AI Overview
Wrist watches with glowing radium hands and dials were produced from the early 1900s through the mid-1960s, using a radioactive mixture that illuminated timepieces in the dark without requiring external light or batteries.
I had one for a while as a kid. I thought it was kind of neat to be able to tell the time in the dark. I hope my arm doesn’t rot and fall off.
For interest see “ radium girls
The women young girls who participate noted watch dials
My first wristwatch had such a glowing hands. I remember that the workers would touch the brush tips to their tongues to get a fine point on the brush...and many died with horrible mouth cancers. That’s what I remember...now to go see how good my memory is.
“Wrist watches with glowing radium hands and dials were produced from the early 1900s through the mid-1960s, using a radioactive mixture that illuminated timepieces in the dark without requiring external light or batteries.”
Yep - and they discovered the danger when the people (mostly women) who painted the numbers with the material started developing mouth cancer - because the brush tips had to be very fine and pointed and the best/easiest way to maintain the shape was to roll it on their tongues.