Thursday, April 25, 2019

LOUIS MOINET – ULTRAVOX Edition


LOUIS MOINETULTRAVOX Hour-Strike Gold 46.5 mm Limited Edition

Ultravox
Louis Moinet’s first ever Hour-Strike

The hour-strike complication is an extremely rare member of the strike mechanism family, and the layout used here is quite possibly unique. The mechanism has been revealed, enabling its complexity to be admired. The magic of watchmaking mechanics is embodied by the moving yokes and the engraved hammer that marks out the hours. Two hundred years ago, Louis Moinet’s clocks and pocket watches chimed the hours for leading figures of his day. Now, his name has been joined with that of Eric Coudray, a great present-day watchmaker, to create a new masterpiece in the same spirit.

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The hour-strike is a rare Fine Watchmaking complication, and rarer still when it is the product of a fully independent firm, based on an exclusive movement, and created ex nihilo – thus representing a markedly fresh approach.

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The advent of the Ultravox coincides with the 250th anniversary of Louis Moinet’s birth in Bourges in 1768.

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Throughout his entire life, the inventor of the Compteur de Tierces chronograph, which dates from 1816, made a large number of striking clocks, many of which adorned the drawing rooms of the world’s greatest leaders, from Napoleon Bonaparte to Tsar Alexander I and presidents of the United States (among them Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe), as well as many others besides.

Asserting a style

ULTRAVOX is an exclusive creation, designed to celebrate the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of Louis Moinet’s birth. The inventor of the chronograph also designed striking clocks which adorned the drawing rooms of the world’s greatest leaders: Napoleon Bonaparte, Tsar Alexander I, US presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe, and many others besides. These works of art are now to be found in prestigious private collections – as well as in the White House, the Louvre, and the Hermitage Museum. Ateliers Louis Moinet also have a large historical collection at their head office in Saint-Blaise.
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This tangible heritage has enabled us to design an Hour Strike drawing inspiration from Louis Moinet whilst also being undisputedly rooted in the twenty-first century. Louis Moinet was both an artist and a scientist. With this in mind, we decided to lay bare all of the mechanics of this complication – a world first,”   adds Jean-Marie Schaller.

A watch bearing the “Eric Coudray & Co” name

Watchmaker Eric Coudray, winner of the Gaïa Prize – and, in Jean-Marie Schaller’s words, “a magician!” – is one of the greatest watch designers alive. The Ultravox bears the name of this Master and his outstanding team, without whom nothing could be achieved.

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The Latin name “Ultravox”, the ‘ultimate voice’,  is a nod both to the strike mechanism and to the neoclassical influences on Louis Moinet, whose clocks portrayed figures such as Minerva, Julius Caesar, and Cicero.

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The strike mechanism denotes each passing hour on the hour, marking out the appropriate number of chimes. A silencer mechanism also allows the wearer to disengage the chime if they so wish.

A complication revealed as never before

To enhance the sheer excellence of this creation, for the first time Louis Moinet has unveiled its entire spectacular mechanism on the wrist. The pulsating balance wheel, channelling the force of the barrel to regulate the pace of the chime, is revealed.

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The central flirt triggers a system to arm the hammer: located at eleven o’clock, this strikes out the hours on a gong arranged around the movement.
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The movement’s highly complex plate has over 50 jewels in order to engage the chime mechanism’s various components. Its “Moinet blue” colour illuminates the entire watch, setting off the block-polished and chamfered screws above it. The rear reveals an innovative system of parallel double rotors, also enhanced with Moinet blue. The first of these serves to generate power for the hours and minutes mechanism, while the second is dedicated solely to the chime.

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With a diameter of 46.5 millimetres, ULTRAVOX is available in a limited edition of just 28 rose gold pieces.

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Collection: Limited Edition

Model: ULTRAVOX  

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Unique Limited to only 28 pieces

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Press Release - 2019
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Wednesday, April 24, 2019

A. Lange & Sohne – RICHARD LANGE Jumping Seconds Black Edition


A. Lange & SohneRICHARD LANGE Jumping Seconds Black Dial White Gold Edition

RICHARD LANGE JUMPING SECONDS
White-gold edition with black dial

The RICHARD LANGE JUMPING SECONDS makes a strong statement with its prominent white-gold case and black dial. The scientific-technical design of the timepiece is emphasised with minimalistic red colour accents.

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Ever since it was launched in 2016, Lange’s first new-era model with jumping seconds has stood out with its sleek design and mechanical finesse. Its regulator dial with the large seconds circle at the top draws the attention to the smallest of the three units of time. The smaller hour and minute circles arranged beneath it are positioned to the left and right.

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A. Lange & Söhne is presenting a version with a black dial at the SIHH 2019 in Geneva.Subtlety in colour and the symmetry of the circles recall Bauhaus design concepts. The clear contrast of white markings on a black background adds a new aesthetic dimension to theregulator architecture emphasised by its red accents. The display in the lower zone where the hour and minute indications intersect is a special eye-catcher: Ten hours before the unwound state is reached, it switches from white to red, reminding the wearer that the watch needs to be rewound soon.

