![Czech-2013-Prague-Astronomical clock face](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Czech-2013-Prague-Astronomical_clock_face.jpg)
An astronomical clock, horologium, or orloj is a
clock
A clock or a timepiece is a device used to measure and indicate time. The clock is one of the oldest human inventions, meeting the need to measure intervals of time shorter than the natural units such as the day, the lunar month and the ...
with special
mechanisms and
dials to display
astronomical
Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, galaxies ...
information, such as the relative positions of the
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this energy mainly as light, ultraviolet, and infrared radi ...
,
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...
,
zodiac
The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north or south (as measured in celestial latitude) of the ecliptic, the Sun path, apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. ...
al
constellation
A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms Asterism (astronomy), a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object.
The origins of the e ...
s, and sometimes major
planet
A planet is a large, rounded astronomical body that is neither a star nor its remnant. The best available theory of planet formation is the nebular hypothesis, which posits that an interstellar cloud collapses out of a nebula to create a you ...
s.
Definition
![Astrario Dondi 05869 01 dia - Museo scienza e tecnologia Milano](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c5/Astrario_Dondi_05869_01_dia_-_Museo_scienza_e_tecnologia_Milano.jpg)
The term is loosely used to refer to any clock that shows, in addition to the time of day, astronomical information. This could include the location of the Sun and Moon in the sky, the age and
Lunar phases
Concerning the lunar month of ~29.53 days as viewed from Earth, the lunar phase or Moon phase is the shape of the Moon's directly sunlit portion, which can be expressed quantitatively using areas or angles, or described qualitatively using the t ...
, the position of the Sun on the ecliptic and the current zodiac sign, the
sidereal time, and other astronomical data such as the Moon's nodes (for indicating
eclipses
An eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object or spacecraft is temporarily obscured, by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer. This alignment of three ce ...
) or a rotating star map. The term should not be confused with ''astronomical regulator'', a high precision but otherwise ordinary
pendulum clock
A pendulum clock is a clock that uses a pendulum, a swinging weight, as its timekeeping element. The advantage of a pendulum for timekeeping is that it is a harmonic oscillator: It swings back and forth in a precise time interval dependent on it ...
used in observatories.
Astronomical clocks usually represent the
Solar System
The Solar SystemCapitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Solar S ...
using the
geocentric
In astronomy, the geocentric model (also known as geocentrism, often exemplified specifically by the Ptolemaic system) is a superseded description of the Universe with Earth at the center. Under most geocentric models, the Sun, Moon, stars, an ...
model. The center of the dial is often marked with a disc or sphere representing the Earth, located at the center of the Solar System. The Sun is often represented by a golden sphere (as it initially appeared in the
Antikythera mechanism
The Antikythera mechanism ( ) is an Ancient Greek hand-powered orrery, described as the oldest example of an analogue computer used to predict astronomical positions and eclipses decades in advance. It could also be used to track the four-yea ...
, back in the 2nd century BC), shown rotating around the Earth once a day around a
24-hour analog dial
Clocks and watches with a 24-hour analog dial have an hour hand that makes one complete revolution, 360°, in a day (24 hours per revolution). The more familiar 12-hour analog dial has an hour hand that makes two complete revolutions in ...
. This view accorded both with the daily experience and with the philosophical world view of pre-
Copernican Europe.
History
![Louis de Bruges in front of an astronomical clock Henri Suso, Horloge de Sapience 1470-1480](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Louis_de_Bruges_in_front_of_an_astronomical_clock_Henri_Suso%2C_Horloge_de_Sapience_1470-1480.jpg)
The
Antikythera mechanism
The Antikythera mechanism ( ) is an Ancient Greek hand-powered orrery, described as the oldest example of an analogue computer used to predict astronomical positions and eclipses decades in advance. It could also be used to track the four-yea ...
is the oldest known analog computer and
astronomical
Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, galaxies ...
clock. A complex arrangement of multiple gears and gear trains could perform functions such as determining the position of the
sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this energy mainly as light, ultraviolet, and infrared radi ...
,
moon
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...
and
planets
A planet is a large, rounded astronomical body that is neither a star nor its remnant. The best available theory of planet formation is the nebular hypothesis, which posits that an interstellar cloud collapses out of a nebula to create a young ...
, predict
eclipses
An eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object or spacecraft is temporarily obscured, by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer. This alignment of three ce ...
and other astronomical phenomena and tracking the dates of
Olympic Games
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
. Research in 2011 and 2012 led an expert group of researchers to posit that European astronomical clocks are descended from the technology of the Antikythera mechanism.
In the 11th century, the
Song dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
Chinese horologist, mechanical engineer, and astronomer
Su Song
Su Song (, 1020–1101), courtesy name Zirong (), was a Chinese polymathic scientist and statesman. Excelling in a variety of fields, he was accomplished in mathematics, Chinese astronomy, astronomy, History of cartography#China, cartography, ...
created a
water-driven astronomical clock for his clock-tower of
Kaifeng
Kaifeng () is a prefecture-level city in east-central Henan province, China. It is one of the Eight Ancient Capitals of China, having been the capital eight times in history, and is best known for having been the Chinese capital during the Nort ...
