The water clock is currently held and managed by the National Palace Museum of Korea in Seoul.

Water clocks have a long history of use in Korea with the first mention of one in the records of the Samguk Sagi during the Three Kingdoms era.

In 1434, during the reign of King Sejong the Great a water clock was made by Jang Yeong-sil which would mark the hour automatically with the sounds of a bell, gong, and drum.

The rolling ball would trigger the gong, bell, drum, and even a wooden puppet which marked the hour with a placard.

However, it is valuable because of the scientific and cultural information it holds and because there are only few examples of ancient automatic water clocks.