The Evolution Of The Mechanical Watch Throughout History - Custom Watch Supplier

The evolution of the mechanical watch is the evolution of watchmaking itself. This type of device does not need a battery to generate movement, complex mechanical devices are the ones that generate the necessary force to create precise movements, which remain rhythmic over time, so as not to generate inaccuracies in the hourly measurement.

On this occasion we are going to analyze the evolution of the mechanical watch from its origin, and all the milestones necessary for current mechanical watches to achieve amazing precision.

The evolution of the mechanical watch in 4 milestones

The first mechanical clocks begin to be built in the 13th century. At this time large machinery was necessary, therefore the only mechanical clocks available were wall clocks, attached to walls in town halls and churches.

The goal of these early automatic watches was to set a standard time for an entire city. These first clocks did not have a minute hand and were attached to striking movements with bells, which marked the whole hours.

From these first rudimentary watches of immense format, to the bracelet models, 700 years of research were necessary, which reduced the size of the mechanism and increased its precision, these are 4 fundamental milestones in the evolution of the mechanical watch.

Development and application of the pendulum

At the end of the High Middle Ages, various machinery had already been tested to regulate the movement of mechanical clocks, it was Galileo who discovered that the movement of a pendulum would be able to perfectly compensate for the movement of a clock, his study of the kinematics of the pendulum in 1582 was key to developing the modern mechanical clock.

Machinery decline process

The 17th century was key in reducing the size and weight of the machinery of a mechanical watch. We said that in the thirteenth century the only possible mechanical clocks were those that were attached to the facades of public buildings and churches, 400 years later it was already possible to have a portable clock that, although it still could not be worn on the wrist, already it was possible to transport as a piece of furniture of small size.

Appearance of the wristwatch

Despite what many people think, the mechanical wristwatch did not appear until the beginning of the 20th century, which shows that we have only been using this type of watch in a popular way for barely 100 years.

The first wristwatch was invented by Patek Philippe in 1868, however, it was a single piece more designed for jewelry. Louis Cartier was the first to launch a wristwatch designed to be manufactured for the public, at the request of the aviator Santos Dumont.

The precision of chronographs