Long before dials were created, time was noted by the striking of bells or chimes and that led to the invention of the first bell tower with large gongs producing musical notes in the 14th century. German inventors Hasler and Heinlein, who presented emperor Rudolf II with the first automatic musical clock in 1601, tried to emulate the same idea, working on a smaller version, which was a tougher feat. The ancestors of the modern musical timepieces—the music boxes and automata—were made immensely popular in the late 18th century, thanks to the Swiss watchmaking skills. The music box industry employed over 1,00,000 artisans in Europe and America during that period.

Today, with tributes being given to famed musicians like The Beatles and Bowie by Raymond Weil, to the most recent musical timepieces to be developed like the Royal Oak Concept Supersonnerie and the Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater by Bvlgari, we've got a gallery full of musical watches curated for you right here.

For more information on the evolution of the musical timepieces, click here to view the archived story 'Striking the Right Note”.