Guardianship is the responsibility for preserving an artefact of exceptional historical, technical, cultural and human significance, for ensuring its continued rigorous scholarly investigation, and for making its significance accessible worldwide.

The Guardianship of the 1505 Watch did not arise from a title or from any single moment. It grew out of a deepening understanding of the watch’s significance. The more clearly the full extent of its historical and human significance became apparent, the clearer the attendant responsibility became. The Guardianship arose from that recognition.

This responsibility encompasses the physical fabric of the watch, the safeguarding of the current state of research, its continuing scholarly investigation, and the comprehensive documentation of new findings. It therefore extends both to the artefact itself and to the body of knowledge derived from it.

Guardianship entails stewardship of the watch, its history, its scholarly integrity and its message. It requires all statements concerning the 1505 Watch to be precise, verifiable and consistent with established knowledge. Findings must be neither oversimplified nor overstated, while unresolved questions must remain clearly identified as such.

Guardianship also entails communicating the historical, technical, cultural and human significance of the 1505 Watch with clarity, while safeguarding, deepening and passing on that understanding to present and future generations.

The full scope of this responsibility becomes clear through the civilisational significance of the 1505 Watch. The following chapter shows why the transformation it brought about in the relationship between human beings, machines and time continues to shape the present—and why this enduring legacy makes its Guardianship necessary.