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Nomos Glashütte Tangente Neomatik 39
Ref. 140
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Stepping up in Nomos Glashütte's range
The Tangente's roots are in 1990s Glashütte, where NOMOS set out to prove that Bauhaus rigour — spare numerals, uncluttered white dial, nothing carried over from the ornamental tradition of German watchmaking — could sustain a serious mechanical watch. The Neomatik line then added a second ambition: fitting an automatic movement inside that famously lean case. The DUW 3001 achieves this at just 3.2mm of movement height, made in NOMOS's own workshops and regulated by the proprietary swing system escapement, its blue balance spring the only flourish on an otherwise austere mechanism. The result is a watch 7.2mm thick that carries no visible evidence of its rotor. On the wrist that thinness reads immediately. At 38.5mm it sits within the proportions the original Tangente established, while the 47.3mm lug-to-lug keeps it from overreaching on a narrower wrist. The shell cordovan strap — Horween leather, rembordé-edged — breaks in with use rather than against it, and the material's natural water resistance suits a watch that will be worn rather than saved.
- Reference
- 140
- Brand
- Nomos Glashütte
- Collection
- Tangente
- Case size
- 38.5mm
- Case thickness
- 7.2mm
- Lug width
- 19mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- White
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- DUW 3001
- Functions
- Small seconds
- Water resistance
- 50m
- Bracelet / strap
- Leather strap
- Strap colour
- Black
- Clasp
- Buckle
- Lume
- Luminous
- Retailer
- Mappin & Webb
Additional specifications
- Lug-to-lug
- 47.3mm
- Power reserve
- 43 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), Automatic Watches (1,699), 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
- 38.5mm suits most wrists
- 7.2mm is unusually slim for a 38.5mm case
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
Worth knowing
- 50m suits rain and handwashing, not swimming
Nomos Glashütte Tangente Neomatik 39 alternatives
Watches from other brands at a similar price, style and size, so you can see what else your budget can buy.
| Specification | 140 | L16484782 | 7765-STC-20001 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £3,400 | £3,500 | £3,550 |
| Case size | 38.5mm | 38mm | 39.5mm |
| Water resistance | 50m | 50m | 50m |
| Movement | Automatic | Automatic | Automatic |
| Strap | Leather strap | Leather strap | Leather strap |
| Power reserve | 43 hours | 72 hours | 62 hours |
| This watch | Closely matched | Closely matched |
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 automatic — the motion of your wrist winds it, and there is no cell to replace.
How long does it run for when it's not worn?
About 43 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 47.3mm, 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 £3,400. There is nothing to compare it against today.
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