City. Su Song is noted for having incorporated an
escapement
An escapement is a mechanical linkage in mechanical watches and clocks that gives impulses to the timekeeping element and periodically releases the gear train to move forward, advancing the clock's hands. The impulse action transfers energy to ...
mechanism and the earliest known endless power-transmitting
chain drive
Chain drive is a way of transmitting mechanical power from one place to another. It is often used to convey power to the wheels of a vehicle, particularly bicycles and motorcycles. It is also used in a wide variety of machines besides vehicles. ...
for his clock-tower and
armillary sphere
An armillary sphere (variations are known as spherical astrolabe, armilla, or armil) is a model of objects in the sky (on the celestial sphere), consisting of a spherical framework of rings, centered on Earth or the Sun, that represent lines of ...
to function. Contemporary
Muslim astronomers
Islamic astronomy comprises the Astronomy, astronomical developments made in the Islamic world, particularly during the Islamic Golden Age (9th–13th centuries), and mostly written in the Arabic language. These developments mostly took place in ...
and
engineers
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...
also constructed a variety of highly accurate astronomical clocks for use in their
observatories
An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysical, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. His ...
, such as the
astrolabic clock by
Ibn al-Shatir
ʿAbu al-Ḥasan Alāʾ al‐Dīn ʿAlī ibn Ibrāhīm al-Ansari known as Ibn al-Shatir or Ibn ash-Shatir ( ar, ابن الشاطر; 1304–1375) was an Arab astronomer, mathematician and engineer. He worked as '' muwaqqit'' (موقت, religious ...
in the early 14th century.
The early development of mechanical clocks in Europe is not fully understood, but there is general agreement that by 1300–1330 there existed mechanical clocks (powered by weights rather than by water and using an
escapement
An escapement is a mechanical linkage in mechanical watches and clocks that gives impulses to the timekeeping element and periodically releases the gear train to move forward, advancing the clock's hands. The impulse action transfers energy to ...
) which were intended for two main purposes: for signalling and notification (e.g. the timing of services and public events), and for modelling the solar system. The latter is an inevitable development because the
astrolabe was used both by astronomers and astrologers, and it was natural to apply a clockwork drive to the rotating plate to produce a working model of the solar system. American historian
Lynn White Jr. of Princeton University wrote:
The astronomical clocks developed by the English mathematician and cleric
Richard of Wallingford
Richard of Wallingford (1292–1336) was an English mathematician, astronomer, horologist, and cleric who made major contributions to astronomy and horology while serving as abbot of St Albans Abbey in Hertfordshire.
Biography
Richard was bor ...
in
St Albans
St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...
during the 1330s, and by medieval Italian physician and astronomer
Giovanni de Dondi
Giovanni Dondi dell'Orologio (c. 1330 – 1388), also known as Giovanni de' Dondi, was an Italian physician, astronomer and mechanical engineer in Padua, now in Italy. He is remembered today as a pioneer in the art of clock design and construct ...
in
Padua
Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...
between 1348 and 1364
are masterpieces of their type. They no longer exist, but detailed descriptions of their design and construction survive, and modern reproductions have been made. Wallingford's clock may have shown the sun, moon (age,
phase
Phase or phases may refer to:
Science
*State of matter, or phase, one of the distinct forms in which matter can exist
*Phase (matter), a region of space throughout which all physical properties are essentially uniform
* Phase space, a mathematic ...
, and
node
In general, a node is a localized swelling (a "knot") or a point of intersection (a vertex).
Node may refer to:
In mathematics
*Vertex (graph theory), a vertex in a mathematical graph
*Vertex (geometry), a point where two or more curves, lines, ...
), stars and planets, and had, in addition, a wheel of fortune and an indicator of the state of the tide at
London Bridge
Several bridges named London Bridge have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark, in central London. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 1973, is a box girder bridge built from concrete and steel. It r ...
. De Dondi's clock was a seven-faced construction with 107 moving parts, showing the positions of the sun, moon, and five planets, as well as religious feast days.
Both these clocks, and others like them, were probably less accurate than their designers would have wished. The gear ratios may have been exquisitely calculated, but their manufacture was somewhat beyond the mechanical abilities of the time, and they never worked reliably. Furthermore, in contrast to the intricate advanced wheelwork, the timekeeping mechanism in nearly all these clocks until the 16th century was the simple
verge and foliot
The verge (or crown wheel) escapement is the earliest known type of mechanical escapement, the mechanism in a mechanical clock that controls its rate by allowing the gear train to advance at regular intervals or 'ticks'. Its origin is unknown. V ...
escapement, which had errors of at least half an hour a day.
Astronomical clocks were built as demonstration or exhibition pieces, to impress as much as to educate or inform. The challenge of building these masterpieces meant that clockmakers would continue to produce them, to demonstrate their technical skill and their patrons' wealth. The philosophical message of an ordered, heavenly-ordained universe, which accorded with the Gothic era view of the world, helps explain their popularity.
The growing interest in astronomy during the 18th century revived interest in astronomical clocks, less for the philosophical message, more for the accurate astronomical information that
pendulum
A pendulum is a weight suspended from a pivot so that it can swing freely. When a pendulum is displaced sideways from its resting, equilibrium position, it is subject to a restoring force due to gravity that will accelerate it back toward the ...
-regulated clocks could display.
Generic description
Although each astronomical clock is different, they share some common features.
