Timekeeping is an honoured part of human development. The ability to track and judge time is essential to creating detailed systems of production and organisation, so people throughout history have consistently applied their technical know-how to keeping time more accurately and reliably than ever before.
The technology began with the advent of sundials, casting a shadow to indicate the location of the sun and measure time with a capable degree of accuracy. The technique was clearly limited to daylight on clear days, though was refined into a highly effective device over thousands of years. The earliest instances of the sundial were the obelisks, dated to around 3500 BC. The ancient Greeks are considered responsible for refining the form of the sundial, a process occurring from 560 BC onwards when Anaximander of Miletus introduced them to the empire.
Where possible, mankind strived to pull away from the light-sensitive and stationary sundials into more portable methods of short-term timekeeping. Candle clocks functioned after the discovery and production of wax that would burn in a reliable manner. The candle would burn down next to a system of markings, each indicating an amount of time. The first reference to a candle clock was in 520 AD China, though they also saw regular use in European churches.
These devices were clearly limited by their single use capabilities. The next major development in personalised time keeping came in the form of hourglasses. They were introduced to Europe around the 8th century, though weren't recorded as commonly owned devices until the 14th century. They originated among medieval European sailors, where limited stores and the movement of the ship rendered sundials and candle clocks ineffective and quickly obsolete.
Hourglasses coincided with a public desire for personal methods of timekeeping. European society was heavily centred on religion, and this was around the time when churches began to employ large water clocks, as well as early mechanical clocks, to set their ceremonies on strict schedules. As a cost-effective way of keeping to these schedules hourglasses exploded in popularity, becoming smaller, discreet and more practical until individuals could carry one with them, for timing labor breaks and cooking.
In the 16th century technology advanced to the state of allowing portable, mechanical watches. Watch building was often seen as a skilled art, and being able to create an accurate product at smaller sizes was a sign of achievement, and clocks were often given to the nobility as gifts. Early proto-pocket watches were contained in cylindrical brass drums, worn around the neck. In the 17th century the waistcoat was introduced to England, and watches evolved into flatter, rounded shapes in order to fit into the newly accessible pockets. The 1700s saw watches decrease in price, becoming readily accessible to sailors and the poorer classes.
Finally, the late 1800s saw portable timekeeping transform into something recognisable today. The military began strapping watches to leather wrist straps, in order to free up their hands and easier co-ordinate tactical engagements. These positive reviews among the military helped create a consumer following, and early 1900s watch companies began releasing wristed variants based on military testimony which fast became the dominant style among consumers.
Surprisingly, the advent of smartphones has driven consumer demand in the opposite direction that it historically took. Now watches are increasingly becoming indulgent status symbols, compared to the trend of increased distribution they enjoyed in the past.
Timekeeping and garden clocks aren't Alan Cray's strong points in writing, but with the help of GardenCentreOnline.co.uk he was able to get the information he needed and ensure he put it into his article in the correct manner.
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