Red Sandalwood Pavilion-Shaped Clock
The Red Sandalwood Pavilion-shaped Clock, dating back to the Qing Emperor Qianlong's reign, was used to both announce time in the daytime and sound the night watches.
With red sandalwood as the main framework, the clock is embellished with enamel and gemstones and involves a wide range of techniques, demonstrating a typical style of the Imperial Workshop of the Qing Dynasty.
The upper part of the clock is a double-eave pavilion, and the gilded copper facade is engraved with lotus flower patterns and inlaid with a big dial as well as two smaller meters indicating solar terms and night watches, respectively. The bottom is a Buddhist-style Xumi base.
The ancient Chinese divided the night into five gengs equivalent to two hours each, and stroke gongs to announce the time at the turn of each geng, which is called "dageng" (meaning "sound the night watches"). Since the start and end time and length of each geng vary in different solar terms, the two smaller meters were necessary to accurately sound the night watches. This design made the clock more difficult to make than a regular one.
European clocks were brought into the Qing royal court by Western missionaries in the early 17th Century. Emperor Yongzheng was not satisfied with simply using Western timekeeping methods, and asked Chinese craftsmen to invent unique clocks with the help of Westerners . This red sandalwood clock fused Western clock timekeeping and traditional Chinese night timekeeping, representing an innovative result of technological and cultural exchanges between China and the West.
紫檀楼阁更钟
紫檀楼阁更钟制作于中国清乾隆年间，白天走时、报时，晚上打更。
整体以紫檀木为框架，辅以珐琅、玉石装饰，集多种制作技艺于一身，体现了清宫造办处钟表的典型特征。钟上部为重檐楼阁，中部铜镀金面板上錾刻莲花，上嵌表盘、节气盘、定更盘。下部为须弥座。表盘最大，用于走时，与一般西洋钟表无异。两小盘分别是节气盘与定更盘，用于打更。打更是中国传统的夜间报时方法。古人将夜晚时长等分为五段，即五更，每更报时。由于不同节气的起更时间、更间长短不同，便需要由节气盘和定更盘来调节更的起讫和间隔时间，保证夜间准确打更。制作难度比一般时钟更大。
西洋钟表于17世纪初叶由西方传教士带入宫廷，雍正皇帝不满足于单纯使用西方计时方式，要求工匠在西洋人的帮助下，发明独特的更钟。紫檀楼阁更钟是西方钟表计时与中国传统夜间计时方式的融合，是中西方科技、文化交流碰撞出的创新成果。