Time of day
![Astroclock-stereographic](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Astroclock-stereographic.png)
Most astronomical clocks have a
24-hour analog dial
Clocks and watches with a 24-hour analog dial have an hour hand that makes one complete revolution, 360°, in a day (24 hours per revolution). The more familiar 12-hour analog dial has an hour hand that makes two complete revolutions in ...
around the outside edge, numbered from I to XII then from I to XII again. The current time is indicated by a golden ball or a picture of the sun at the end of a pointer. Local noon is usually at the top of the dial, and midnight at the bottom. Minute hands are rarely used.
The Sun indicator or hand gives an approximate indication of both the Sun's
azimuth
An azimuth (; from ar, اَلسُّمُوت, as-sumūt, the directions) is an angular measurement in a spherical coordinate system. More specifically, it is the horizontal angle from a cardinal direction, most commonly north.
Mathematicall ...
and altitude. For azimuth (bearing from the north), the top of the dial indicates South, and the two VI points of the dial East and West. For altitude, the top is the zenith and the two VI and VI points define the horizon. (This is for the astronomical clocks designed for use in the northern hemisphere.) This interpretation is most accurate at the equinoxes, of course.
If XII is not at the top of the dial, or if the numbers are Arabic rather than Roman, then the time may be shown in
Italian hours
''Italian Hours'' is a book of travel writing by Henry James published in 1909. The book collected essays that James had written over nearly forty years about a country he knew and loved well. James extensively revised and sometimes expanded the ...
(also called Bohemian, or Old Czech, hours). In this system, 1 o'clock occurs at sunset, and counting continues through the night and into the next afternoon, reaching 24 an hour before sunset.
In the photograph of the Prague clock shown at the top of the article, the time indicated by the Sun hand is about 9am (IX in Roman numerals), or about the 13th hour (Italian time in Arabic numerals).
Calendar and zodiac
The year is usually represented by the 12 signs of the
zodiac
The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north or south (as measured in celestial latitude) of the ecliptic, the Sun path, apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. ...
, arranged either as a concentric circle inside the 24-hour dial, or drawn onto a displaced smaller circle, which is a projection of the
ecliptic
The ecliptic or ecliptic plane is the orbital plane of the Earth around the Sun. From the perspective of an observer on Earth, the Sun's movement around the celestial sphere over the course of a year traces out a path along the ecliptic again ...
, the path of the Sun and planets through the sky, and the plane of the Earth's orbit.
The ecliptic plane is projected onto the face of the clock, and, because of the Earth's tilted angle of rotation relative to its orbital plane, it is displaced from the center and appears to be distorted. The projection point for the
stereographic projection
In mathematics, a stereographic projection is a perspective projection of the sphere, through a specific point on the sphere (the ''pole'' or ''center of projection''), onto a plane (geometry), plane (the ''projection plane'') perpendicular to ...
is the North pole; on
astrolabes
An astrolabe ( grc, ἀστρολάβος ; ar, ٱلأَسْطُرلاب ; persian, ستارهیاب ) is an ancient astronomical instrument that was a handheld model of the universe. Its various functions also make it an elaborate inclin ...
the South pole is more common.
The ecliptic dial makes one complete revolution in 23 hours 56 minutes (a
sidereal day
Sidereal time (as a unit also sidereal day or sidereal rotation period) (sidereal ) is a timekeeping system that astronomers use to locate celestial objects. Using sidereal time, it is possible to easily point a telescope to the proper coor ...
), and will therefore gradually get out of phase with the hour hand, drifting slowly further apart during the year.
To find the date, find the place where the hour hand or Sun disk intersects the ecliptic dial: this indicates the current star sign, the sun's current location on the ecliptic. The intersection point slowly moves around the ecliptic dial during the year, as the Sun moves out of one
astrological sign
In Western astrology, astrological signs are the twelve 30-degree sectors that make up Earth's 360-degree orbit around the Sun. The signs enumerate from the first day of spring, known as the First Point of Aries, which is the vernal equinox. ...
into another.
In the diagram showing the clock face on the right, the Sun's disk has recently moved into Aries (the stylized ram's horns), having left Pisces. The date is therefore late March or early April.
If the zodiac signs run around inside the hour hands, either this ring rotates to align itself with the hour hand, or there's another hand, revolving once per year, which points to the Sun's current zodiac sign.
Moon
A dial or ring indicating the numbers 1 to 29 or 30 indicates the moon's age: a new moon is 0, waxes become full around day 15, and then wanes up to 29 or 30. The phase is sometimes shown by a rotating globe or black hemisphere, or a window that reveals part of a wavy black shape beneath.
Hour lines
Unequal hours were the result of dividing up the period of daylight into 12 equal hours and nighttime into another 12. In Europe, there is more daylight in the summer, and less night, so each of the 12 daylight hours is longer than a night hour. Similarly in winter, daylight hours are shorter, and night hours are longer. These unequal hours are shown by the curved lines radiating from the center. The longer daylight hours in summer can usually be seen at the outer edge of the dial, and the time in unequal hours is read by noting the intersection of the sun hand with the appropriate curved line.
