Types of Hourglasses

Timing

• Hourglasses come with the ability to measure many different time increments, from 60 minutes all the way down to a single minute or less.

Types

• The simplest hourglasses, such as the three-minute egg timer, stand on a rubber stopper, while more elaborate models have decorative stands. Stands can be fashioned of wood, metal or plastic and can include a rotating arm that allows only the cylinder, not the entire unit, to be flipped over.

Features

• The glass cylinder is the main component of the hourglass, but it can be filled with a variety of different colored sand or even a gravity liquid that moves upward as the sand moves downward. Mercury was once used as a filler.

Uses

• Hourglasses are handy for timing food preparation, the amount of time a person has to speak, the length of a phone call and playtime for board games. They were used to time wordy sermons in the 16th century.

History

• Ancient Greeks used hourglasses, as proven by artwork on the Mattei Palace that depicts the god of dreams holding one. Athenians carried them in their pockets.