In collaboration with Sincere Haute Horlogerie (SHH) in Singapore, Lang & Heyne presents a new Georg SHH Edition with a special ceramic dial on a 18k rose gold case.
Press release information with commentary in italics.
New: Lang & Heyne Georg SHH Edition in rose gold and ceramic dial
Retail price for the Lange & Heyne Georg SHH Edition is set at SGD 71,910 inclusive of GST. Limited Edition of 12 pieces only, and available at the new SHH Boutique at Marina Bay Sands.
Commentary
The novelty is a special variant of the fabulous Georg created to celebrate the opening of the Sincere Haute Horlogerie (SHH) Boutique in Marina Bay Sands.
The base watch is the Georg, which is well known and has been in the Lang & Heyne catalog since 2017. The Georg is nothing less than a magnificent piece of high watchmaking. We covered the release details here, a live impressions from Baselworld 2017 here, and the Detailed Review here.
In the review, we were very impressed with the case design and the grand feu enamel dial, but most of all, we were especially very fond of the spectacular movement. The movement layout is unique and very attractive with multiple cocks, each holding one wheel on the power train. Each made by hand in stainless steel and meticulously finished. Each bridge features a curved upper surface and is hand-polished, and their placement brings out much detail in the case back, on top of making the view through the case back more three-dimensional. The case and movement of the SHH Edition is the same and remains unchanged from the base model.
While the base Georg watch itself is an impressive timepiece, there is a new star in the SHH Edition. This is the magnificent new dial. Made of ceramic, it features a base in a beautiful royal blue with white sub-dials, and is a piece of art on its own accord. The dial is comprised of three pieces – a base dial in royal blue, and two sub-dials at different levels in white. The manufacture process is very complicated to manufacture. See the release details for information on this.
The new watch is released at about SGD 72k, which in today’s exchange is about EUR 51k, about double that of the release price of EUR 26k / SGD 37k in rose gold in 2017 for the Georg in rose gold and enamel dial. However, this pricing is outdated and the current retail price for the Georg in rose gold, enamel dial is SGD 66,520. Given this pricing and the market outlook in the secondary market (do a quick search on Chrono24 will reveal market asking price above retail), the SGD 72k seems a reasonable ransom. The SHH Edition is a 12 piece limited edition with the unique ceramic dial. If you want one, you would be well advised to get in touch with SHH as soon as possible. We are pretty sure they will sell out fast!
Release information
In collaboration with one of South-East Asia’s oldest and most respected high horology retail groups, Lang & Heyne is pleased to introduce the Georg SHH Edition – a special interpretation of the award-winning Lang & Heyne Georg.
The Lang & Heyne Georg SHH Edition is the first in the Georg collection to leverage a unique ceramic dial, set against a royal blue givree-finished silvered baseplate. Limited to just 12 pieces, each watch is hand-engraved with “One of 12” on the movement.
With an estimated production of between 100-150 watches per year, Lang & Heyne creates exclusive and sophisticated timepieces for watch aficionados. The Georg’s Caliber VIII’s completely visible movement is finely finished, with its intricate Breguet overcoil hairspring, solid gold screws and gear train all on display through the see-through sapphire caseback. Made of stainless steel, the avant- garde bridges and cocks with a domed top and the large polished stone countersink capture and reflect light from every viewing angle. Different forms and materials combined with the contrast of polished and matte surfaces increases movement depth and provides a fascinating geometry.
The Unique Ceramic Dial
Ceramic dials are made possible due to their high pressure-resistance and low specific density characteristics, making them a more complex and durable material. Lang & Heyne’s design intention shines through when observing how they have combined the white ceramic dial with the royal blue givree-finished silvered baseplate.
The process of producing the ceramic discs is a time consuming one, as they first have to be engraved and cut out with the use of a laser, before being finished to ensure that the edges are as clean as possible. One can realise the very fine engraving of up to 0.05mm line width when up close. The dials are made to fit precisely into the base plate’s corresponding recess by having the outer contours sanded. The edges are provided with chamfers which are then also polished, giving the dial a sophisticated, three-dimensional look.
Due to the ceramic dial’s primary material being aluminium oxide, ie. the same as sapphire, it can hence only be processed with diamond tools and pastes. The use of “Berlac Print”, a high-quality printing ink, when laying out the engraving by hand allows various colours to be realised on the dial. The dial is then finished with the use of a wooden disc to achieve a high polished end product.
With the second dial designed to be lower than the first, two individual ceramic discs are required. The disc of the second dial – at only 0.4 mm thick – is glued in from the back with a high-strength two- component synthetic resin adhesive. Meanwhile, the main dial is glued into the carrier from the front.
Only 12 Georg SHH Edition timepieces will be created to commemorate the opening of SHH’s new boutique. Each of the 12 pieces will have the “One of 12” hand-engraved into the movement.