Aspects
Astrologers placed importance on how the Sun, Moon, and planets were arranged and aligned in the sky. If certain planets appeared at the points of a triangle, hexagon, or square, or if they were opposite or next to each other, the appropriate
aspect
Aspect or Aspects may refer to:
Entertainment
* ''Aspect magazine'', a biannual DVD magazine showcasing new media art
* Aspect Co., a Japanese video game company
* Aspects (band), a hip hop group from Bristol, England
* ''Aspects'' (Benny Carter ...
was used to determine the event's significance. On some clocks you can see the common aspects – triangle, square, and hexagon – drawn inside the central disc, with each line marked by the symbol for that aspect, and you may also see the signs for conjunction and opposition. On an
astrolabe, the corners of the different aspects could be lined up on any of the planets. On a clock, though, the disc containing the aspect lines can't be rotated at will, so they usually show only the aspects of the Sun or Moon.
On the
Torre dell'Orologio, Brescia clock in northern Italy, the triangle, square, and star in the centre of the dial show these aspects (the third, fourth, and sixth phases) of (presumably) the moon.
Dragon hand: eclipse prediction and lunar nodes
The Moon's orbit is not in the same plane as the Earth's orbit around the Sun but crosses it in two places. The Moon crosses the ecliptic plane twice a month, once when it goes up above the plane, and again 15 or so days later when it goes back down below the ecliptic. These two locations are the ascending and descending
lunar nodes
A lunar node is either of the two orbital nodes of the Moon, that is, the two points at which the orbit of the Moon intersection (Euclidean geometry), intersects the ecliptic. The ''ascending'' (or ''north'') node is where the Moon moves into th ...
. Solar and lunar eclipses will occur only when the Moon is positioned near one of these nodes because at other times the Moon is either too high or too low for an eclipse to be noticed from the earth. Some astronomical clocks keep track of the position of the lunar nodes with a long pointer that crosses the dial. This so-called dragon hand makes one complete rotation around the ecliptic dial every 19 years. When the dragon hand and the new moon coincide, the Moon is on the same plane as the Earth and Sun, and so there is every chance that an eclipse will be visible from somewhere on Earth.
Historical examples
Su Song's Cosmic Engine
The
Science Museum (London)
The Science Museum is a major museum on Exhibition Road in South Kensington, London. It was founded in 1857 and is one of the city's major tourist attractions, attracting 3.3 million visitors annually in 2019.
Like other publicly funded ...
has a scale model of the 'Cosmic Engine', which
Su Song
Su Song (, 1020–1101), courtesy name Zirong (), was a Chinese polymathic scientist and statesman. Excelling in a variety of fields, he was accomplished in mathematics, Chinese astronomy, astronomy, History of cartography#China, cartography, ...
, a Chinese
polymath
A polymath ( el, πολυμαθής, , "having learned much"; la, homo universalis, "universal human") is an individual whose knowledge spans a substantial number of subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific pro ...
, designed and constructed in China in 1092. This great astronomical hydromechanical clock tower was about ten metres high (about 30 feet) and featured a clock
escapement
An escapement is a mechanical linkage in mechanical watches and clocks that gives impulses to the timekeeping element and periodically releases the gear train to move forward, advancing the clock's hands. The impulse action transfers energy to ...
and was indirectly powered by a rotating wheel either with falling water and
liquid mercury, which freezes at a much lower temperature than water, allowing operation of the clock during colder weather. A full-sized working replica of Su Song's clock exists in the
Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...
(Taiwan)'s
National Museum of Natural Science
The National Museum of Natural Science () is a national museum in North District, Taichung, Taiwan.
Overview
The museum covers and is a six-venue complex housing: the Space Theater, Science Center, Life Science Hall, Human Cultures Hall, G ...
,
Taichung
Taichung (, Wade–Giles: ''Tʻai²-chung¹'', pinyin: ''Táizhōng''), officially Taichung City, is a special municipality located in central Taiwan. Taichung has approximately 2.8 million residents and is the second most populous city of Taiw ...
city. This full-scale, fully functional replica, approximately in height, was constructed from Su Song's original descriptions and mechanical drawings.
Astrarium of Giovanni Dondi dell'Orologio
The Astrarium of Giovanni Dondi dell'Orologio was a complex astronomical clock built between 1348 and 1364 in
Padova
Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...
, Italy, by the doctor and clock-maker
Giovanni Dondi dell'Orologio
Giovanni Dondi dell'Orologio (c. 1330 – 1388), also known as Giovanni de' Dondi, was an Italian physician, astronomer and mechanical engineer in Padua, now in Italy. He is remembered today as a pioneer in the art of clock design and construct ...
. The Astrarium had seven faces and 107 moving gears; it showed the positions of the sun, the moon and the five planets then known, as well as religious feast days. The astrarium stood about 1 metre high, and consisted of a seven-sided brass or iron framework resting on 7 decorative paw-shaped feet. The lower section provided a 24-hour dial and a large calendar drum, showing the fixed feasts of the church, the movable feasts, and the position in the zodiac of the moon's ascending node. The upper section contained 7 dials, each about 30 cm in diameter, showing the positional data for the
Primum Mobile
In classical, medieval, and Renaissance astronomy, the Primum Mobile (Latin: "first movable") was the outermost moving sphere in the geocentric model of the universe.
The concept was introduced by Ptolemy to account for the apparent daily motio ...
