Daily Time telling

[Lily]

How DID the Pernese tell the time?

Come to that, how did us Earthlings tell the time before clocks?
(I should look up when clocks were invented shouldnt I?)

Hour glasses and marked candles would only do for short times.
Sun dials - well you are rather dependand on the sun

I would think, they could only depend on the time of day (and what their tummies told them in the way of needing fuel!)

[Hans]

Position of the sun indeed.

As clocks go I think water clocks are the oldest but am not sure.
I also think, and that could be a good Pernese solution, of candles that burn so much per hour.

[P'ter]

Time measurement? I know that Anne had watches dediscovered post-aivas, but that is 9th pass. I writing in 4th pass so I have them using hour-glasses; hence expressions such as half-glass. They also use the expression 'a few grains' to signify a few seconds.

The Pernese do not appear to have the where withall to make candles and Annie never mentions waterclocks although as Hans says they are an ancient method.

But the Pernese certainly split the day into hours -- "... and the call is for the eighth hour." (Dragonharper)

Should this thread be moved to the Science of Pern?

[GinnyStar]

Moreta had time, in the Healer/Harper Hall. They also had a sand timer I think.

Four of the clock I think

The bell at the Harper Hall did ring the hour I think also.

[Lily]

I would think, the Pernese are more likely to find something to produce a suitable wax for candles than the more exact science of producing glass funnels that would let sand trickle through at a set rate.

How long did the glows produce enough light? And did they just fade away? Knowing how long they last could be a partial solution to time telling

I would also suspect that an author who would mention something happening "at the eighth hour" would not necessarily give much thought to how that hour was measured. Could lead to all sorts of side complications.

[mawra]

I think they used glows for the most part. In one of the books, Dragon's Quest I think part of the thrill of sneaking a look at the eggs was using dim glows. I think it stated that the glows were getting dimmer. That makes me think that glows would fade away.

[Lily]

I quite agree with you there Maw. Question is, how long did they last? I expect they knew.

And the expression "dim glow" was a derogatory name for someone of lesser intelligence (than the speaker,no doubt!) wasnt it?

[granath]

Yeah, it was. But I suspect that most of the time for most things the Pernese didn't need exact measurements of time. The holders got up with the sun and worked until it was too dark to see and went to bed when they were tired. For things like baking and cooking, an experienced cook would know when something was ready without needing a clock or a watch.