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Horology (from Greek , "hour, time"; and --, logos, "study, speech"; lit. the study of time) is the art or science of measuring time. Clocks, watches, clockwork, sundials, clepsydras, timers, time recorders and marine chronometers are all examples of instruments used to measure time.
People interested in horology are called horologists. That term is used both by people who deal professionally with timekeeping apparatus (watchmakers, clockmakers), as well as aficionados and scholars of horology. Horology and horologists have numerous organizations, both professional associations and more scholarly societies.
Horological museums and libraries
Horology has a long history and there are many museums and several specialised libraries devoted to the subject. An example is the Royal Greenwich Observatory, which is also the source of the Prime Meridian (longitude 0° 0' 0"), and the home of the first marine timekeepers accurate enough to determine longitude (made by John Harrison). Other horological museums in the London area include the Clockmakers' Museum, and the horological collections at the British Museum, the Science Museum (London) and at the Wallace Collection.
One of the more comprehensive museums dedicated to horology is the Musée international d'horlogerie in La Chaux-de-Fonds (Switzerland). The Musée d'Horlogerie du Locle is a bit smaller but located nearby. One of the better horological museums in Germany is the Deutsches Uhrenmuseum. The two leading specialised horological museums in North America are the National Watch and Clock Museum in Columbia, Pennsylvania, and the American Clock and Watch Museum in Bristol, Connecticut.
Besides museums dedicated only to horology you will often find horological objects in major art museums (including the Metropolitan Museum in New York or the Getty Museum in Los Angeles) or in major museums dealing with the history of science or the history of technology (including the Deutsches Museum in Munich, the London Science Museum or the Musée des Arts et Métiers in Paris.)
One of the most comprehensive horological libraries open to the public is the National Watch and Clock Library in Columbia, PA (USA). Other good horological libraries providing public access are at the Musée international d'horlogerie in Switzerland, at the Deutsches Uhrenmuseum in Germany, and at the Guildhall Library in London.
Horological organizations
The leading scholarly horological organizations are:
See also
People (Horologists)
Horological Professions
Museums (dedicated to horology)
- American Clock and Watch Museum, Bristol, Connecticut, USA
- British Horological Institute, Upton UK
- Clockmakers' Museum, London, UK
- Deutsches Uhrenmuseum, Furtwangen im Schwarzwald, Germany
- Dorf- und Uhrenmuseum Gütenbach, Gütenbach, Germany
- Museum f-r Uhren und Mechanische Musik, Oberhofen am Thunersee, Switzerland
- Musée d'Horlogerie du Locle, Le Locle, Switzerland
- Musée international d'horlogerie, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland
- Museum van het NEDERLANDSE UURWERK [1], Zaandam, The Netherlands
- National Watch and Clock Museum, Columbia, Pennsylvania, USA
- Royal Observatory, Greenwich, UK
- Städtisches Uhrenmuseum,Schulhof Wien, Austria
- Sydney Horological Centre, Sydney, Australia
- Schwäbisches Turmuhrenmuseum Mindelheim, Germany
- Timexpo Museum, Waterbury Connecticut USA
- Uhrenindustriemuseum, Villingen-Schwenningen, Germany
- Uhrenmuseum Beyer, Zurich, Switzerland
- Uhrenmuseum zum Rösli, zurich, Switzerland
- Willard House and Clock Museum, Grafton, Massachusetts, USA
- Irish Swiss Institute of Horology, Dublin
Museums (not specialized in horology, but displaying major horological collections)
- Bayrisches Nationalmuseum, Munich, Germany
- Boerhaave Museum, Leiden, Netherlands
- British Museum, London, UK
- Deutsches Museum, Munchen, Germany
- Frick Collection, New York City, USA
- Metropolitan Museum, New York City, USA
- Musée des Arts et Métiers, Paris, France
- Orangerie, Museumslandschaft Hessen Kassel
- Science Museum (London), UK
- Wallace Collection, London, UK
- St Edmundsbury Heritage Service, Bury St Edmunds, UK
Institutions
Newsgroup
Others
External links
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