In 1668 Johann Georg II certified the foundation of Dresden's first independent watchmakers guild, and thereby inaugurated a glorious tradition. August the Strong, Elector of Saxony and King of Poland, as well as his son Friedrich August II, each famous for their appreciation of art and baroque lifestyles, attracted artisans and craftsmen to Dresden who created sumptuous watches, which were both genuine mechanical as well as artistic miracles. Since 1728 these treasures have been closely guarded in the Royal Saxonian Watch Cabinet (Mathematisch-Physikalischer-Salon) within Dresden's famous Zwinger Building which today still accommodates one of the world's most historic and admired collection of watches.

The French Revolution in 1789 provoked dramatic changes in European lifestyles. The «mechanical» content of watches began to overshadow fancy cases and sumptuous artistry. In Saxony as well, watches turned gradually into instruments for the precise measurement of time. Period watchmakers such as Köhler and Seyffert devoted their careers to developing technically superior, highly sophisticated pendulum clocks, chronometers, watches and scientific measuring devices. The precise movements, presented in cases with-out frills, perfectly reflected the new values: a type of modesty which still excites collectors and admirers of precision watches who desire elegance.

«Saxonia» - the first German railway connecting Dresden and Leipzig marked a new phase of mobility for the country. portable watches to organize time for man's advantage became inseparable companions for an increasing number of people. Only a few were in the privileged position to afford one of the rare and prestigious pocket watches manu-factured by a traditional watchmaker from Dresden. Some of these rarities originated from Friedrich Gutkaes, the court watchmaker. Ferdinand Adolph Lange, as his young apprentice, learned the art of watchmaking prior to the founding of the watchmaking industry in Glashütte.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the wristwatch finally began its triumphal march that continues strongly today. Holding the great masters of the past centuries in high esteem, the manufacturers of fine watches lang & heyne dedicates today to the different watch and clock types, especially the wrist watches.