Clockwork refers to the inner workings of either mechanical devices called clocks and watches or other mechanisms that work similarly, using a series of gears driven by a spring or weight.
An automaton is a relatively self-operating machine, or control mechanism designed to automatically follow a sequence of operations, or respond to predetermined instructions. Some automata, such as bellstrikers in mechanical clocks, are designed to give the illusion to the casual observer that they are operating under their own power or will, like a mechanical robot. The term has long been commonly associated with automated puppets that resemble moving humans or animals, built to impress and/or to entertain people.
Badīʿ az-Zaman Abu l-ʿIzz ibn Ismāʿīl ibn ar-Razāz al-Jazarī was a Muslim polymath: a scholar, inventor, mechanical engineer, artisan, artist and mathematician from the Artuqid Dynasty of Jazira in Mesopotamia. He is best known for writing The Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices in 1206, where he described 50 mechanical devices, along with instructions on how to construct them. He is credited with the invention of the elephant clock. He has been described by some as the "father of robotics" and modern day engineering.
A cuckoo clock is a type of clock, typically pendulum driven, that strikes the hours with a sound like a common cuckoo call and has an automated cuckoo bird that moves with each note. Some move their wings and open and close their beaks while leaning forwards, whereas others have only the bird's body leaning forward. The mechanism to produce the cuckoo call has been in use since the middle of the 18th century and has remained almost without variation.
William V, called the Pious, was Duke of Bavaria from 1579 to 1597.
Augustus was Elector of Saxony from 1553 to 1586.
Museum Speelklok is a museum in The Netherlands in the city of Utrecht specializing in self-playing musical instruments. Since 1984, it has been housed in the centre of Utrecht in a former church called Buurkerk. Among the instruments on display are music boxes, musical clocks, pianolas, barrel organs and a turret clock with a carillon, most of which are still able to play for visitors. The word speelklok means musical clock.
An automaton clock or automata clock is a type of striking clock featuring automatons. Clocks like these were built from the 1st century BC through to Victorian times in Europe. A Cuckoo clock is a simple form of this type of clock.
A nef is an extravagant table ornament and container used in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, made of precious metals in the shape of a ship – nef was another word for a carrack in French. If not just used for decoration, it could hold salt or spices, or cutlery, or even napkins. The large nef depicted in the well-known calendar miniature for January from the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry is being used to hold, and perhaps wash, gilt dishes from the table service.
The Green Vault is a museum located in Dresden, Germany, which contains the largest treasure collection in Europe. The museum was founded in 1723 by Augustus the Strong of Poland and Saxony, and it features a variety of exhibits in styles from Baroque to Classicism. The Green Vault is named after the formerly malachite green painted column bases and capitals of the initial rooms. It has some claim to be the oldest museum in the world; it is older than the British Museum, opened in 1759, but the Kunstkamera in St. Petersburg, Russia was opened in 1714 and the Vatican Museums date their foundation to the public display of the newly excavated Laocoön group in 1506.
Gianello della Torre or to Spaniards Juanelo Turriano or Giovanni Torriani, c. 1500 — 1585) was an Italo-Spanish clockmaker, engineer and mathematician. He was born in Cremona.
The Château d'Écouen is an historic château in the commune of Écouen, some 20 km north of Paris, France, and a notable example of French Renaissance architecture. Since 1975, it has housed the collections of the Musée national de la Renaissance.
The Invention of Hugo Cabret is a children's historical fiction book written and illustrated by Brian Selznick. It was published by Scholastic. It takes place in France as a young boy finds his purpose. The hardcover edition was released on January 30, 2007, and the paperback edition was released on June 2, 2008. With 284 pictures between the book's 533 pages, the book depends as much on its pictures as it does on the words. Selznick himself has described the book as "not exactly a novel, not quite a picture book, not really a graphic novel, or a flip book or a movie, but a combination of all these things". The book won the 2008 Caldecott Medal, the first novel to do so, as the Caldecott Medal is for picture books, and was adapted by Martin Scorsese as the 2011 film Hugo.
The history of robots has its origins in the ancient world. During the industrial revolution, humans developed the structural engineering capability to control electricity so that machines could be powered with small motors. In the early 20th century, the notion of a humanoid machine was developed.
A wind-up toy is an automaton toy powered by a clockwork motor.
Charles Octavius Swinnerton Morgan DL, JP, FRS, FSA, known as Octavius Morgan, was a British politician, historian and antiquary. He was a significant benefactor to the British Museum.
Maillardet's automaton is an automaton built in London c. 1800 by a Swiss mechanician, Henri Maillardet. It is currently part of the collections at The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia.
The conservation and restoration of clocks refers to the care given to the physical and functional aspects of time measuring devices featuring “moving hands on a dial face” exclusive of watches. Care for clocks constitutes regulating the external environment, cleaning, winding, lubrication, pest-management, and repairing or replacing mechanical and aesthetic components to preserve or achieve the desired state as specified by the owner. Clocks are typically composed of multiple types of materials such as wood, metal, paint, plastic, etc., which have unique behaviors and environmental interactions, making treatment options complex. The materials used and the complexity of clockwork warrant having a Horological Conservator complete the work.
Clockwork Planet is a Japanese light novel series, written by Yuu Kamiya and Tsubaki Himana, and illustrated by Shino. Kodansha has published four volumes since April 2, 2013, under their Kodansha Ranobe Bunko imprint. The story is set in a clockpunk fantasy version of the world, in which the entire planet is run by clockwork. The main characters are five people who, after a month of meeting, become the world's most infamous terrorists.
Brittany Nicole "Nico" Cox is an antiquarian horologist based in Seattle, Washington. She owns and operates a business called Memoria Technica. She specializes in the area of conservation and restoration of antique automata, mechanical music objects, complicated clocks and watches, and mechanical magic. She also creates original works inspired by the past. In the process of making her own creations, she utilizes many of the same skills and materials found in the objects she works on. In 2021, Cox was featured in National Geographic alongside a few of her regularly used antique tools.
