Swords to Plowshares

In the Second World War the clock factories of the Black Forest were no longer making clocks but detonators and other devices for military needs. Thanks to their military significance, these factories were still very well equipped with machinery and materials in 1945. After the end of the war, however, the Allies’ reparation claims led to the removal of many machines and resulted in a scarcity of materials.

In this time of need, any military products that were left were converted to other uses. “Wehrmacht” clocks obtained civilian cases. Artillery fuses were transformed into movements for wall clocks. Technically simple clock forms, such as wood plate movements or sundials underwent a brief renaissance.

The reparations to the Allies ceased one year after the currency reform of 1948. Clock production in the Black Forest rapidly took a turn for the best.