Live Auction 1348Important Pocket Watches and Wristwatches
A. Lange & Söhne. An extremely rare and large silver prototype aviator's wristwatch with sweep centre seconds, hack feature and black dial
Lot 402

A. Lange & Söhne. An extremely rare and large silver prototype aviator's wristwatch with sweep centre seconds, hack feature and black dial

SIGNED A. LANGE & SÖHNE, NO. 210010, CIRCA 1940

Closed12 November 2007

Price Realised

CHF 37,000

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A. Lange & Söhne. An extremely rare and large silver prototype aviator's wristwatch with sweep centre seconds, hack feature and black dial
Signed A. Lange & Söhne, no. 210010, circa 1940
Cal. 48 three quarter plate gilt-finished lever movement, bimetallic compensation balance, micrometer regulator, the black dial with luminous Roman numerals, luminous hands, outer ring calibrated for 60 seconds, inner ring calibrated for mirrored seconds from 0 to 60, in large circular case with snap on back, large crown, case and movement signed and numbered
65 mm. diam.

Formerly in the Mel Blanc Collection

Specialist note

The present watch is from an exceedingly small series of observation watches ordered for a special unit of Germany's armed forces, fitted with larger cases, calibre 48 movement and with a different dial layout than the standard issues (see lot 399 in this auction). For photographic purposes the seconds scale was mirror-inverted. Following the first prototypes cased in silver, Lange was to supply 10 examples with nickel-brass cases each month. It is thought that only an exceedingly small number of these prototypes in silver cases were made, rendering this watch a truly rare find.

The models are explained and illustrated in A. Lange & Söhne - eine Uhrmacher-Dynastie aus Dresden by Reinhard Meis, pp. 220 & 221 and Military Timepieces by Konrad Knirim, p. 452.