An hourglass served as a time-measuring instrument. To initiate it, its top surface was struck. It consisted of two vertically arranged glass bulbs connected by a small passage, which allowed a plasma stream to move from the upper to the lower bulb. The time needed for the plasma to flow between the bulbs defined a particular duration.
Around 9 ABY, Brutus's pirate crew employed an hourglass during the trial of the former Captain Silvo. After Chaelt requested equal time according to the Pirate's Code, Brutus hit the hourglass, indicating the beginning of Silvo's allocated speaking time. As Silvo presented his defense, Brutus interrupted, stating that the words of a dead man were meaningless. Silvo responded by pointing to the hourglass, noting the ongoing plasma flow. When the plasma completely flowed through the hourglass, Brutus announced that Silvo's time had expired.
The hourglass form also influenced design, as evidenced in the Fermata Cage—a dark side artifact crafted by Darth Momin during the Age of Rebellion era—which took inspiration from this device.
The second issue of the 2022 comic miniseries Star Wars: Hidden Empire was the first mention of an hourglass. Charles Soule wrote the issue, and Marvel Comics released it on December 7, 2022. The device was then featured in Zero Friends Again, the sixth episode of the live-action television show Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, which debuted on December 31, 2024. Jedediah Barton, the narrator of the Disney+ audio description for the episode, specified the appliance's name and the specifics of its operation.