If you are looking to enter the world of watch enthusiasts, or mostrophilists if you prefer the technical term, then you need to know the difference between the types of watches you own. Nothing will compromise your integrity more than a mistake in a basic conversation with an avid watch collector or salesperson.

Analog Watch

To know the vocabulary of Mostrophilists you have to be at the level, so we will educate ourselves okay?

The basic difference between analog watches and chronographs is function – analog watches tell the time, with two hands indicating the minutes and hours at a given point in time, while chronographs feature a “complication” (this is the term used for any function that a watch offers in addition to displaying the time).

Although the presence of three other dials to display the duration of time is a relatively new and modern addition.

For a more detailed description of the differences between chronograph and analog watches, we have broken down the history of the creation and the brief evolution of each.

Analog history
The Sundials of Ancient Greece
As early as elementary school, we all learn that punctuality started with sundials – the ancient Greeks positioned large structures to capture the position of the sun and used that to cast a shadow of the hour on a dial. surrounding.

But, uh, with the advancement of modern technology, sundials have become more of a decorative object than an accurate clock. Phew!

Can you imagine this thing on your wrist instead of your new Rolex , Cartier or Patek Philippe ?

Huge constructions of China
Using research by Chinese mechanical engineers, Yi Xing constructed a “bird-seen, water-powered map of the heavens” in AD 725 – yes, we’ve been using mechanical clocks for over. thousand years!

The invention used drops of water that fell in a controlled fashion to turn a mechanical wheel that gave the time. This device had some problems during the cooler months, the water tended to freeze – not very useful for keeping cogs moving!

Chinese mechanical clock

In 976, Chang Hsiin redesigned the mechanism, replacing water with mercury – answering the question of frozen weather in winter.

These mechanical feats were over 30 feet tall, with wheels the size of an average living room – they weren’t quite ready to be worn on the wrist at the time!

Modern analog watches

As engineers continued to improve watch mechanisms and add springs and gears, the resulting watches decreased in size until they were introduced in Europe in the late 1400s.

A German locksmith, Peter Henlein, is recognized worldwide as the creator of modern watches, having been the first to create pocket watches. From there he rose to fame around the world as the nobility and the privileged contacted him to order smaller, more elegantly designed watches – the ones we know today as pocket watches.

Peter’s watches were often inaccurate and he didn’t invent the mechanics behind timekeeping, but his popularity seems to have eclipsed the facts – could he be akin to a 15th century Kardashian?

History of the Chronograph

The first chronograph
Louis Moinet created the first chronograph in 1816, although it has recently been learned. In 2013, the history books were rewritten to reveal Louis Moinet’s chronometer – a pocket watch designed to help astronomers record time with an accuracy of 1/60 of a second.

Prior to this discovery, it was assumed that the first chronograph had been created by Nicolas Mathieu Rieussec in 1821 to time horse racing.

Timing horse racing

Although Nicholas was styled on the pole for 5 years, he is still credited with inventing the name “chronograph” which literally translates to “writing the time”.

On top of that, Nicholas was named “King’s Watchmaker” by King Louis XVIII, who asked him to create a stopwatch to accurately record horse races. So, once again, fame and importance take precedence in the history of watchmaking.

The innovations brought by Tag Heuer to Chronographs

Chronographs have remained essentially the same for the last hundred years, until 1958, when Heuer – known as Tag Heuer – paired a rotating bezel tachymeter – it’s the rotating part that lets you calculate speed based on time traveled and distance traveled based on speed.

This allowed new industries to take an interest in chronographs, from horse racing to aviation and automobiles, to naval navigation and finally deep sea diving.

These watches were close to the designs we know today and once you get into the world of watches you will definitely be looking for watches in good condition from that era as they are hard to find and in good condition. worth.

I hope this guide has taught you a little more about the differences between chronographs and analog watches, and has updated and enriched your watchmaking vocabulary for you to thrive in conversations with watch-loving friends. Remember to make a good impression and most importantly, let your passion for high quality watches shine!