Man has been obsessed with the passage of time since 3500 BC when obelisks and sun dials helped Egyptians, Greeks, Chinese and Romans count the hours and days. Sun dials led to clocks, which led to pocket watches, which later became the wristwatch. While fashion and stereotypes often prevented the success of the wristwatch, it was necessity and innovation that allowed watches to endure.

In the height of Geneva's 1541 Protestant Reformation, Calvin banned many forms of entertainment, dancing, theater and wearing lavish jewelry. However, because portable clocks (aka the pocket watch) were needed for practical use, they were the one item that endured. Jewelry makers slowly collaborated with watchmakers to include jewelry on the pocket time pieces. This longstanding tradition of jewel inclusion would aid in the eventual popularity of the wristwatch for the upper class.

Pocket watches enjoyed continued success throughout the 1800s with the common man, notably railroad workers. After an 1891 accident caused by a railroad operator's watch stopping and subsequently killing 11 people in Ohio, designs by the Ball Watch Company became the reliable Cadillac of the watch industry. Their accurate ones were so popular the phase "get on the Ball" was coined, referring to using a Ball watch to keep time.

In the 18th Century, the pocket models were as fashionable and distinct as cufflinks for men or necklaces for women. However, during the Boers War in South Africa (1899-1902), British soldiers found that bulky, destructible pocket ones were a hindrance. The wristwatch came to the rescue, freeing up one's hands for battle and synchronizing troop movement.

Despite the new success of the wristwatch in wartime and among the lower class population, many of the first prototypes in the late 1800s were marketed by Patek-Philippe & Co. as jewelry time pieces for women. The small watch faces and delicate bands made many early wristwatches unattractive to the male population, who still considered the pocket models to be as high class and "timeless" as it gets. Would the wrist model be a passing fad?

The advent of World War I brought many changes in functionality and accuracy for the wristwatch. Remembering lessons learned in the Boers War, the British demanded precision and new designs to help soldiers, pilots and divers in combat. Over the next twenty years, alarm-equipped, waterproof, anti-rust and self-winding watches came to fruition. The need for functional sport watches was evident: Rolex designed "The Submariner" for the Navy, Breitling introduced "The Navitimer" for pilots and Jaeger Lecoultre made "The Reverso" specifically for polo players.

After the Great war, the stereotype had changed once many men of all classes returned from service with their souvenir "trench watches." Throughout the mid-1900s, the wristwatch manufacturers continued making "tool watches" for the working man. The "Submariner," the "Explorer" and the "Speedmaster-Chronograph" space watch were all designed for specific tasks and a certain target market. Today, sport time pieces have become the new "tool watch," as demonstrated by lines of golf, tennis, race car and track watches.

The wristwatch of today varies in size, shape, functionality, price and feature -- which is perhaps why owning a wristwatch has become a symbol of individuality and distinction, rather than just something that keeps time. With celebrity endorsements, brand competition and watches ranging all the way up to $475,000, the wristwatch has evolved into a luxury item much like a car -- except with much less maintenance!

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