Introduced at SIHH 2016 and limited to 100 pieces in Platinum, the Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon 740.036FE brought together three of A. Lange & Söhne's most significant complications in a single watch: a flyback chronograph with a jumping minute counter, a perpetual calendar with moon phase, and a tourbillon with the manufacture's patented stop-seconds mechanism. It extended the Datograph family that began in 1999 and had already gained a perpetual calendar with the Datograph Perpetual of 2006, and it added further refinements, including a power-reserve indicator and calendar displays that switch instantaneously rather than gradually. The movement, the L952.2, consists of 729 parts and introduced a notable change for a Lange tourbillon: its balance beats at 18,000 semi-oscillations per hour, or 2.5 Hz, the first Lange tourbillon set to this frequency, which allows stopped times to be read to a fifth of a second. Unusually, the tourbillon is not shown on the dial; it is visible only from the caseback side, preserving the Datograph's balanced face. With its black dial of solid silver and Platinum case, the 740.036FE echoed the colours of the original Platinum Datograph of 1999, and in 2019 Lange followed it with a second edition of 100 in White Gold with a pink-gold dial.
The Platinum case measures 41.5 mm across and 14.6 mm in height according to Lange, compact for a watch combining this many complications, and both faces are glazed with sapphire. Its dial is solid silver finished black, with solid-gold appliqués and hour markers and hands of rhodiumed gold and blued steel. It keeps the Datograph's characteristic arrangement: the outsize date beneath twelve o'clock and two lowered subdials, which double as weekday and month displays alongside the running seconds and 30-minute counter. Smaller displays show the leap-year cycle and day or night, the moon phase sits at six o'clock, and a power-reserve indicator has been integrated into the layout. A tachymeter scale encircles the dial. Lange states that the hour and minute hands and the markers at three, six, nine and twelve carry a luminescent coating. The black dial with rhodiumed details gives the watch a crisp, technical look, its contrast making the dense calendar information easy to read. A black alligator strap with a Platinum deployant buckle completes the watch, a presentation that underlines its sober, purposeful character and suits the weight of the Platinum case.
The L952.2 is a hand-wound movement of 729 parts that runs for 50 hours, considerably more than the 36 hours of the Datograph Perpetual. It is based on the Datograph's architecture, with a column wheel controlling the chronograph through a horizontal clutch, a flyback function that resets and restarts a running measurement in one press, and a minute counter that jumps cleanly at the end of each minute. The perpetual calendar now switches all its indications instantaneously at midnight, giving unambiguous readings at all times, and the moon phase is calculated to stay correct for 122.6 years. The one-minute tourbillon, visible through the sapphire caseback, has a three-armed cage about 12.6 mm across with a diamond endstone, and its patented stop-seconds device, first introduced by Lange in 2008, stops the balance as the crown is drawn, for setting to the exact second. The balance carries eccentric poising weights and an in-house balance spring. Its finish follows Lange tradition, from ribbed German silver to gold chatons, blued screws and an engraved balance cock, and it is built twice. Through the sapphire back, the tourbillon and the Datograph's layered chronograph architecture combine into a spectacular mechanical landscape.
The Datograph introduced Lange's chronograph architecture in 1999 and became the foundation of a family that now includes the Datograph Up/Down, the Datograph Perpetual and this Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon. The Datograph Perpetual of 2006 had added a perpetual calendar, and the Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon of 2016 built on it with a tourbillon, power-reserve indicator, longer reserve and instantaneous calendar. Its first edition, the Platinum black-dial 740.036FE, was limited to 100 pieces, and in 2019 Lange followed with a second edition of 100 in White Gold with a pink-gold dial, 740.056, which brought a warmer tone to the design. A later Lumen edition with a luminescent dial extended the theme further. Within the family, the Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon represents the most complete combination of complications, and specialist writers have described its movement as one of the most complex Lange has made. The 740.036FE, with its Platinum case and black dial, carries the strongest visual link to the original Platinum Datograph, connecting the family's beginning with its most elaborate expression and providing a natural summit for any collection built around the Datograph.
The 740.036FE appeals to collectors who want the most complete Datograph. It combines a flyback chronograph with jumping minute counter, a perpetual calendar with instantaneous switching and moon phase, a power-reserve indicator and a tourbillon with stop seconds in a 41.5 mm Platinum case. The black dial keeps the Datograph's distinctive layout clear despite the density of information, and the 50-hour reserve makes the watch practical to wear. Through the sapphire back, the tourbillon and chronograph mechanism offer one of the most impressive views in modern watchmaking. With only 100 pieces made in Platinum, it is a rare and significant reference. It pairs naturally with the White Gold 740.056 for a contrast of metal and dial, with the Datograph Perpetual 410.025 that preceded it, or with the original Platinum Datograph 403.035 to trace the family from its beginning to its most complicated form. For collectors who regard the Datograph as a cornerstone of modern watchmaking and want its fullest expression, it is an exceptional choice.
