subject: History of Watch [print this page] History of Watch History of Watch
A timepiece is a precious asset that is considered a necessity for most of us. During the 15th to 16th century, the first known watch was believed to be created in Europe. These timepieces were not worn on the wrist, but was fastened to clothes or worn with chains just like that of a necklace. It has a cylindrical brass box shaped like a drum that comes with accessories and certain engravings. Unlike the watches we have now, these ancient timepieces did not have a secondhand that tell the minutes. Its face was covered with hinged brass instead of a glass and was usually accented with grill-work so that time can be read while it stays close.
Before 1550 when screws were still not an option, the watch's movement was made from steel or any dense materials that was secured together with shafts or wedges. Watches during this time have to be manually wind twice a day to keep it working. Later on, the watch's shape continue to evolved with time from cylindrical box shape to a rounded form, which is called the Nuremberg eggs. Several trendy shapes of watches became popular later that century like shapes of stars, books, fruits, animals, flowers, death images, insects and Christian symbols. Early timepieces did not gain its popularity because of its ability to tell time as they were made with a very poor foundation, inaccurate mechanism and unusual designs, but instead they were more considered a trendy novelties or fashion jewelries due to its hip designs and cool styles.
During the 17th century, a new style of watch had drawn the attention of most men. They were no longer worn as pendants, but instead as pocket watches. However, women were still attached to the old style. This new style came with a round and flat shape to fit inside everybody's pocket and the cover had evolved into glass cover for the face replacing the brass. However, its mainspring was not constant, which provides inaccurate mechanism as the watch continues to wind down.
In 1675, a balance spring was the new addition to the balance wheel that has made a great improvement on the watch's accuracy with its capability to naturally beat any occurrence of disturbances.
