It is almost impossible to imagine contemporary life without time measuring devices. From early morning to late night, our day is planned practically minute-by-minute. The majority of people around are in a hurry, they are constantly peeping at their watches, so as not to be late to any particular meeting or event. The unusual holiday - Ticking Clock Day, unofficially celebrated on September 25, is relevant for those, who cannot do without this important invention.

The name of a person that initiated this positive innovation is unknown. One thing is clear - the time of celebration was chosen justifiably. Autumn itself is a time for deep philosophical reflection and unhurried conversations. Moreover, a ticking clock, which this September day is dedicated to, reminds of the transience of beingness, the movement of hands symbolizes the course of human life.

The holiday is not widely celebrated in the Russian Federation. The issue of determining the Day of Ticking Clock as a solemn day on the federal level has never been considered. Perhaps, this day does not have a public holiday status due to its exclusively entertaining meaning. Now it is a regular working day if it does not fall on a calendar weekend. Most Russians do not know about the existence of this holiday.

For many thousands of years, people were trying to create devices for time measuring. The first of those devices were water clocks, candle clocks and sundials. Water clocks were widespread in Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt, where they were most likely invented. Sundials were considered more accurate, but completely useless during the night and cloudy weather. In addition, the main component of the device - the gnomon, a vertical object in the center - needed to be adjusted depending on the current season.

Mechanical device that makes a ticking sound familiar to us was invented in the 14th century. For the first time they were installed in Western Europe in town towers. Nevertheless, the device had only one hand (an hour) and did not have a pendulum. The latter became the integral part of the clock mechanism in the 16th century.

By the 1950’s, humanity had developed quartz (electromechanical) clocks that were followed by atomic clocks. The latter, also known as nautical, have minimum deviation and are used as a pattern for synchronizing other time-measuring mechanisms, forming the basis of the worldwide standard for time coding.

Multifarious time measuring devices are presented in the collection section “Clocks and Objects with Movement”. They are long-case clocks, wall and console clocks, mantel and table clocks,carriage clocks and pocket watches.

Museum Collection celebrates Ticking Clock Day

On the cover: Musical quarter striking moon phase wall clock with automaton.
The Netherlands. Mid 16^th century