Hands of Time

A watchmaker''s world is not much bigger than a thumbnail. I spend whole days working on mechanisms which can contain hundreds of tiny components. Each of them has a specific task to perform. Every morning when I sit at my bench, it is an adventure into a new timepiece with its own history to lose myself in. And their history is the history of time itself. Timepieces are one of humanity''s most ingenious innovations. Their invention was more significant for human culture than the printing press, or even the wheel. They have travelled the world with us, from the depths of the oceans to the summit of Everest, and even to the Moon. They regulate our daily lives and have sculpted the social and economic development of society in surprising and dramatic ways. In Hands of Time watchmaker and historian Rebecca Struthers welcomes us into the hidden world of watchmaking, offering a personal history of watches that spans centuries and continents. From her workshop bench, Rebecca explores the ways in which timekeeping has indelibly shaped our attitudes to work, leisure, trade, politics, exploration and mortality, and introduces us to some extraordinary and treasured devices, each with their own story to tell. Hands of Time is an intricate and uniquely personal exploration of the history, science, philosophy, and craft of timekeeping.

Préface
An intricate and personal history of watches and time, told by an extraordinary watchmaker and historian.

Auteur

Rebecca Struthers is a watchmaker and historian from Birmingham. She co-founded her workshop, Struthers Watchmakers, in Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter in 2012. Rebecca and her watchmaker husband, Craig, use heritage equipment and traditional artisan techniques to restore antiquarian pieces and craft bespoke watches. They are among the last handful of watchmakers in the UK making watches from scratch. In 2017, Rebecca became the first watchmaker in British history to earn a PhD in horology. She lives in Staffordshire with Craig, her dog Archie, cats Isla and Alabama, and Morrissey the mouse.

Résumé

A BBC RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK

'An exquisite book, beautifully put together... What a very wonderful book.' STEPHEN FRY
'Forty-thousand years of our relationship with time condensed into 288 pages: a hugely entertaining achievement.' ESQUIRE
'5/5 A true joy. A work of staggering complexity and bewildering economy.' TELEGRAPH
'A rattling, wonderful read.' OBSERVER
'Every page glitters' SPECTATOR
'**Mesmerising' NEW STATESMAN
'Absolutely gorgeous. It blew my socks off' JAY BLADES
'An intensely personal, finely-tuned meditation. A beautiful book' EDMUND DE WAAL
'Beautiful, bewitching and brilliant' LARA MAIKLEM

In Hands of Time, watchmaker and historian Rebecca Struthers welcomes us into the hidden world of watchmaking, and to a history of time that spans centuries and continents.

The invention of timepieces was more significant for human culture than the printing press, or even the wheel. They have travelled the world with us, from the depths of the oceans to the summit of Everest, and even to the Moon. They regulate our daily lives and have sculpted the social and economic development of society in surprising and dramatic ways.

From her workshop bench, Rebecca explores the ways in which timekeeping has indelibly shaped our attitudes to work, leisure, trade, politics, exploration and mortality, and introduces us to some extraordinary devices, each with their own story to tell. Hands of Time is an intricate exploration of the history, science, philosophy, and craft of timekeeping.