9/2025 Johann Martin – Pocket Sundial

The exhibit of the month for September is a unique pocket sundial dating from around 1700. This rare object was donated to our museum's collection in 1941 by the Czech philologist, historian, and translator PhDr. Emilián Barthel (1888–1945).

The maker of this clock is the prominent German master clockmaker Johann Martin (1642–1721), renowned for his exceptional craftsmanship and precision in the production of pocket, sundial, astronomical, and table clocks. His skill significantly contributed to the development of watchmaking.

Johann Martin was born on February 13, 1642, in Frankfurt am Main, the son of the watchmaker Marx Martin (†1669). After his father's death, he became a free watchmaker, independent of the guild, and moved to Augsburg – one of the leading centers of watchmaking art. There he married Maria Barbara Weckherlin, daughter of the prominent Augsburg watchmaker Elias Weckherlin (†1689), whose workshop he later took over. In 1682, he completed his apprenticeship with him, and his younger half-brother, Johann Mathias Willebrand, worked in his workshop for a while. He later also became one of the recognized Augsburg master watchmakers.

Johann Martin's clocks are now part of the collections of many major institutions. Specimens are owned by institutions such as the British Museum in London, the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, the Bayerisches Nationalmuseum in Munich and the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington.