In Judge Dee at Work there is an interesting incense coil set in a brass box called "The Five Auspicious Clouds". Each cloud shape takes an hour to burn, thereby making the coil mark a total of five hours.

Reminds me of the porcelain Kwan Yin I gave Christine Bellen last year. When it is filled with water, the drops from the gourd in her hand mark one second at a time. I never bothered to find out the total amount of time it takes, however, for all of the water to be released. Knowing obsessive-compulsive Chinese craftsmen, my guess is one hour.