The Six New Nomos Ludwig 75 Jahre Grundgesetz

Watch companies find inspiration in the most unusual places, but it’s rare to encounter a muse taken from the pages of a nation’s constitution. The Basic Law, or “Grundgesetz”, is the constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany. Consisting of 146 articles, it was introduced in West Germany in 1949 and extended to reunified Germany in 1990. Nomos, the German brand headquartered in Glashütte, was founded in 1990, just after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Proud of their constitution that brought freedom, democracy and legal certainty to the East, Nomos celebrates the 75^th anniversary of German Basic Law. A study in sophisticated minimalism, the Ludwig collection with Roman numerals on the dial, has been selected to honour Germany’s Constitution with the six limited-edition Ludwig 75 Jahre Grundgesetz watches. 

At Nomos, the brand that derives its name from the ancient Greek word for “justice, law and order,” democracy resonates deeply. As Nomos Managing Director Judith Borowski emphasises: “We owe a great deal to our constitution – it’s not a coincidence that the world looks to our example. Our company as it exists today was only made possible by the fall of the Berlin Wall. It also brought democracy to East Germany. The new NOMOS watch, this limited-edition Ludwig 75 Jahre Grundgesetz, is, in my view, a beautiful statement for the constitution and for freedom, democracy, and legal certainty.” To honour Germany’s Constitution, Nomos has selected six models from its classic Ludwig family. Available in six different case sizes and three different movements, there is a model for every patriotic wrist.

Although Nomos rounds out the diameter of the cases to avoid decimals, the Ludwig models in 32.8mm, 35mm and 37.5 cases are powered by the brand’s manual-winding Alpha calibre. The 36mm and 38.5mm diameters are equipped with the neomatik DUW 3001 calibre, while the largest Ludwig model with a 40.5mm diameter is powered by the brand’s DUW 6101, with a patented date mechanism with Roman numerals.

As any designer will tell you, simplicity is devilishly difficult to achieve. Achieving perfect proportions and balancing the elements on a dial is an art that can be keenly appreciated across the Ludwig collection. Regardless of size or movement, all six models share a slender, polished stainless steel case with a thin bezel and simple, curved lugs. They also share white silver-plated dials, narrow black Roman numerals and recessed small seconds sub-dials at 6 o’clock with an elegant snailed background and black markings. You’ll notice that the railway minutes track on the manual-winding models is not featured on the neomatik version, which uses simple markers instead.

However, the feature that sets these limited editions apart from regular Ludwig models is the incorporation of the small typographical character representing a silcrow or section (§) frequently used when citing sections of a legal code. Featured in black on the manual-winding models and in gold on the automatic ones, the § symbol replaces the VI marker. At the very base of the dial is an inscription that reads “75 Jahre Grundegesetz”, and the caseback is engraved with “Die Würde des Menschen ist unantastbar” – “Human dignity shall be inviolable”.

To highlight the importance of the 75^th anniversary of Germany’s Constitution, Nomos has partnered with the leading scientific and legal publishing house in Germany: Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft. The idea is that anyone who buys the watch from the publisher will receive a bound scientific edition of German Basic Law.

Availability & Price

All six Ludwig 75 Jahre Grundegesetz models are limited editions of 75 pieces. Retail prices: Ludwig 33 hand-wound – EUR 1,720; Ludwig 35 hand-wound – EUR 1,860; Ludwig 38 hand-wound – EUR 2,000; Ludwig neomatik 36 – EUR 2,880; Ludwig neomatik 39 – EUR 3,050; Ludwig neomatik 41 date – EUR 3,340.

For information, please consult nomos-glashuette.com.