Lang & Heyne König Albert Von Sachsen, Platinum

Founded in 2001 in Dresden, Saxony the independent house of Lang & Heyne was helmed by Marco Lang, after Mirko Heyne left the following year to work at Nomos in nearby Glashütte. Lang, a fifth-generation watchmaker, who had got his start in precision mechanics, built the brand around the baroque spirit of Dresden, imbuing the technical finesse of the masters whose historic clocks and watches he had watched his father restore for the Dresden Art Chamber. He too would earn his stripes in restoration before crafting watches under his own name. Lang & Heyne exhibited its first watches, the Friedrich August and the Johann, when the brand exhibited with the Academy of Independent Watchmakers (AHCI) at Baselworld in 2002. It continued the tradition of naming its watches after nobility and those who made meaningful contributions to Saxon society even after Lang left the brand in 2019.

First debuted in 2006, the König Albert Von Sachsen  often referred to simply as the Albert Chronograph is named after the 19th and early 20th century King of Saxony, in keeping with tradition. Over a 15-year production period, fewer than 50 examples of the watch were produced in platinum, white and rose gold. They came either with white enamel or galvanic black dials.

This example of the series, from 2012, features a 44mm platinum case, with the brand’s signature three-lug aesthetic. The three parts of the case are evenly rounded, coming together to create a smooth, almost uninterrupted, pebble-like form. All parts are equally polished, and in keeping with the classicality of the aesthetic, a monopusher integrated into the deeply knurled, onion-shaped crown operates a co-axially mounted 60-minute chronograph. The crown is flanked by protectors, their slight, rounded profile wholly consistent with the form of the case.

The three lugs, issuing from the midcase, are short and curve down. A dark navy, alligator grained leather strap meets the lugs thanks to screwed on pins. The strap is secured by a simple but robust signed platinum pin buckle.

The expansive enamel dial, built on a silver base, is again beautifully restrained, it’s register-less chronograph makes for a clean layout. On the outer reaches is the 60-minute chronograph register, graduated down so elapsed time can be calculated to 1/10th of a minute. This scale is printed in black, with larger batons for minutes and blue Arabic numerals at intervals of five minutes. Two hands correspond to this scale, a heat-blued hand records elapsed seconds while the silvered hand underneath it keeps a record of the minutes since the chronograph was triggered.

This is followed by a black chemin de fer of minutes, with a chapter of elongated Roman hours. Both are partially interrupted by the marginally sunken subsidiary seconds register at 6 o’clock. Crafted separately, it has a similar layout to the time-telling chapters, with Arabic seconds at intervals of 10. The hours and minutes hands, with prominent clubbed ends, are heat-blued, as is the seconds pointer. The chronograph hands are thin, with prominent aperture counterbalances. In the zero position, the apertures on both chronograph hands line up perfectly with each other as well as the seconds pinion.

The display caseback is hemmed by a simple bezel secured by eight screws. It holds within the brand's pride, the calibre IV, that made Lang & Heyne one of just three German marks with their own chronographs. The manually wound, column wheel chronograph calibre IV is beautifully laid out, its architecture plain to the view. It features a single barrel that offers 46 hours of autonomy, while the balance – beating at a placid 18,000 vibrations per hour – is anchored by a diamond jewel on a hand-engraved bridge with a swan neck regulator. The working of the chronograph wheels and the column wheel, triggered by the monopusher, is both tactile and visually satisfying.

On the lower level, somewhat obscured, are the wheels of the going train. The brass bridges and plates wear a frosted finishing, while the escapement cock and the column wheel have been black polished. Other stainless-steel parts wear vertical brushing, while the wheel of the mainspring is solarised. The visible screws are heat blued. The bridges feature anglage.

Visually distinctive is the engraving on the bridges detailing the double-digit serial number as well as the brand mark. While other examples we have viewed wear a more ornate, italicised engraving style, on this example such etching is done in a more baroque way. According to the brand, this was likely a special request and as such a point of distinction from other examples of the König Albert Von Sachsen.

The watch comes with its set of box and paperwork. König Albert Von Sachsen is a technical milestone for Lang & Heyne. This example stands singular even within the very small number of chronographs the brand produced.

Closer look

Condition

This Lang & Heyne König Albert Von Sachsen is in excellent overall condition. The case and lugs show very light signs of wear, consistent with minimal wear over time. The enamel dial, hands, and movement are free from any signs of imperfections and have been well preserved. Between the lugs on both sides, the hallmarks and engravings are crisp and well defined.

Warranty

The watch comes with a two-year warranty from A Collected Man, alongside a lifetime guarantee of authenticity.