Twice a year, I embark on the epic quest of changing all of my clocks because of daylight savings time. Twice a year, like clockwork, I find that I miss at least one of my eight timepieces (though I’m probably leaving one out in that count). If an average person like me can struggle to keep track of eight — or maybe nine — clocks, imagine the life of the Queen of England’s chief horologist, who is charged with managing over 1,000 for the royal family.
Because people in the UK set their clocks an hour back for daylight savings 1 week earlier than Americans do, the social media accounts of Britain’s royal family posted some friendly reminders on Sunday about the oft-debated practice. Alongside the reminder, the account featured an image of the family’s chief horologist (someone who specializes in working with clocks and time-telling machines) plying their trade. Luckily, this horologist has a team to help out with the task.
Another post revealed an interesting bit of trivia: There are over 1,000 clocks in the Queen’s residencies. Each of these intricate machines requires special attention from highly trained conservators.
The time-keeping specialist continued the informal public service announcement, noting that, ”We have 400 clocks on the estate of which 250 are inside the castle and the rest are distributed around the estate. I go round once a week to wind them up so I get to know every clock very well.”
A broken clock may be right twice a day, but one would hope that such a thing wouldn’t happen in the halls of the royal family. According to the Royal Collection Trust, their collection includes “some of the finest historic clocks in existence, many of which are on display to visitors at Windsor Castle and The Palace of Holyroodhouse. They reflect mechanical innovation over the centuries and the tastes of successive monarchs. Among the 1,500 timepieces in the Royal Collection are musical clocks, astronomical clocks, miniature clocks, and turret clocks.”
If you find yourself in London any time soon, be sure to check out rooms 38 and 39 of the British Museum. The exhibit shows the progression of clocks from 1300 AD to the modern day. The clocks and watches on display range from humble mass-market Casios to the opulent Renaissance mantlepieces of kings and popes.
With all that said, let this be your reminder to set your clocks back by an hour on Sunday if you’re in America. I know I’ll be doing my best to remember that pesky car radio clock this weekend.
