British Horological Institute/en
History
The BHI was founded in 1858 by a small group of clockmakers. Their aim was to unify the British horological industry and trades in the face of large numbers of imports of clocks and watches from abroad. The Institute was an immediate success and within a year it had founded its own museum and library; it also began to offer evening classes in clock- and watch-making. The journal of the Institute is the Horological Journal, which has been published since September 1858.
The BHI today
The current premises of the BHI are at Upton Hall in Nottinghamshire, England. Its primary role is that of education, providing a standardised set of examinations for training horologists. It also maintains a list of members] whom it considers sufficiently qualified to repair clocks and watches, and who adhere to a strict. It publishes the Horological Journal monthly, the oldest continuously-published technical journal in the country. It contains details of anything and everything relevant to horology and horologists.
Membership
The Institute offers a number of different kinds of membership. These include:
- Ordinary Membership
- Any individual with an interest in horology may subscribe as a member
- Full Membership
- Full membership is open to graduate members with a sufficient degree of professional experience as a clockmaker. Full members may append the letters "MBHI" to their name.
- Fellowship
- In order to become a fellow of the BHI, one must make a contribution to the field of horology deemed to be of exceptional value. (Note this has not always been the case; it was significantly easier to gain fellowship in later half of the twentieth century). Fellows of the BHI may append the letters "FBHI" to their name.
The BHI Museum und Library
Upton Hall is the headquarters since 1972. It houses a library and a museum, as well as a substantial collection of antique longcase clocks, owned by the institute. The hall is open to the public all year round. The Library of the BHI] is one of very few existing specialised libraries dealing primarily with horology. It is open to researchers by appointment, and its holding includes a number of rare documents, papers, letters and books, particularly dealing with the high points of British horology in the 18th and early 19th century, but its catalogue contains comparatively few titles published in the last several decades.
Weblinks
- Home page of the BHI
- Virtual tour of Upton Hall, the current headquarters of the BHI
- The BHI's list of recommended repairers
- BHI Library
- BBC interview with Viscount Alan Midleton, curator of the British Horological Institute
- BBC pictures of the British Horological Institute
- British Horological Institute Wikipedia
Adress
British Horological Institute BHI Ltd
Upton Hall, Main Street
Upton, Newark Nottinghamshire NG23 5TE (showing this place)
Tel : +44 (0)1636 813795
Fax: +44 (0)1636 812258
E-Mail: [email protected]
Website:The British Horological Institute