175 Years of Watchmaking in Glashütte

In 1845, Ferdinand Adolph Lange established the first watchmaking workshop in the small village of Glashütte, near Dresden, Germany. He laid the foundation for the finest German watchmaking that rivaled skills of watchmakers in the Swiss Jura region. As the watchmaking was flourishing, Glashütte experienced serious setbacks with the two World Wars and the Soviet occupation until the reunification in 1990. Since the 1990’s fine watchmaking has returned, and again flourishes with several manufacturers.

Colorful Celebration

Since 2020, Nomos has released Ludwig and Lambda limited editions to mark the 175 years of watchmaking in Glashütte. The third release is perfectly timed with spring season for the navy, olive, and onyx colorways in the Club Automatic series. Nomos targets the younger generation with their sporty Club model in 40mm stainless steel case with colorful dials and bold luminous hands and text.

Club Automatic is a sports watch at heart with 200 meters water resistance, but it still remains true to Bauhaus aesthetics. A clean, harmonious dial with optimal legibility. The appealing dial colors, especially the olive green and navy blue dials, inject a contemporary vibe to the muted Bauhaus aesthetics. Olive and navy models are accompanied with a textile strap, whereas the onyx model comes with the sports bracelet.

Tradition of Innovating

It is still shocking to see how Nomos pulls off creating in-house movements with advanced innovations, and yet is so competitively priced compared to similar Swiss and other German brands.

The Club Automatic is powered by the in-house DUW 5001 automatic movement with Nomos’ proprietary “swing system” adjusted in accordance to chronometer standards. In 2014, Nomos created their own escapement which they call the swing system. An escapement consists of high-precision components—the balance, balance spring, escape wheel, and the pallet. Majority of the watch companies rely on the Swatch Group to supply these components. Therefore, it is amazing that Nomos has managed to create its own escapement and yet offer watches in the $2,000 – $4,000 price range.

Technical Specifications

Case: 40mm x 9.7mm, stainless steel
Movement: DUW 5001 automatic caliber, Nomos swing system with tempered blue balance spring, 43 hours power reserve
Strap: Textile straps for navy and olive models, steel bracelet for onyx model
Availability: Limited Edition of 175 for each reference. Available in February 2021
Price: USD 2,620 for navy and olive on strap, USD 2,920 for onyx on bracelet