The Impact of Public Mechanical Clocks on Economic Growth

Activity: Talk or presentationLecture and oral contribution

Description

The public mechanical clock, which first appeared in European cities in the late 13th century, was one of the most important innovations in history.

Cities that were quick to install mechanical clocks enjoyed greater growth than late adopters. However, it takes some time for the effects from fundamental innovations of this type to be realised because the technology must be accepted both culturally and socially and only then applied to related economic activities.

In this talk, Battista Severgnini will take us on a tour of his research around the advent of mechanical clocks and their impact on economic growth.

Battista Severgnini is an associate professor with the Department of Economics at CBS.
Period13 Jun 2024