In Italy from the 14th to the 18th centuries a system of time reckoning was used in which the whole 2 X 12-hour period was numbered 1 - 24 in a succession of equal hours starting from zero half an hour after sunset. Thus the first eight hours are always in darkness and so do not appear on sundials; noon varies from 16 to 20 hours. Italian sundials made during this period usually show only Italian hours; many clocks and sundials made in south Germany have provision for indicating them. The odd half-hour at sunset is often ignored, but it is shown on precision instruments.