, Venus, Mercury, the moon, Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars. Directly above the 24-hour dial is the dial of the
Primum Mobile
In classical, medieval, and Renaissance astronomy, the Primum Mobile (Latin: "first movable") was the outermost moving sphere in the geocentric model of the universe.
The concept was introduced by Ptolemy to account for the apparent daily motio ...
, so called because it reproduces the diurnal motion of the stars and the annual motion of the sun against the background of stars. Each of the 'planetary' dials used complex clockwork to produce reasonably accurate models of the planets' motion. These agreed reasonably well both with Ptolemaic theory and with observations. For example, Dondi's dial for Mercury uses a number of intermediate wheels, including: a wheel with 146 teeth, and a wheel with 63 internal (facing inwards) teeth that meshed with a 20 tooth pinion.
Interior clocks and watches
The Rasmus Sørnes Clock
![RasmusSornesClock](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/RasmusSornesClock.jpg)
Arguably the most complicated of its kind ever constructed, the last of a total of four astronomical clocks designed and made by Norwegian
Rasmus Sørnes
Rasmus Jonassen Sørnes (22 March 1893 – 15 February 1967), was a Norwegian inventor, clockmaker and radio technician, and is most famous for his advanced astronomical clocks, the most precise of which has an inaccuracy of 7 seconds during 1000 ...
(1893–1967), is characterized by its superior complexity compactly housed in a casing with the modest measurements of 0.70 x 0.60 x 2.10 m. Features include locations of the sun and moon in the zodiac,
Julian calendar
The Julian calendar, proposed by Roman consul Julius Caesar in 46 BC, was a reform of the Roman calendar. It took effect on , by edict. It was designed with the aid of Greek mathematicians and astronomers such as Sosigenes of Alexandr ...
,
Gregorian calendar
The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It was introduced in October 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian calendar. The principal change was to space leap years dif ...
,
sidereal time, GMT, local time with daylight saving time and leap year, solar and lunar cycle corrections, eclipses, local sunset and sunrise, moon phase, tides,
sunspot cycles and a
planetarium
A planetarium ( planetariums or ''planetaria'') is a theatre built primarily for presenting educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or for training in celestial navigation.
A dominant feature of most planetarium ...
including
Pluto
Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of trans-Neptunian object, bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the S ...
's 248-year orbit and the 25 800-year periods of the polar ecliptics (
precession
Precession is a change in the orientation of the rotational axis of a rotating body. In an appropriate reference frame it can be defined as a change in the first Euler angle, whereas the third Euler angle defines the rotation itself. In othe ...
of the Earth's axis). All wheels are in brass and gold-plated. Dials are silver-plated. The clock has an electromechanical pendulum.
Sørnes also made the necessary tools and based his work on his own astronomical observations. Having been exhibited at the Time Museum in Rockford, Illinois, and at The Chicago Museum of Science and Industry, the clock was sold in 2002 and its current location is not known. The Rasmus Sørnes Astronomical Clock No. 3, the precursor to the Chicago Clock, his tools, patents, drawings, telescope, and other items, are exhibited at the
Borgarsyssel Museum in
Sarpsborg
Sarpsborg ( or ), historically Borg, is a city and municipality in Viken county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Sarpsborg.
Sarpsborg is part of the fifth largest urban area in Norway when paired with neigh ...
, Norway.
Table clocks
There are many examples of astronomical table clocks, due to their popularity as showpieces. To become a master clockmaker in 17th-century
Augsburg
Augsburg (; bar , Augschburg , links=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swabian_German , label=Swabian German, , ) is a city in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany, around west of Bavarian capital Munich. It is a university town and regional seat of the ' ...
, candidates had to design and build a 'masterpiece' clock, an astronomical table-top clock of formidable complexity. Examples can be found in museums, such as London's
British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
.
Currently Edmund Scientific among other retailers offers a mechanical Tellurium clock, perhaps the first mechanical astronomical clock to be mass-marketed.
In Japan,
Tanaka Hisashige
was a Japanese rangaku scholar, engineer and inventor during the Bakumatsu and early Meiji period in Japan. In 1875, he founded what became the Toshiba Corporation. He has been called the "Thomas Edison of Japan" or "Karakuri Giemon."
Biograp ...
made a
Myriad year clock
The , was a universal clock designed by the Japanese inventor Hisashige Tanaka in 1851. It belongs to the category of Japanese clocks called ''Wadokei''. This clock is designated as an Important Cultural Property and a Mechanical Engineering ...
in 1851.
Watches
More recently, independent clockmaker created a wristwatch astrolabe, the "Astrolabium" in addition to the "Planetarium 2000", the "Eclipse 2001" and the "Real Moon."
Ulysse Nardin
Ulysse Nardin SA is a Swiss luxury watchmaking company founded in 1846 in Le Locle, Switzerland.
The company became known for manufacturing highly accurate marine chronometers and complicated timepieces used by over 50 of the world's navies from ...
also sells several astronomical wristwatches, the "Astrolabium," "Planetarium", and the "Tellurium J. Kepler."
File:planetarium 2000.jpg, ''
Planetarium 2000''
File:Ulysse-Nardin MG 2565.jpg, Ulysse Nardin
Ulysse Nardin SA is a Swiss luxury watchmaking company founded in 1846 in Le Locle, Switzerland.
