New A Lange and Söhne Datograph Handwerkskunst is the world's best birthday present

Do you remember your 25th birthday? I remember mine – somewhere in the fever dream of the Covid-19 pandemic, I'd just managed to move before a lockdown occurred, leaving me in sole possession of a cake intended for my whole family. After a brief attempt at recreating that scene from Matilda, I called everyone I knew locally to offer some out in a distanced manner and then played FIFA all evening.

It's hardly a party worthy of The Great Gatsby, but it's a fairly normal sounding way to celebrate twenty-five years of existence. A Lange and Söhne clearly didn't get that memo, though.

Not content with simply offering cake to their friends and calling it a day, the brand has been celebrating its quarter-century with a range of Datograph models. We first saw them at Watches and Wonders 2024 – where they even snagged a prestigious T3 Award for best in show.

Now, the brand is back with another variant. And just as you'd expect from the Maison behind some of the best watches on the planet, it's absolutely staggering.

The Datograph Handwerkskunst kicks off with a black-rhodiumed gold dial. That's textured with an engraving process which produces a fine grain. The same process is used on the sub-registers, though those sport a light grey finish for differentiation.

Of course – when it comes to Lange – the dial is literally only half of the watch. The brand is renowned for making some of the prettiest watch movements in the world. Worthy of a thesaurus full of adjectives, manually-wound L951.8 caliber used here is simply breathtaking.

Lange are masters of finishing and that's as true here as it is on any other piece from their collection. This piece uses a rare technique called black polishing, for example. Seen in this model on the chronograph levers, the technique gives a surface a jet black appearance – but only from one direction. When viewed at any other angle, the piece shows with a mirror-like gloss.

That staggering beauty continues on the balance cock. The brand is no stranger to a bit of flamboyance here, with their range offering a host of stunning decorations here.

On the Datograph Handwerkskunst, though, the panel is relief engraved. That means that excess material is removed, leaving the design portion untouched – rather than simply engraving the design. It's a masterclass in doing things extravagantly, just because they can.

All of that is set within a 41mm case crafted from 750 yellow gold. It also sits a remarkable 13.1mm tall – impressive once you consider the sheer volume of parts used here. 

Limited to just 25 pieces – each with its own number engraved on the case – we're not expecting these to stick around for too long. If you can get your hands on one, we urge you to. You won't regret it.