Which came first? · Counterintuitive
Which came first: the birth of Johann Sebastian Bach or Merck?
Merck came first, in 1668 (founded). The birth of Johann Sebastian Bach followed 17 years later, in 1685.
- Second1685
The birth of Johann Sebastian Bach
person · bornJohann Sebastian Bach was born in 1685; he once travelled to Halle to meet Handel, but Handel had already left town.
- First1668
Merck
company · foundedMerck traces itself to 1668, when Friedrich Jacob Merck took over a pharmacy in Darmstadt, Germany.
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All which-came-first pairs · About Older Than You Think · Quiz games
Years from Wikidata, each checked against the item’s English Wikipedia article on 2026-10-18. A year stands for what its label says: a founding, a first patent, a premiere.