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Clocks as we know them were not invented until almost the end of the Middle Ages, so other systems were used to keep track of the passing hours.
Time was viewed very differently in the monasteries than it is today - there was no concept of minutes or seconds and the hours could only be roughly estimated. Accuracy was not important; what mattered was fitting in all 8 church services every day at roughly the correct times.
Water clocks were one of the methods used. These were far from accurate, but measured time by allowing water to drip slowly from a tank and measuring the water level in a vertical tube above. Some had a "float" which struck a small bell at the appropriate time - a monk was alerted by this to ring the church bell for services.
Another system was a set of equally-sized large beeswax candles, each marked with lines to represent the hours. As one candle burned down another would be lit to replace it and the correct hour could be read by checking the level against the lines.
A third system used "scratch sundials" marked on a south-facing wall. These were usually a circular carved line and a central hole, with a few radiating lines from the centre to the lower part of the circle. A bronze or iron pin was set in the hole and this cast a shadow along the lines in turn. As a particular line was reached, the monks would know it was approximately time for one of the services.
None of these systems gave an accurate reading, but that didn't matter. The sundial system also varied at each season - daylight hours would be much longer in summer than in winter, spreading out or contracting the total "day".
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
Wiki User
∙ 14y agoAt that time, in most parts of the world, ordinary people told the time roughly by observing shadows. When it got dark it was time to head home.
Wiki User
∙ 14y agoActually, they did have a form of a clock. It didn't look like ours. Clocks were invented by the ancient Chinese and the clock that the Saxons had probably would have been a water clock.
Wiki User
∙ 12y agoThey used a sundial or they looked for where the sun is in the sky. That tells u the time of day, but if they wanted precise time they could check the sundial
Wiki User
∙ 9y agoBy the sun, to the extent they cared. They didn't bother much with hours or minutes. Morning, moon, afternoon, evening, night was about what they managed.
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What were medieval monks houses like?
The Medieval era spanned a millennia and many monks lived during that time- there's not going to be any definitive answer. What I can tell you is that common building materials included wood, mud brick, stone, and rushes and that monks' houses were probably built to the method of whichever era they lived in.
How did medieval monks spread Christianity?
Medieval Monks spread Christianity by many different techniques. Now, if you are talking about Medieval Monks in Europe, then they spread Christianity by telling others mostly. There is a website all about Medieval Monks below.
What was the hand written work the medieval monks did?
Monks of the middle ages copied books by had, and in this way produced manuscript copies. This was the only way books were published at the time, and it was nearly always done by monks. The book they copied most was the Bible, but they did other works as well, and most surviving medieval literature was copied by monks at one time or another.
What were medieval monks view on Christianity?
no
Who did medieval monks worship?
The God of the Bible.
What were medieval monks houses like?
The Medieval era spanned a millennia and many monks lived during that time- there's not going to be any definitive answer. What I can tell you is that common building materials included wood, mud brick, stone, and rushes and that monks' houses were probably built to the method of whichever era they lived in.
How did medieval monks spread Christianity?
Medieval Monks spread Christianity by many different techniques. Now, if you are talking about Medieval Monks in Europe, then they spread Christianity by telling others mostly. There is a website all about Medieval Monks below.
What year were medieval monks around?
Monks were around for every single year of the Medieval Age. There were also monks in late Roman times, and there are still monks in modern times. Monks have been around for a good long while, and not all of them were Medieval. * The Medieval Age lasted from the 5th Century to the 15th.
What are medieval monks who perfected our calendar called?
Gregorian monks.
What was the hand written work the medieval monks did?
Monks of the middle ages copied books by had, and in this way produced manuscript copies. This was the only way books were published at the time, and it was nearly always done by monks. The book they copied most was the Bible, but they did other works as well, and most surviving medieval literature was copied by monks at one time or another.
What were medieval monks view on Christianity?
no
Who did medieval monks worship?
The God of the Bible.
What did the monks wear in the medieval times?
a Frock
What was the roles of monks in medieval Europe?
To pray
What were monks roles in medieval Eurpoe?
their role was to protect
Are there any more medieval monks living?
No, obviously. Medieval times ended hundreds of years ago and people, monks included just don't live that long.
Who lived in the monastery in medieval times?
Monks lived in monateries.
