History
Five thousand years of measuring time
Interactive timeline
c. 1500 BCE
Egyptian shadow clocks and outflow water clocks in use
Egypt · Water/shadow
c. 1092
Su Song's astronomical clock tower completed in Kaifeng
China · Hydromechanical · Su Song's Astronomical Clock Tower
1206
Al-Jazari completes his Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices
Anatolia · Water · Al-Jazari's Elephant Clock
late 13th c.
Verge-and-foliot mechanical clocks appear in Europe
Europe · Mechanical · Verge escapement
1410
Prague Orloj installed
Bohemia · Mechanical · Prague Astronomical Clock (Orloj)
1530
Date inscribed on the spherical 'Melanchthon' watch, Nuremberg
Germany · Spring · Spherical table watch ('Melanchthon's Watch')
1657
Huygens' pendulum clock made by Salomon Coster
Netherlands · Pendulum · Pendulum clock by Salomon Coster (Huygens design)
1675
Spiral balance spring
Netherlands · Balance · Balance spring (hairspring)
c. 1715
George Graham's deadbeat escapement
England · Escapement ·
c. 1755
Mudge's detached lever escapement
England · Escapement · Detached lever escapement
1759
Harrison completes H4
England · Marine · Harrison's H4 marine timekeeper
1801
Breguet patents the tourbillon
France · Complication · Tourbillon
1876
Waltham's machinery shown at Philadelphia Centennial
United States · Industrial · American Waltham Watch Company
1926
Rolex Oyster waterproof case patented
Switzerland · Case · Rolex Oyster (1926)
1957
Hamilton Electric 500 launched
United States · Electric
1965
NASA qualifies the Omega Speedmaster
United States · Chronograph · Omega Speedmaster Professional
1969
Seiko Quartz Astron released
Japan · Quartz · Seiko Quartz Astron 35SQ
1999
Co-axial escapement enters serial production
Switzerland · Escapement · Co-axial escapement
The twelve eras
01 · Before 500 BCE
Ancient Civilizations
Shadow clocks, sundials and outflow water clocks in Egypt, Mesopotamia and China divide day and night into hours.
02 · 500 BCE – 500 CE
Classical Antiquity
Greek and Roman engineers refine the clepsydra; Ctesibius adds float regulation; the Antikythera mechanism models the heavens.
03 · 500 – 1400
Medieval Period
Su Song's astronomical tower in Song China, al-Jazari's automata, and the first European weight-driven verge clocks.
04 · 1400 – 1600
Renaissance Horology
Spring power makes clocks portable; Nuremberg and Augsburg produce the first watches; the Prague Orloj is built.
05 · 1600 – 1750
Early Modern Horology
Huygens' pendulum and balance spring transform accuracy; English makers develop the anchor and deadbeat escapements.
06 · 1750 – 1850
Precision & Scientific Horology
Harrison solves longitude; Mudge invents the lever; Breguet's Paris workshop defines the modern watch.
07 · 1850 – 1900
Industrial Revolution
American interchangeable-parts manufacture; railroad time standards; Swiss and German factory systems.
08 · 1900 – 1945
Golden Age of Mechanical Watchmaking
The wristwatch displaces the pocket watch; waterproof cases, self-winding and grand complications.
09 · 1945 – 1969
Modern Mechanical Horology
Tool watches for divers, pilots and astronauts; electric watches anticipate the electronic age.
10 · 1969 – 1990
Quartz Revolution
Seiko's Astron begins mass quartz timekeeping; traditional industries contract sharply.
11 · 1990 – 2010
Mechanical Renaissance
Mechanical watches return as cultural objects; independent watchmaking flourishes.
12 · 2010 – Present
Contemporary Horology
Silicon components, connected watches, optical-lattice research clocks and a thriving independent scene.