The Candle: A Forgotten Timekeeper and Its Role in Chronometry

 INTRODUCTION

Timekeeping has advanced significantly; we now grumble when our smartwatches are one second wrong, yet centuries ago, individuals watched time vanish away. Before the mechanical clock took over, civilisations needed to be innovative. One of their best (pun intended) ideas? The candlelight clock. It was not only for romantic dinners or emergency blackouts; it was a serious timekeeper that organised work, prayers, and even how much you paid for an inn. 

 Let's go back to when timekeeping was a little more waxy.

The Origin and Mechanisms of Candle Clocks

The concept of using candles as clocks dates back a long time, before Google Calendar, mechanical clocks, and, most importantly, before anyone punched snooze on an alarm. 

 Candle clocks were first mentioned in the sixth century CE in China, attributed to You Jiangu. The concept expanded to mediaeval Europe and the Islamic world, where precision was essential for prayers and astronomical computations.

This is how it worked: 

•  A candle was marked at regular intervals, and as it burned down, the passage of time could be tracked.
•  Some variants included little metal nails implanted at specific spots. 
•  When the wax melted sufficiently, the nail would drop into a metal plate with a clink! A primitive alarm clock without the unpleasant "beep beep"

Candle clocks, like any other pre-modern device, were not without flaws. Burn rate was dependent on:

• Wax type: Beeswax burned steadily but was costly. Tallow (animal fat) was cheaper, but it smelt like a medieval armpit.
• Wick thickness: A thicker wick burnt faster, so your "hour" could end in 40 minutes if you are not attentive.
• Weather Conditions: Wind? Time flies. Humidity? Time slows. If you lived somewhere breezy, it would be pretty inconsistent.

Still, for their day (pun intended), these clocks were rather useful.

Monks in medieval Europe used candle clocks to structure their day, ensuring they didn't miss prayer times. Imagine being woken up by a falling nail instead of an iPhone alarm; talk about a rude awakening.

But candles weren't just for monasteries. They played a role in everyday life, too:

Inns and taverns charged guests based on how much candlelight they used. Want to stay up late? Better be ready to pay for that extra candle wax.

Medieval town curfews were sometimes enforced by public candles. Once the last candle in the town square went out, it was game over: get home or risk trouble.

King Alfred the Great (849–899 CE) supposedly used six candles, each burning for about four hours, to keep his schedule in check. Imagine running a kingdom with candle time, no Google reminders, no Outlook calendar, just wax.

THE DECLINE OF CANDLE CLOCKS 

Like all great inventions (RIP floppy disks), candle clocks eventually became obsolete. By the late Middle Ages, mechanical clocks started popping up in European towns. One of the earliest was installed in Salisbury Cathedral in 1386 CE, and by the 17th century, Dutch scientist Christiaan Huygens came along with the pendulum clock (1656), which was so precise that candle clocks didn't stand a chance.

Then came gas lighting in the 19th century and electric lighting soon after. Once wristwatches became common, the idea of measuring time with something that literally melts away seemed, well... impractical.

CULTURAL LEGACY AND SYMBOLISM

Even though candle clocks are gone, their influence lingers in unexpected ways:

Birthday candles are a fun throwback to when candles marked time. Except now, instead of telling time, they just tell us how much we've aged.

The phrase "burning the midnight oil" harks back to when late-night work meant using candles or oil lamps.

Vigil candles used in religious ceremonies still symbolize the passage of time, just like in the old days.

CONCLUSION

It's easy to take modern timekeeping for granted. We complain when our phones die, but imagine a time (last pun, I swear) when you had to track your entire schedule with a stick of wax. Candle clocks may be a thing of the past, but they once structured daily life in ways we rarely think about. So, next time you light a candle, appreciate that it's not just ambiance; it's a tiny, flickering piece of history.

Now, if only we could set alarms on them…