The company became known for manufacturing highly accurate marine chronometers and complicated timepieces used by over 50 of the world's navies from ...
''Astrolabium Galileo Galilei''
File:Cosmosign.jpg, ''Citizen Cosmosign''
File:Moonsign.JPG, ''Citizen Moonsign''
Examples by country
Austria
*
Innsbruck
Innsbruck (; bar, Innschbruck, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian ) is the capital of Tyrol (state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the ...
. The astronomical clock in the gable of 17–19 Maria-Theresien-Strasse is a 20th-century copy of the astronomical clock of the Ulm Rathaus.
*
Peuerbach
Peuerbach is a town in Austria, in Grieskirchen (district) in the Austrian state of Upper Austria.
On the 6th November 2016 there was a vote on whether Peuerbach would be merged with the neighbouring municipalities of Bruck-Waasen and Steegen ...
. The facade of Peuerbach Town Hall features an astrolabe clock, an enlarged copy of
Georg von Peuerbach
Georg von Peuerbach (also Purbach, Peurbach; la, Purbachius; born May 30, 1423 – April 8, 1461) was an Austrian astronomer, poet, mathematician and instrument maker, best known for his streamlined presentation of Ptolemaic astronomy in the ''Th ...
's original astrolabe of 1457.
Belgium
*
Lier. The
Zimmer tower
The Zimmer tower ( nl, Zimmertoren) is a tower in Lier, Belgium, also known as the Cornelius tower, that was originally a keep of Lier's 14th-century city fortifications. In 1930, astronomer and clockmaker Louis Zimmer (1888–1970) built the Jub ...
houses an astronomical clock installed by
Louis Zimmer
Louis Zimmer (8 September 1888 – 12 December 1970) was an astronomer and clockmaker to the King of Belgium. Most notably in 1930 he built the Jubilee (or Centenary) Clock, which is displayed on the front of the Zimmer tower. The Zimmer tower ( ...
in 1930. On twelve dials surrounding a central clockface, it gives indications including the time around the world, the date, the moon phase, and the
equation of time
In mathematics, an equation is a formula that expresses the equality of two expressions, by connecting them with the equals sign . The word ''equation'' and its cognates in other languages may have subtly different meanings; for example, in ...
, and includes a
tide clock.
* . The was constructed by self-taught Lucien Charloteaux between 1896 and 1912. A domestic clock housed in a wooden case, it gives indications including the solar, mean and sidereal time around the world, the positions of the constellations and planets, and the appearance of
Halley's Comet
Halley's Comet or Comet Halley, officially designated 1P/Halley, is a short-period comet visible from Earth every 75–79 years. Halley is the only known short-period comet that is regularly visible to the naked eye from Earth, and thus the o ...
.
*
Sint-Truiden
Sint-Truiden (; french: link=no, Saint-Trond ; li, Sintruin ) is a city and municipality located in the province of Limburg, Flemish Region, Belgium, and has over 41,500 inhabitants, which makes it one of the largest cities in Limburg. The muni ...
. The astronomical clock constructed by between 1937 and 1942 is now housed in the
Festraets Museum.
File:Zimmertoren in Lier Belgium.jpg, Zimmer tower
The Zimmer tower ( nl, Zimmertoren) is a tower in Lier, Belgium, also known as the Cornelius tower, that was originally a keep of Lier's 14th-century city fortifications. In 1930, astronomer and clockmaker Louis Zimmer (1888–1970) built the Jub ...
in Lier, Belgium
Lier (; french: Lierre, ) is a municipality located in the Belgium, Belgian province of Antwerp (province), Antwerp. It is composed of the city of Lier proper and the village of Koningshooikt. The city centre is surrounded by the river ''Nete'', a ...
File:Sint-Truiden, Begijnhof, museum02.jpg, Sint-Truiden
Sint-Truiden (; french: link=no, Saint-Trond ; li, Sintruin ) is a city and municipality located in the province of Limburg, Flemish Region, Belgium, and has over 41,500 inhabitants, which makes it one of the largest cities in Limburg. The muni ...
clock
Croatia
*
Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik (), historically known as Ragusa (; see notes on naming), is a city on the Adriatic Sea in the region of Dalmatia, in the southeastern semi-exclave of Croatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterran ...
. The
Dubrovnik Bell Tower
The Dubrovnik Bell Tower ( hr, Gradski zvonik) is a tower in Dubrovnik, Croatia.
Located on Luža Square at the end of the Stradun, the tower is 31 metres high.
Originally constructed in 1444, the tower suffered damage in the 1667 Dubrovnik eart ...
constructed in 1444 has housed a clock since its creation, though due to earthquake damage, both the tower and the clock were replaced in 1929. A rotating moon ball shows the lunar phase.
File:Dubrovnik (128).JPG, Dubrovnik
Czech Republic
*
Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
. The
Prague astronomical clock at the Old Town Hall is one of the most famous astronomical clocks. The central section was completed in 1410, the calendar dial was added in 1490. The clock was renovated after damage during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, and in 1979. On the hour, Death strikes the time, and the twelve apostles appear at the doors above the clock.
*
Olomouc
Olomouc (, , ; german: Olmütz; pl, Ołomuniec ; la, Olomucium or ''Iuliomontium'') is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 99,000 inhabitants, and its larger urban zone has a population of about 384,000 inhabitants (2019).
