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Nomos Glashütte Tangente 2Date
Ref. 135
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Stepping up in the same colour and case shape
The Tangente has carried Glashütte's interpretation of Bauhaus clarity since the early 1990s, and this variant exists to answer a question the line had never properly tackled: how do you show the full month on a hand-wound dress watch without thickening the movement beyond reason? The answer is the DUW 4601, a calibre whose patented dual-date mechanism adds a peripheral red date ring to the familiar large-date window at six o'clock, yet keeps the movement itself to 2.8mm — thin enough that the whole case sits at 6.8mm, which is extraordinarily disciplined for a watch carrying this much calendar complication. The long, straight lugs of the Tangente family mean 47.7mm spans your wrist despite the 37.5mm diameter, so it wears with more authority than the number alone implies — closer to a 39mm watch in presence. The white dial remains sparse enough that the red ring reads immediately without competing with the hand-wound aesthetic, and at midnight both displays advance simultaneously, which is worth watching once. The strap is Shell Cordovan from Horween, a hide that stiffens slightly when new and then conforms precisely, lasting considerably longer than conventional leather under regular wear.
- Reference
- 135
- Brand
- Nomos Glashütte
- Collection
- Tangente
- Case size
- 37.5mm
- Case thickness
- 6.8mm
- Lug width
- 19mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- White
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Manual
- Calibre
- DUW 4601
- Functions
- Date, Small seconds
- Water resistance
- 50m
- Bracelet / strap
- Leather strap
- Strap colour
- Black
- Clasp
- Buckle
- Lume
- Luminous
- Retailer
- Mappin & Webb
Additional specifications
- Lug-to-lug
- 47.7mm
- Power reserve
- 52 hours
Learn more about Nomos Glashütte
Roland Schwertner, a photographer and computer technician from Düsseldorf with no watchmaking background, registered Nomos in Glashütte in January 1990 — two months after the Berlin Wall fell and before German reunification was complete. The town's watchmaking infrastructure had been state-owned for four decades and was suddenly available.
The design language was settled from the start and has barely moved: Bauhaus in the strict sense, drawing on the Dessau school's functionalism. Sans-serif numerals, no applied ornament, no unnecessary line, and dial layouts where every element earns its place. The Tangente, one of the first models, remains the flagship and looks the same today.
The technical ambition came later and was considerable for a company of its size. Nomos moved from modified Swiss ébauches to its own Alpha calibre, then to the DUW family, and in 2014 introduced the swing system — a proprietary escapement with an in-house hairspring, the component almost no independent manufacturer makes. Fewer than a dozen companies worldwide produce their own hairsprings.
The house is still independent, still based in a converted railway station in Glashütte, with design offices in Berlin. It occupies unusual territory: in-house movements and German finishing at prices closer to Swiss mid-range brands using bought-in calibres, which has made it the most common entry point into serious German watchmaking.
- 1990
- Roland Schwertner founds Nomos in Glashütte.
- 1992
- The Tangente launches and defines the house style.
- 2005
- Production shifts to in-house movements.
- 2014
- The swing system escapement with in-house hairspring is introduced.
Also in 5 collections
This watch appears in the Nomos Glashütte Tangente range (7), Stainless Steel Watches (3,355), Back in Stock (2,731), Leather Strap Watches (1,083) and Dress Watches (548).
What the specifications mean
A slim watch on leather, made for wearing with a shirt.
Strengths
- 37.5mm suits most wrists
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
- Sits in the lower half of Nomos Glashütte's range as we list it
Worth knowing
- 50m suits rain and handwashing, not swimming
Nomos Glashütte Tangente 2Date alternatives
Watches from other brands at a similar price, style and size, so you can see what else your budget can buy.
| Specification | 135 | 85008M04 | R32193018 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £2,660 | £2,105 | £2,120 |
| Case size | 37.5mm | 38mm | 39mm |
| Water resistance | 50m | 100m | 100m |
| Movement | Manual | Manual | Manual |
| Strap | Leather strap | Stainless steel bracelet | Leather strap |
| Power reserve | 52 hours | 63 hours | 80 hours |
| This watch |
|
|
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
Showering yes, swimming no. 50m covers splashes and brief immersion, but a swimming stroke generates well above the pressure that figure describes.
Will the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Does it need a battery?
No. It is hand-wound, so it needs winding every day or two but never a battery.
How long does it run for when it's not worn?
About 52 hours fully wound — enough to survive a night off the wrist, but not a full weekend.
What size strap does it take?
19mm. Any strap of that width will fit, and on most modern watches quick-release bars make the swap a two-minute job with no tools.
Will it fit my wrist?
Lug-to-lug is 47.7mm, which suits wrists from roughly 16.5cm (6½ inches) upward.
Lug-to-lug decides fit more than case diameter does.
Is it a men's or women's watch?
Listed as unisex, and at this size it suits any wrist that takes the dimensions.
Cheapest place to buy
Mappin & Webb is the only UK retailer we track stocking this reference new, at £2,660. There is nothing to compare it against today.
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