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The Encyclopedia of Horology

Edinburgh and London, Scotland · 1811 – 1877

Alexander Bain

Partially verified

Electric clocks

Life & work

Pioneer of the electric clock and the fax machine.

Training, contributions & innovations

  • Invented the first electric clock (1840)

Inventions & patents

  • Patent for the electric clock (1841)

Signatures & markings on surviving work

  • Alexander Bain

Collecting significance

Authenticity depends on signatures and movement quality. For 19th-century makers, serial numbers often allow for precise dating. For modern independents, documentation from the maker is key.

Diagram

12345let downstripcleanoilregulateorder of work; never skip letting down the mainspring
Schematic: order of work at the bench. An outline schematic drawn to show the arrangement of the parts discussed here. It is not a dimensioned working drawing and does not depict a particular maker's calibre.

Sources & references

  1. Britten, F. J., Old Clocks and Watches and Their Makers
  2. Loomes, B., The Early Clockmakers of Great Britain
  3. Ehrhardt, R., American Pocket Watch Identification and Price Guide
  4. Museum catalogue records

Where sources disagree, the disagreement is stated rather than resolved silently.