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Figure 1: Inside of a mechanical clock, gears.
The Beginning
Medieval Europeans began developing the mechanical clock around 1270-1430 CE. The mechanical clock was manufactured to replace less efficient time keeping devices like the sundial and the water clock. The mechanical clock was a very necessary development because it wasn't easily affected by weather like the sundial and water clock. Today, the mechanical clock is an important asset to society.
How was this invention made?
The first mechanical clocks were made almost fully out of iron. They held a weight driven cogwheel and an oscillating pendulum, this contributed to the large size of early clocks. The earliest clocks did not have hands or dials, instead they had bells inside that signaled the passing of time. There were two weights inside of the clock, one that kept the pendulum swinging back and forth, and one to ring the bell. There is not a single inventor of the mechanical clock, but one benefactor was Villard de Honnecourt, a French architect who made the first escapement model. The first drawing of an escapement was submitted by Jacopo di Dondi and his son, this is why we think we know when the mechanical clock was first made. The original mechanical clocks were thought to be more like clock towers than anything else, they used large weight driven cogwheels that contributed to their large size. There were many different versions of the mechanical clock, but they all worked in a similar fashion.
Figure 2: The first prototype of the mechanical clock.
What impacts did it have on this civilization?
What impacts did it have on this civilization?
Figure 3: Ancient sundial, one of the earlier forms of time keeping.
Easily affected by weather
Easily affected by weather
The mechanical clock was invented for many reasons, one of which being simply for a more efficient way to tell time. Other clocks like the water clock and sundial could be affected by weather. When temperatures dropped below zero, the water clock would freeze and become unusable. When weather became overcast, the sundial was just as useless as the frozen water clock.
Figure 4: Inside of a Catholic church, idols inside of church.
Spread of Catholicism
Spread of Catholicism
The mechanical clock was also invented because of the spread of Catholicism. People of the Catholic faith believed that it is necessary to pray seven exact times per day. This widespread belief in Medieval Europe made the mechanical clock far more necessary than before. The mechanical clock helped people stand strong in their faith and made it easier to do that.
Figure 5: Image of Big Ben, one of the worlds most well-known clock towers.
What effect did it have on later civilizations?
What effect did it have on later civilizations?
The mechanical clock has continued to have a lasting effect all the way until present time. Clocks are an asset to organization and productivity. If people didn't have any accessible way to tell the time, how would anything get done? Deadlines would never be met, and nobody would know how or when to complete anything. Everything revolves around time, so it is important that the mechanical clock was invented to help us keep up.
What are some different forms of this invention?
What are some different forms of this invention?
Like many inventions, the mechanical clock has evolved since it was first invented. The first mechanical clocks were more like clock towers, while others that came after that became smaller in size. There was also a large jump in the kinds of clocks that exist, the most modern is the digital clock. The digital clock is simply a clock where the time is displayed through numbers rather than having to be read. Mechanical clocks today are more about simplicity than anything else.
Figure 6: Image of a modern day digital clock.
More Information
More Information
With this website you can learn more about the mechanics of a clock!
This website can teach you more about the background of the mechanical clock and why, when, and how it was invented!
Institute and Museum of the History of Science: https://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/itineraries/multimedia/MechanicalClocks.html
This website has a great informational video about the origin and structure of the mechanical clock!
Curated by Alexis
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