History of Clocks =} =} =}

By Salina Gomez
  • 3500 BCE

    Sundial

    Sundial
    First sundials built in Ancient Egypt after they were imported from Babylon, with many ancient structures were built to mark the passage of time and determine arrival of planting season and harvest times.
  • 2000 BCE

    Stonehenge

    Stonehenge
    Creation of Stonehenge
  • 1400 BCE

    Burning of oils and candles created

    Burning of oils and candles created
    Some cultures mark the passage of time by measuring the time it takes to burn oil, incense and candles.
  • 742 BCE

    First real proof of sundial existence

    First real proof of sundial existence
  • 300

    sand clocks invented

    sand clocks invented
    Introdution of sand glass clocks
  • Jan 1, 885

    Candles with time markings invented

    Candles with time markings invented
    Candles with time markings introduced to the medieval Europe.
  • Jan 1, 1092

    Water Clocks (Clepsydra) invented

    Water Clocks (Clepsydra) invented
    First mechanical water clock created by Chinese innovator Su Sung.
  • Jan 1, 1368

    Mechanical Clocks invented

    Mechanical Clocks invented
    First mechanical clock makers appeared in England.
  • Jan 1, 1490

    Mainsprings invented

    Mainsprings invented
    •Locksmith Peter Hele invented first mainspring in Nurnburg.
  • Jan 1, 1500

    Small clocks appeared

    Small clocks appeared
    Appearance of first small domestic (table) clocks.
  • Jan 1, 1510

    Mechanical watches invented

    Mechanical watches invented
    First mechanical watch created in German cities of Nuremberg by Peter Henlein. These models were either fastened to belts or carried around the neck and they measured only hours.
  • Jan 1, 1577

    Jost Burgi invented minutes

    Jost Burgi invented minutes
    Jost Burgi invented the minute hand, even though 16th century clocks were very inaccurate

  • Watch protection started

    Watch protection started
    Introduction of protection glass on watches. This finally enabled reliable protection of time dials on the portable small watches

  • Pendulum clocks invented

    Pendulum clocks invented
    Famous Dutch physicist Christiaan Huygens created first pendulum controlled clock

  • William Clemet changes the pendulum clock

    William Clemet changes the pendulum clock
    Pendulum clocks received important upgrade with the introduction of pendulum suspension spring introduced by William Clement

  • Electric clocks invented

    Electric clocks invented
    First electric clock was created by Edinburgh clockmaker Alexander Bain.

  • World time zones invented

    World time zones invented
    Standardization of time zones. England received GMT time zone with Greenwich becoming prime meridian for measuring longitude in entire world

  • Modern electric clock invented

    Modern electric clock invented
    First modern electric clock created by Frank Hope-Jones. This clock became base of all modern clocks that are created today

  • People start using radio transmitters

    People start using radio transmitters
    Radio time signals became transmitted from Washington DC to help ships find longitude on open seas

  • Atomic clocks invented

    Atomic clocks invented
    First atomic clock created by United States National Institute of Standards and Technology (NITS)

  • Digital watches invented

    Digital watches invented
    The first digital watch, which was made in 1972, was the Pulsar. Manufactured by Hamilton Watch Company. "Pulsar" became a brand name which later became known as Seiko in 1978.

  • Watches start becoming popular

    Watches start becoming popular
    Over half a billion watches are sold every year