During
the reign of the French king
Louis XIV
(1638-1715) it is said that he prefered IIII
over IV on clock faces. As
a result he ordered all the clock makers in France to only use
IIII on clock faces. We
still see the results of this decision today.
NB
I find this a little bit funny as Louis is remembered in history
as Louis the XIV rather than Louis
the XIIII
So
why do you think king Louis made this decision? Does one face
look more symmetrical that the other? Are some numbers harder
to read? Does one clock face look more 'classy' than the other?
What do you think?
On
another note, the numerals used on a clock face don't effect your
ability to read a clock. Once you learn the place of the numbers
you tell time by using the shapes the hands make & prior knowledge.
Extension
Activity
- Find pictures of both types of clock faces on Ebay.
Which is the most common?
