Design Inspiration - Industrial design / product design blog

Marc Newson – Hourglass

The Hourglass is a true engineering feat. Made in Basel, Switzerland it is blown from a single piece of borosilicate glass, and it contains millions of tiny spheres made of stainless steel. Each sphere is precisely 0.6 mm in diameter and coated with fine gold and silver.

When the Hourglass is inverted, the precision balls fall and bounce in an erratic but truly mesmeric way.

“This Hourglass is all about time, but in a more esoteric and fundamental way. I was thinking of having fun with time.”

Design Inspiration

How do you inspire others?
Discover and share your design inspiration.

Subscribe to receive inspiration, news, and ideas in your inbox.