A LANGE & SÖHNE
Triple Split
WHEN A LANGE & SÖHNE launched
Triple Split in 2018, it was the first mechanical chronograph that could compare times to the tune of hours. It generated considerable buzz, and the 100 pieces of its debut run were quickly spoken for. The reason for its limited nature was simple: the complexity of its cutting-edge 557-component movement meant that qualified personnel were in short supply. “If you can’t get a Lange watch, there are none,” says Anthony de Haas, head of product development at A Lange & Söhne. Despite demand from customers and his own sales team at the time, he cautioned that those 100 pieces would probably take three years to complete. He could have assigned more people to the calibre, but it would mean removing them from the production of other high-end pieces like the Datograph Perpetual or Tourbograph Perpetual. “There is a limited number of people who can do stuff like that,” he explains. “It’s more appropriate to say ‘sorry, it’s limited’.”
He was right on the money, as it turns out: the last of that first run were only delivered in January this year.
The revolutionary mechanics of Triple Split this year are unchanged, but the fact that it is once again available as another 100-piece edition (€159,400) is noteworthy enough. It is also a little more dressed up. The original execution was in white gold with a grey dial, a classic A Lange & Söhne colourway and one that emphasised the technicity of the timepiece. This year, it comes with the richness of a blue dial and the warmth of a pink gold case for some cocktail party panache. It is a well-established combination for most, but it is a bit daring for A Lange & Söhne. “We are quite colourful this year,” de Haas acknowledges. “When you do the next version, you really want to create a contrast. You want to do it differently.
“It’s maybe a bit shocking for our purists, but it’s cool! It is so different from the first version. That’s why we did it. That’s how we work.”