant.
Hacking a tourbillon on the other hand was a far more complex endeavor. I don’t know if anyone has attempted before but A. Lange & Söhne is the one who invented it in 2008 with the introduction of the Cabaret Tourbillon. The hacking tourbillon does not only stop the cage, but also halts the balance wheel. Because if only the cage was stopped, the balance would stop slowly and if you needed to restart, you needed to shake the watch.
The patented construction developed by Lange brakes the balance wheel directly. This preserves the potential energy of the balance spring so that the wheel will automatically start oscillating again when it is released. As you may have guessed, it is an extremely delicate system.
A. Lange & Söhne explains the 1815 Tourbillon’s hacking as follows: When the crown is pulled a lever mechanism causes a pivotable V-shaped braking spring with two bent ends to engage with the balance under controlled-force conditions. When one of its arms comes into contact with the balance wheel rim or a cage post, it rests against that element and thus pivots the other arm about the braking spring’s axis of rotation until it, too, comes to rest on the rim or at a cage post. This stops both the balance wheel and the cage, regardless of their momentary position.
Currently, both Moritz Grossmann and Glashütte Original from Glashütte offer tourbillon watches with hacking mechanisms, using different systems with the more or less same principle. Only the Glashütte Original took it one step further with a mechanism that also resets the cage and not just the seconds’ hand as it is the case with the 1815 Tourbillon.
The zero-reset on the other hand works with a heart-cam and a lever, which resets the heart-cam to its zero position when the crown is pulled. You can see it from the front, as the lever right above the tourbillon opening.
On the back, 1815 Tourbillon showcases a coherent view with its front side. A three-quarter plate covering most of the movement with no opening and a tourbillon hole, held by a brilliantly hand-engraved bridge and a diamond end-stone. To be frank, the movement feels kind of, lacking? I am well-aware that the finish of the tourbillon on its own is miles ahead of most others, but I feel this watch would benefit more from the back. Especially after seeing the ornamental caliber of the 1815 Tourbillon Handwerkskunst…
Overall, 1815 Tourbillon excels in craft; be it the technicality or finish but lacks the originality and differentiation in design. On the other hand, such a simple outlook is exactly what many people are looking for, and I myself have many friends who support a beautiful 1815 Tourbillon on their wrist. Therefore, the objective part of the story which is the dexterity and art is undeniably glorious here.
Buying an 1815 Tourbillon
When introduced in 2014, 1815 Tourbillon carried a MSRP of $201k for the platinum variant and $164k for the pink gold variant – both with deployant buckle. Interesting thing is 1815 Tourbillon Enamel, introduced 2018 came with a MSRP of $197k – that is cheaper than the regular platinum variant, even with an enamel dial. The black-enamel dial version is priced at $217,000 in 2025 December. The evolution of pricing just shows how mispriced the initial platinum variant was.
Despite its hefty retail prices, as with most complicated A. Lange & Söhne watches, the 1815 Tourbillon does not command a popularity in the pre-owned market. The classic (730.025) platinum and pink gold (730.032) variants tend to sell at around $105,000 and $90,000 respectively. The white enamel version usually commands a sizable premium, and has a market around low to mid $100,000 range.
The Handwerkskunst Edition on the other hand has always been strong, but strongly fluctuating. At its peak around 2022, numerous examples sold above $450,000+ while one fetching at CHF 630,000. However, as the pieces started to very well, the more collectors tried to liquidate these extremely rare pieces. Combined with the downturn, the last two sales of the reference has been lackluster in 2023 at $300,000 range.
However today, I believe the Handwerkskunst has a stronger market, albeit still considerably weaker than its peak.
I hope this was a valuable guide for whomever is looking for an 1815 Tourbillon or just want to learn the details and history of these pieces. If you’d like to chat, sell or buy an 1815 Tourbillon, please kindly reach out to me via alp@langepedia.com
Please feel free to contact:
Follow Langepedia on Instagram:
Watch “A. Lange Story” Documentary, in partnership with The 1916 Company:
STAY IN TOUCH
Sign up for the newsletter to get to know first about rare pieces at Marketplace and in-depth articles added to the encyclopedia, for you to make the most informed choice, and first access!