How to make a clock out of water and clay?

Answer 1

Water clocks have been around for 5000 years or so. In simplest terms, make a tall pot out of the clay with a small hole near the bottom. Fire the clay if possible. Fill the pot wtith water and let it run out the hole. Use a sundial for calibration - scribe a mark on the pot at the water level, and after an hour by the sundial has passed, scribe another mark. Measure the distance between the two. That equals one hour. Scribe additional lines that distance apart - you now have a water clock.

Look for references under 'Clepsydra' - that's the Greek name for water clocks, and they used them extensively.

Answer 2

^0^ All you need is a clay, you can forget water if you want. Make a clay stick, and a circle plate of clay (you know, its like making pizza) stick that clay stick in the center, and take it to out door. Starting from rise of the sun(east) mark that point, when the Shadow hits the circle plate and mark it every hour. There after 12hr I assume you have a working clock that is from sunrise to sundown. That other half of the hour you can measure according to the space each hour that is marked.

Idea 2
Face west, then hold that clay stick outside the sun, you can approximate the time, because when you face west, imaging you are standing on a clock. A hand pointing forward (stands for the time is 12:00). Which ever the shadow from the clay falls on your imaginary clock it is that hour of the day, this is how people from poor region that doesn't have watch tells time by sunlight's shadow.

Answer 3

If you used hydroelectric power, say water pouring at a consistent rate per min/hour. You could use the water to turn a wheel like old water mills. If that were the case, the wheel turning could be connected to a series of gears that turn the hands on the face of the clock.

The hardest part would be finding exact flow and force of water needed and maintaining it over long periods of time. Also you would have to use the right size gears to compliment the amount of force required from the water to turn the wheel the larger (more mass) and more complex the gears the more force required to move them.

I would suggest using ceramic clay baked in a kiln and coated with water resistant glaze for the waterworks. You would have to have a pump and generator keeping the water at a steady flow that would not be clay based though. Clay would not tolerate the friction and wear and tear in the inner workings of gears as long as metal or plastics and the constant flowing water could lead to erosion problems but it would be a neat thing to see in a museum or science display.