pour le merite

What happens when you drop an exclusive and highly limited edition A. Lange & Sohne Tourbograph Pour le Merite into a vat of molten hot baguette cut diamonds? Well this special edition version of the watch for Dubail of course! Dubail is a luxury watch and jewelery store is Paris, and is blessed enough to have what just might be the world's most expensive new A. Lange & Sohne watch - limited edition of just one piece.

The Tourbograph Pour le Merite was outstanding enough, but this 'piece unique' takes the luxury to a different level by adding 201 diamonds on the case, and another 175 on the bracelet. There are over 40 carats of diamonds on this 41.2mm wide watch done in white gold.

Looking closely you can see that so many parts of the watch have diamonds in them. Even the crown and chronograph pushers. What is interesting about the watch, is that the inside of the watch is just as stunning as the outside. You can see it through the sapphire exhibition caseback. Although a diamond covered watch like this is of course gaudy, I think that it is as tastefully done as could have been. The watch itself has a manufacture made caliber L903.0 tourbillon movement, with a 30 minute chronograph and power reserve indicator. My recollection is that the movement alone takes about a year to make. The watch will be available at the Dubai store with a retail price of 1.2 million euros (or about $1.75 million).

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Today the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie SIHH 2009 officially begins in Geneva, where the best of the best watch makers come to display what new and beautiful watches the welcoming crowd can expect to see in stores soon. The perennial show favorite A. Lange & Sohne presents two new models: the limited edition Richard Lange "Pour Le Merite" and a new version of the best selling 1815 model. Sharp eyes watch the Lange Uhren manufacture eager to see how classic tradition can be made fresh each year. I got a chance to view the watches before the show and can report that I am impressed.

When high-end German watch maker A. Lange & Sohne releases a new watch, I often do a double take. Their beautiful designs remain so consistent, it simply isn't obvious what is new in each release. The most recent addition to the A. Lange & Sohne collection is the Richard Lange Pour le Merite. A provocative sounding watch bearing the name of the almost century old "Pour le Merite" (for Merit) award - that is still occasionally awarded in Germany and parts of Europe.

The Richard Lange Pour le Merite has a special complex feature in the movement called a fusee chain (constructed like a very small bicycle chain). The chain connects to the mainspring barrel and assists in providing a balanced, consistent level of power release from the mainspring (that delivers a uneven power release by default). Power release consistency is compensated due to the fact that the fusee chain is wound around a cone shaped cylinder that unravels or winds at an different rate. The fusee chain also assists with safe winding of the main spring. These complications are reserved for only the most complex watches in the world, and it is a testament to the engineering prowess of A. Lange & Sohne that it is able to produce such movements. As such, the fusee chain (constructed of 636 parts) is included in the in-house developed and manufactured L044.1 manually-wound, hand built and decorated movement.

The watch itself is 40.5mm wide and available in either 18k rose gold or platinum with a pristine white enamel face and painted dial. The hands are blued steel, and the design is traditional A. Lange & Sohne that places an emphasis on legibility. The Richard Lange Pour le Merite is a meticulously designed and constructed luxury watch that succeeds in epitomizing the spirit of high-end German watch making with its subtle handsome looks and intriguing mechanics.

Ariel Adams publishes the watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.