Nuovi documenti e nuove considerazioni sui primi orologi a pendolo fiorentini

Among the most revolutionary events in the history of horology was undoubtedly the invention of the pendulum clock. While traditional and older historiography tends to unanimously recognize Christiaan Huygens as the undisputed inventor of this device, a closer examination of archival sources and a critical historiographical analysis reveal a more nuanced picture of the invention process, involving multiple protagonists. Without diminishing Huygens’ merits, the author presents in this article an unpublished document that sheds new light on the Dutch scientist’s relationship with the Medici court, demonstrating that he was fully aware of experiments being conducted in Florence on the application of the pendulum. The arguments presented may also encourage further study of a tower clock, previously overlooked, which could instead emerge as a relic of Florentine efforts to apply the pendulum to timekeeping, precisely during the years when Huygens was publicizing his invention.