Galileo's pendulum clock. Sketch of the first pendulum clock, designed by Galileo (1564-1642). This sketch was done by his son, as by this stage in his life Galileo was blind. The clock used a simple escapement mechanism, but had nothing to keep the pendulum swinging. It is thought that Galileo was inspired in earlier life by the swinging motions of chandeliers. The clock was constructed after Galileo's death by his son, and was much improved by the later work of Huygens (1629- 95).