Celtic Time-keeping

Time. Date. Minutes and Days. Modern life is plagued by the obsession of many who run their lives by logging minutes rather than living moments. Were we to deposit these people into the 5^th Century how would they survive without clock-watching? At the time my novels are set (mid 5^th Century AD) there were no clocks, watches, laptops, television, radios – no devices from which to discern the time of day. You looked at the arc of the sun or moon, the respective orb in the sky denoting day or night. The world around you - plants and weather - told you in which season you lived.

Celtic farmstead, North Wales c. 3rdC AD via timetrips.co.uk

For the Celts, their calendar was pastoral and linked to the turning wheel of the year, its repeated cycles of birth-growth-death as foliage sprang forth, bloomed and died back. Rural farming communities are slaves to these changes even today. The first ploughing begins at the start of February when the ground is warmer and softer following ‘cold-time’ (December/January) and lambs are born, which perhaps is why January-February was known by the Celts as ‘Anagantios’ (stay-home time). No point jetting off on that late winter-sun holiday when all the pregnant sheep are about to drop!

Celtic coin showing image of wheat, via resourcesforhistory.com

Every stage of the year was mapped by the events of nature and requirements of the farming community. To glean how important it was to the Celts, we need only look at archaeology. Farming was central to the lives of farmers and as such, made it onto coins of the time as can be seen from the cunobelinus coin shown above. We know the Celts kept calendars, though they are not as recognisable as the Roman Julian calendars we take for granted today, with numbered days of weeks, fortnights and 30 or 31 day months (with the obvious exception of February!). They were, however, sectioned into twelve segments throughout the pastoral year as follows:-

Jan/Feb            Anagantios                  Stay-home time

Feb/Mar           Ogronios                     Ice time

Mar/Apr          Cutios                          Windy time

Apr/May          Giamonios                   Shoots-show

May/Jun          Simivisonios                Bright time

Jun/Jul             Equos                          Horse time

Jul/Aug            Elembiuos                   Claim-time

Aug/Sep          Edrinios                       Arbitration-time

Sep/Oct           Cantlos                        Song-time

Oct/Nov          Samonios                     Seed-fall

Nov/Dec          Dummanios                 Darkest depths

It is evident from the Celtic meanings how our ancestors viewed the world around them and how entrenched in the natural sways of the earth their lives were. If we consider these unfamiliar-sounding names such as ‘Samonios’, the name itself does not immediately provide us with any understanding of that ‘month’. If we look at its meaning, however, we can identify with ‘Seed-fall’ around October/November, as we see it ourselves at this time of year. Trees and plants shed leaves and seeds and gardeners store tubers for the following spring. This makes sense to our modern minds. What may not make sense would be how the Celts noted down their calendars. As well as using their own language, they used their own text, known as ‘ogham’. The ‘ogham’ alphabet is based upon the woods of different trees connected with the various times of the year. Similar to runes, they appeared as vertical and horizontal bars of varying numbers.

Celtic tree calendar, via ogham.thewahzone.com

So, I’m staying home this Anagantios, at least until Ogronios is over. By then, as they say in Breton, Nevez-amzer will be here (new season/spring). Then just as I plan to do some serious gardening the winds arrive, darn that Cutios!

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Elaine writes historical fiction as 'E S Moxon'. Her debut Wulfsuna was published January 21st, 2015 and is the first in her Wolf Spear Saga series of Saxon adventures, where a Seer and one named 'Wolf Spear' are destined to meet. She is currently writing her second novel, set once again in the Dark Ages of 5th Century Britain. You can find out more about Book 2 from Elaine's website where she has a video diary charting her writing progress. She also runs a blog. Elaine lives in the Midlands with her family and their chocolate Labrador.

Time - a timeline of clocks

by Deborah Swift

When writing historical fiction, as well as going back in time to the period I am writing about, I often have to consider that the notion of how time was measured in previous times is very different from my own. In the 17th century poorer people still used sand-glasses, and not everyone could afford a clock in their house. Churches rang the bells so that people had some sense of the time passing, but in general people were much less fixated on exact times than we are today.

The first clock was of course the sun, and the position of the stars in the night sky.

The first recorded mention of the sun dial was in 742 BC. There is, however, evidence of use of the sun dial as early as 2,000 BC! The carved stone on the left (bring your own stick) is from the Dingle Peninsula, Ireland.

By 330 AD Sand glasses were thought to be in use, the example I have shown is from 1830, as the hand-blown glass was very fragile, and few survived. These used to be made in different sizes to measure different amounts of time.Some could be large enough to stand on the ground and require servants to lift and turn them.

Candles with the wax scored to mark the time were widely used in poorer households who could not afford a sandglass, or sometimes candles fixed to a marked plate as in the example on the left. There is evidence that Alfred the Great used a candle clock in  885AD. 

In 1490 the mainspring was invented by Peter Hele, or Henlein, a locksmith of Nuremburg. About this time the small domestic, or table clock made its appearance, but these were expensive items and the previous more homespun methods of measuring the time continued to be used by most people.

Here is a fabulous example from www.metmuseum.org. Made as a 'masterpiece', (a requirement for admission to the guild of master clockmakers in Augsburg,) this clock strikes the hours and quarters and displays no less than three systems of counting hours: French hours (I–XII), Italian hours (1–24, beginning at sundown), and Nuremberg hours (divided into daylight and night hours, which vary in number according to the season of the year). Complex!

In 1541 an astronomical clock was fixed in one of the towers of Hampton Court Palace.

By 1610 Glass was able to be moulded to form as a protective cover for watch dials.

In 1657 Christiaan Huygens, a Dutch Physicist, made the first pendulum controlled clock, and grandfather clocks began to make their appearance in wealthier homes. The two kinds of movements are 30-hour and eight day, which indicates how long before the clock has to be wound with a key. The melody, bell, chime or gong sounds on the hour in the eight-day clocks and on the hour and half hour in the 30-hour clocks. 

1765 The centre Second hand became common. Here is a lovely '8 Day' mahogany long-case clock dated around 1835 with a decorated arch dial. Often the painted dials depicted mythological scenes, or the four seasons.

Around the middle of the 1800s, the spring-powered movement developed, paving the way for a variety of smaller clock cases. Many different materials were used in clocks. Wood was popular, including mahogany, oak, pine, walnut, and cherry.  

1858 The British Horological Institute was founded - an association of Clock and Watch Makers for the purpose of advancing their art, and "The Horological Journal," the oldest periodical dealing with the craft, was started.

1880 Greenwich Mean Time became the standard time for the whole of the United Kingdom.

Oh my word! Is that the time? Two thousand years has gone by and I hardly noticed. Must get on with some writing! 

And just in case you're interested in the English Civil War, orchids, obsession, adventure and romance, here's my book, The Lady's Slipper - out now, and featuring the turning of many sandglasses, the occasional church chime and the loud tick of a pendulum clock.

Amazon have just reduced it on Kindle - whoot! 

'Women's Fiction at its best' History and Women 'Brilliant saga' Romance Reviews today
'Rich and haunting' Reading the Past
'Riveting narrative' For the Love of Books
'Highly Recommended' Historical Novels Review
'Top Pick!'RT Book Reviews'
'Great read for lovers of sweeping historical fiction!' Night Owl Reviews

'Utterly captivating' Karen Maitland, author of The Owl Killers 

Thanks for Reading - Deborah x