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The indication of the time units with three overlapping displays dates back to Dresden-based astronomer and watchmaker Johann Heinrich Seyffert. His famous pocket chronometer No. 93, completed in 1807, was the first watch with such a dial arrangement. Despite its historic roots, the RICHARD LANGE JUMPING SECONDS is decidedly contemporary and functional. Against the dark background of the flat dial, the hands – in solid gold for the hours and minutes, and in rhodiumed steel for the sweep seconds – stand out prominently. The interplay betweencontrasting bright and dark colours is echoed by the black alligator leather strap with a white-gold buckle.

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With superior rate accuracy and eminent legibility, the RICHARD LANGE watch familycontinues the tradition of scientific observation watches at A. Lange & Söhne. Its name pays tribute to Ferdinand Adolph Lange’s first-born son. Throughout his entire life, Richard Lange was committed to harnessing the latest scientific insights in the interest of progress in watch-making. A metal alloy for balance springs, still used today, is one of his 27 patented inventions. In an evolved form, the stoppable jumping sweep seconds conceived by his father was granted one of the first patents in Germany in 1877.

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The RICHARD LANGE JUMPING SECONDS carries the concept of the observation watch over into the 21st century. With its unique combination of a constant-force escapement for theseconds, jumping seconds, and ZERO-RESET function, it showcases the key hallmarks of an observation watch: dependability, precision, and clarity. In the L094.1 manufacture calibre, three complex mechanisms interact to drive the balance with a uniform amount of energy across the maximum power reserve of 42 hours, to advance the seconds hand from marker to marker 86,400 times a day, and to activate the ZERO-RESET function.

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Acting as a spring-powered remontoir system, the constant-force escapement of the RICHARD LANGE JUMPING SECONDS transforms the gradually declining torque of the mainspringbarrel into identical bursts of energy that are delivered to the escapement in one-secondintervals. Additionally, switching impulses are generated for the jumping seconds. The first pocket watches with this complication date back to the late 18th century. As precursors of the chronograph, they were used for time measurements with one-second resolution. They helped naval navigators find their way, assisted astronomers in determining celestial meridianpassages and allowed physicians to measure heart rates.

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When the crown is pulled out, the patented ZERO-RESET mechanism of the RICHARD LANGE JUMPING SECONDS stops the cam-poised balance wheel, advances the seconds hand to the zero position as in a chronograph, and thus simplifies time setting. For this purpose, the flow of power from the constant-force escapement to the going train must be interrupted. This is done with a proprietary multi-disc clutch. It steadies the seconds hand in its position as it incremen-tally jumps forward, making it possible to reliably block and re-establish the flow of power.

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The finissage of the 390-part manually wound movement complies with the strictest Lange standards. Together, the bridges made of untreated German silver and decorated with Glashütte ribbing, the hand-engraved balance cock, the eight screwed gold chatons, and the lavishly decorated and polished surfaces give the RICHARD LANGE JUMPING SECONDS its classic Lange face on the movement side as well.

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This model was introduced in 2019. The dial is crafted from solid silver. The hands are made of white gold and rhodiumed steel.

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Technical Specifications

Model: RICHARD LANGE Jumping Seconds Black Dial White Gold

Reference: № 252.029
White Gold
Limited Edition  100 watches.

Movement
Lange manufacture calibre L094.1
Manually wound, crafted to the most exacting Lange quality standards,
decorated and assembled by hand; precision-adjusted in five positions;
constant-force escapement with remontoir spring crafted in-house;
plates and bridges made of untreated German silver;
balance cock engraved by hand

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Movement measures:
Diameter: 33.6 millimetres; height: 6.0 millimetres
Movement parts: 390
Bearing jewels: 50
Screwed gold chatons: 8
Escapement: Lever escapement 
Oscillator:
Shock-resistant balance wheel with eccentric poising weights;
balance spring manufactured in-house with a frequency of
21,600 semi-oscillations per hour, precision beat-adjustment
system with lateral setscrew and whiplash spring
Power reserve: 42 hours when fully wound
Functions
Time display in hours, minutes and jumping seconds with stop
seconds and ZERO-RESET function; end-of-power indication
Operating elements:
Crown for winding the watch and setting the time
Case
White gold
Diameter: 39.9 millimetres; height: 10.6 millimetres
Crystal and back: Sapphire crystal (Mohs hardness 9)
Dial: Solid silver, black
Hands: Hours and minutes in white gold and rhodiumed steel, blued-steel seconds hand
Strap
Hand-stitched alligator leather strap, black
Buckle: Lange prong buckle in platinum

Limited edition  100 watches

Price: 71.000 €*
*Recommended retail price in Germany including VAT. Non-binding quotation, prices subject to change
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Press Release - 2019
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Contact information for the media
Arnd Einhorn, Director Press and PR
* Tel.: +49 (0)35053 44-5505
* E-mail: presse@lange-soehne.com
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