![]() The division of hours into 60 minutes comes from another ancient race - The Babylonians, who used the base-60 system for their astronomical calculations. As result, the hours read from today's clocks are called o'clock (of the clock), rather than of the sun. With the spread of mechanical clocks during the 14th century, hours of equal length were adopted. Evidence for this division of nighttime can actually be found on Egyptian coffin lids from the 2nd millennium B.C. During the summer night, 12 clock stars passed the merkhet. These were specific stars that were spread across the sky. Due to the fact that there is a longer period of sunlight during summmer than there is during winter, the hours during the summer were longer than those during winter.įor the nighttime hours, they used an early astronomical tool called a merkhet to mark the passage of "clock stars" or "decans" across the sky at night. They also used an additional hour in the morning for twighlight and a further hour in the evening for dusk. The Egyyptians actually had 10 hours during the day, and developed a sundial around 1500 B.C which divided the daylight hours into these 10 equal parts. The fact that we have 24 hours in a day dates back to the Ancient Egyptians. Why are there 60 minutes in an hour and 24 hours in a day? Or to convert decimal time to Hours, Minutes and Seconds,input a value in the bottom box, then click the "Convert Decimal Time to Hours, Minutes and Seconds!" button. To decimal time, enter values in the top boxes, then click the "Convert Hours, Minutes and Seconds to Decimal Time!" button. To convert from Hours Minutes and Seconds
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