I noticed this in the front window of the secondhand shop while waiting for the bus. I only had a few minutes until to bus so I just bought it quickly. I had no idea what it was, only that it looked really interesting. When I got a chance to look at it later, I noticed measurements and Roman numbers carved into it and suspected it might be an older style way of telling time. I found this article on Wikipedia. The candle clock in the picture is very similar to mine.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A candle clock is a thin candle
with consistently spaced markings (usually with numbers), that when
burned, indicate the passage of periods of time. While no longer used
today, candle clocks provided an effective way to tell time indoors, at
night, or on a cloudy day. A candle clock could be easily transformed
into a timer by sticking a heavy nail into the candle at the mark
indicating the desired interval. When the wax surrounding the nail
melts, the nail clatters onto a plate below.Read the rest of the article here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candle_clock
Photos of my candle clock:
What a beautiful antique finding <3 I heard about candle clocks once, but I wouldn't guess this is it! Well, maybe that's because I heard about the version with nails.
ReplyDeleteOh, very cool! :)
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing and a very beautiful thing.
ReplyDeleteWow! What a star find you have there. It's a really nice idea! And I understand absolutely seeing the thing and making a snap decision to buy it, because if you don't, it will be gone. Now I need one for my Steampunk Study!
ReplyDelete