Before it became the symbolic icon of a program loading on your computer system, the hourglass actually has a more significant historic meaning. The hourglass is a device used to measure intervals of time.
The hourglass; also referred to as a sand clock, is a device for measuring time. In its usual form it consists of two cone-shaped or oval glass receptacles joined by a narrow neck. Sand or a liquid (i.e., water or mercury) in the upperreceptacle will run through the neck into the lower receptacle in exactly one hour.
The hourglass also is a symbolic emblem in the sciences and a representation of mortality in the arts and mythology.
Father Time , Kronos or Chronos, has often been depicted with an hourglass in addition to the Scythe or Sickle.
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