Brief history

Timing of public clocks

One of the essential characteristics of our Western culture is that ‘proper time’ is determinant in our daily lives. Clocks therefore have become a vital attribute. Where and how the mechanical clock was first introduced cannot be determined with any degree of certainty. However, scientific studies have uncovered a number of facts.
Early in the Middle Ages, monks already regulated the prescribed hours of worship by ringing or striking bells. During the day, the proper time could be determined using sun dials. At night, if the sky was clear, the stars told the time. When the skies were cloudy, a sand glass or a clepsydra (water clock) was used to determine the correct times for worship.
The monastic alarms were probably constructed for this same purpose. These were powered by weights. When these machines went off, the responsible monk was reminded to sound the bells calling for worship. These ‘alarms’ eventually evolved into the great turret clocks with striking mechanisms that automatically sounded the hours.

Already at the time fully electrically powered clocks were made and there were even electric 'slave clocks', which were powered and regulated centrally by means of a precise, mechanical 'mother clock’.

Starting in the beginning of the twentieth century, clocks with a synchronous motor that directly drove the hands and which were powered by the electricity network were made. This mass-production item was inexpensive, kept the correct time (providing there were no power failures of the mains) and was easy to replace when it was worn out. These movements took the place of many turret clocks. The old ones were usually carelessly disposed of after years of faithful service.
With the arrival of electronics in the second half of the twentieth century, far-reaching changes were also seen in the clock world. The quartz crystal was introduced as the regulating component. This made the newest generation of independent electrical clocks even more precise, as a result of which existing turrets were disposed of even more rapidly.
Since the 1970s, quartz clocks have been in use that are regularly calibrated based on a time signal broadcast by a radio transmitter from super-precise atomic clock (one of which is located in Braunschweig, Germany).

Since the last decade of the twentieth century, this 'DCF-radio-time signal' has also been used to ensure that existing pendulum clocks keep proper time. This is done by regularly adjusting mechanically the old movement in one way or another. However, the existing equipment for this purpose cannot be used universally because there are significant differences among the antique clocks. Thus once again these are being subjected to necessary modifications.
Summarising, various changes resulted in modifying the dial, replacing the hands, altering the gears, disposing of the weights or changing the escapements completely.
In the worst cases, only the bell itself remains, at least if it was not sacrificed to Mars in order to cast cannons in times of war.

Apparently, for a considerable period of time, ‘sounding’ the time was more important than visualising it. Originally many clocks did not have an outer dial and a hand with which the time could be shown.
Many centuries ago precise measurement of time was not as important as it is today. But as society grew more complex, the need for a more exact reflection of the time also grew. Through the course of time, experts succeeded in constructing new clocks or improving old ones in order to achieve the required level of precision.

Until the middle of the seventeenth century, mechanical clocks were regulated by a balance (foliot) or balance wheel. Then the pendulum took over as the regulating part. This invention made it possible to divide time into more equal segments.
This proved to be a giant step forward, stimulating the construction of many new clocks using a pendulum. Existing clocks were also equipped with a pendulum to work more precisely. Clocks even started telling time so well that it became useful to add a minute hand. However, centuries passed before this hand was commonly seen on turret clocks. Most people needed only the hour hand to see the time.

Time refused to stand still in the eighteenth century. Many new inventions were applied in order to improve the degree of precision: other types of escapements, non-temperature sensitive pendulums, the separation of the power for the heavy hands and the fine escapement. These improvements contributed to ensuring that clocks continued to run precisely over longer periods of time.
Older turret clocks that failed to meet the more stringent demands were equipped with these improvements, even if this was detrimental to the historical material.
Daily life was regulated based on the local time, which was different in every town or village. After a journey from one place to another, watches were simply adjusted.

The nineteenth century brought many practical changes. With the arrival of trains, the need for a single time, to be applied by all, grew. Thus when train schedules were compiled, 'rail time' was applied. In the Netherlands this was the local Amsterdam time. This standardised time was issued by telegraph, but daily life continued according to local time.
Electric motors made it possible to automatically wind the weights in a turret clock. Later the newest pendulum clocks included automatic winders in their basic designs. Sadly, many old clocks were not spared from these electric winding systems.
The often highly inventive constructions with which the old clocks were automated enhanced user-friendliness, but irrevocably damaged the turret clocks themselves.

As a result, many historically interesting and beautiful turret clocks that were no longer used have disappeared or even were sold as scrap metal!
Through the centuries, the ‘originality’ of the components has always been subordinate to the 'user function’, thus to user-friendliness and precision.
Today this trend is being reversed thanks to a growing historical awareness. Clocks are now being recognised as important representatives of our cultural heritage, and as such are being treated with respect.

Bibliography:

André Lehr, De geschiednis van het Astronomisch Kunstuurwerk
André Lehr, Van Paardebel tot Speelklok
Spierdijk, Klokken en Klokkenmakers
Maurice / Mayr, Die Welt als Uhr
Turner, TIME catalogue exposition Amsterdam 1990