If you’ve ever heard someone referring to “the sands of time” or time “slipping away,” they’re most likely referencing the hourglass, an invention from roughly 150 BC and one of the earliest and most accurate methods of measuring time. Rather than relying on unpredictable methods of time measurement, like sundials or water clocks, hourglasses were always consistent. You could always trust that the sand would fall the same way, every time. For some people, hourglass tattoos represent the passage of time, similar to a clock or sundial tattoo. They can also represent life and its inevitable end, or the allotted number of days you have here on Earth. It could represent the idea of living life to its fullest because there’s no way of knowing how much time you have left. In contrast, an hourglass tattoo could also represent eternity and something existing “outside of time.” An hourglass tattoo could represent an idea or a memory you don’t want to forget. For the same reason, it could also serve as a memorial tattoo for a loved one who has passed away.