Located on th ...
. The
Olomouc astronomical clock
The Olomouc Astronomical Clock ( cs, Olomoucký orloj) is part of the northern wall of the town hall of Olomouc, Czech Republic. The astronomical clock was built the 15th century and has been reconstructed several times. The current appearance i ...
at the Town Hall is a rare example of a
heliocentric
Heliocentrism (also known as the Heliocentric model) is the astronomical model in which the Earth and planets revolve around the Sun at the center of the universe. Historically, heliocentrism was opposed to geocentrism, which placed the Earth at ...
astronomical clock. Dated 1422 by legend, but first mentioned in history in 1517, the clock was remodelled approximately once every century; in 1898 the astrolabe was replaced with a heliocentric model of the solar system. Badly damaged by the retreating German army in 1945, the clock was remodelled in
socialist realism
Socialist realism is a style of idealized realistic art that was developed in the Soviet Union and was the official style in that country between 1932 and 1988, as well as in other socialist countries after World War II. Socialist realism is ch ...
style in 1955, under the Communist government. The religious and royal figures were replaced with athletes, workers, farmers, scientists, and other members of the proletariat.
*
Litomyšl
Litomyšl (; german: Leitomischl) is a town in Svitavy District in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 9,900 inhabitants. It is former bishopric and Latin Catholic titular see. Litomyšl is known for the château-type castle c ...
. The tower of the Old Town Hall has an art nouveau astronomical clock, installed in 1907.
*
Prostějov
Prostějov (; german: Proßnitz) is a city in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 43,000 inhabitants. The city is known for its fashion industry. The historical city centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an Cultural ...
. The astronomical clock in the tower of the New Town Hall was installed in 1910.
*
Kryštofovo Údolí
Kryštofovo Údolí (german: Christofsgrund) is a municipality and village in Liberec District in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 400 inhabitants. The village is well preserved and is protected by law as a Cultural monument ( ...
. The
Kryštofovo Údolí astronomical clock is a modern astronomical clock (inaugurated in 2008), built-in a former electrical substation.
*
Hojsova Stráž. An astronomical clock in the
Bohemian Forest
The Bohemian Forest, known in Czech as Šumava () and in German as Böhmerwald, is a low mountain range in Central Europe. Geographically, the mountains extend from Plzeň Region and South Bohemia in the Czech Republic to Austria and Bavaria in ...
was inaugurated in 2017. It has a concentric dial showing the 24-hour time, the date and zodiac, and the moon phase, and a star map dial with a dragon hand, and indicates the time of sunrise and sunset.
*
Třebíč
Třebíč (; german: Trebitsch; yi, טרייביטש Treybitsh) is a town in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 34,000 inhabitants.
The beginnings of the town's history are connected with the establishment of a Benedictine ...
. At the Třebíč Astronomical Observatory, a modern astronomical clock which shows the time in world cities, the time of sunrise and sunset, the date and zodiac, and the orbits of the planets.
*
Žatec
Žatec (; german: Saaz) is a town in Louny District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 19,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Ohře river. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument ...
. The , a museum and amusement complex dedicated to beer, has an astronomical clock on which the zodiac indication illustrates the annual processes of beer production.
File:Astronomical Clock (8341899828).jpg, Prague astronomical clock
File:Olomouc Astronomical Clock.jpg, Olomouc astronomical clock
The Olomouc Astronomical Clock ( cs, Olomoucký orloj) is part of the northern wall of the town hall of Olomouc, Czech Republic. The astronomical clock was built the 15th century and has been reconstructed several times. The current appearance i ...
File:Radnice Nová (Prostějov), hodiny.JPG, Prostějov
Prostějov (; german: Proßnitz) is a city in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 43,000 inhabitants. The city is known for its fashion industry. The historical city centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an Cultural ...
clock
File:Krystofovo-Udoli-Orloj.jpg, Kryštofovo Údolí astronomical clock
File:Orloj Šumava.jpg, Hojsova Stráž clock
File:8 Chmelovy orloj www.fotospoust.cz.jpg, Žatec
Žatec (; german: Saaz) is a town in Louny District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 19,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Ohře river. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument ...
clock
Denmark
*
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
.
Jens Olsen's World Clock
Jens Olsen's World Clock or Verdensur is an advanced astronomical clock which is displayed in Copenhagen City Hall.
The clock was designed and calculated by Jens Olsen (1872–1945), who was a skilled locksmith, and later learned the trade of ...
in
Copenhagen City Hall
Copenhagen City Hall ( da, Københavns Rådhus) is the headquarters of the Copenhagen City Council as well as the Lord mayor of the Copenhagen Municipality, Denmark. The building is situated on City Hall Square in central Copenhagen.
Architect ...
was designed by
Jens Olsen
Jens Olsen (27 July 1872 – 17 November 1945) was a clockmaker, locksmith and astromechanic who built the famous Jens Olsen's World Clock, world clock located in the city hall of Copenhagen, the Copenhagen City Hall, Rådhus. He was born in R ...
and assembled from 1948 to 1955.
File:Jens Olsens front.jpg, Jens Olsen's World Clock, Copenhagen
France
*
Auxerre
Auxerre ( , ) is the capital of the Yonne department and the fourth-largest city in Burgundy. Auxerre's population today is about 35,000; the urban area (''aire d'attraction'') comprises roughly 113,000 inhabitants. Residents of Auxerre are r ...
. The 15th-century clock in the has a 24-hour sun hand and a moon hand which completes a revolution in a
lunar day
A lunar day is the period of time for Earth's Moon to complete one rotation on its axis with respect to the Sun. Due to tidal locking, it is the time the Moon takes to complete one orbit of the Moon, orbit around Earth
Earth is the thi ...
of 24 hours 50 minutes, and shows the lunar phase on a rotating moon ball.
*
Beauvais
Beauvais ( , ; pcd, Bieuvais) is a city and commune in northern France, and prefecture of the Oise département, in the Hauts-de-France region, north of Paris.
The commune of Beauvais had a population of 56,020 , making it the most populous ...
. The
Beauvais astronomical clock in
Beauvais Cathedral
The Cathedral of Saint Peter of Beauvais (french: Cathédrale Saint-Pierre de Beauvais) is a Roman Catholic church in the northern town of Beauvais, Oise, France. It is the seat of the Bishop of Beauvais, Noyon and Senlis.
The cathedral is in t ...
, constructed 1865–1868 by , has 52 dials that display the times of sunrise, sunset, moonrise, moonset, the phases of the moon, the solstices, the position of the planets, the current time in 18 cities around the world, and the tidal hours. Its 68 automata enact the
Last Judgement
The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...
on the hour.
*
Besançon
Besançon (, , , ; archaic german: Bisanz; la, Vesontio) is the prefecture of the department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzerl ...
. The
Besançon astronomical clock in
Besançon Cathedral
Besançon Cathedral (french: Cathédrale Saint-Jean de Besançon) is a Roman Catholic church dedicated to Saint John located in the city of Besançon, France. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Besançon.
The cathedral consists of a large nave ...
(1860) was also constructed by Auguste-Lucien Vérité. Its 70 dials provide 122 indications.
*
Bourges
Bourges () is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre. It is the capital of the department of Cher, and also was the capital city of the former province of Berry.
History
The name of the commune derives either from the Bituriges, t ...
. The
Bourges astronomical clock in
Bourges Cathedral
Bourges Cathedral (French language, French: ''Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Bourges'') is a Roman Catholic church architecture, church located in Bourges, France. The cathedral is dedicated to Saint Stephen and is the seat of the Archbishop of Bou ...
was installed in 1424. It shows the zodiac, and the moon phase and age.
*
Chartres
Chartres () is the prefecture of the Eure-et-Loir department in the Centre-Val de Loire region in France. It is located about southwest of Paris. At the 2019 census, there were 170,763 inhabitants in the metropolitan area of Chartres (as d ...
. The in
Chartres Cathedral
Chartres Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres (french: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres), is a Roman Catholic church in Chartres, France, about southwest of Paris, and is the seat of the Bishop of Chartres. Mostly con ...
is an astrolabe clock, installed in 1528. It was overhauled, its mechanism replaced by an electric mechanism, in 2009.
*
Haguenau
Haguenau (; Alsatian: or ; and historically in English: ''Hagenaw'') is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department of France, of which it is a sub-prefecture.
It is second in size in the Bas-Rhin only to Strasbourg, some to the south. To the ...
. The facade of the
Musée alsacien displays an astronomical clock, a modern copy of the clock of the Ulm Rathaus.
*
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
. The
Lyon astronomical clock
The Lyon astronomical clock is a seventeenth-century astronomical clock in Lyon Cathedral.
History and description
The 9 metre tall clock is installed in the cathedral of Lyon. An astrolabe indicates the date and position of the Moon, Sun, and ...
in
Lyon Cathedral
Lyon Cathedral (french: link=no, Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Lyon) is a Roman Catholic church located on Place Saint-Jean in central Lyon, France. The cathedral is dedicated to Saint John the Baptist, and is the seat of the Archbishop of L ...
was constructed in 1661, replacing a 14th-century original. It has an astrolabe dial and a calendar dial.
*
Munster
Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...
. The Church of Saint-Léger houses the Clock of Creation, installed in 2008. It shows the time, the day of the week, the month and zodiac, and the moon phase.
*
Ploërmel
Church Saint-Armel
Ploërmel (; ; Gallo language: ''Pieurmè'') is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. On 1 January 2019, the former commune Monterrein was merged into Ploërmel.
Character of the town
The to ...
. The
Ploërmel astronomical clock, constructed 1850–1855, comprises an astronomical clock with 10 dials and an
orrery
An orrery is a mechanical model of the Solar System that illustrates or predicts the relative positions and motions of the planets and moons, usually according to the heliocentric model. It may also represent the relative sizes of these bodies; ...
.
*
Rouen
Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...
. The
Gros Horloge
The Gros-Horloge ( en, Great-Clock) is a 14th century astronomical clock in Rouen, Normandy.
The clock is installed in a Renaissance arch crossing the Rue du Gros-Horloge. The mechanism is one of the oldest in France, the movement having been ma ...
has a movement built in 1389, with a dial added in 1529. It indicates the moon phase on a rotating sphere above the dial, and the day of the week in an aperture at the base of the dial.
*
Saint-Omer
Saint-Omer (; vls, Sint-Omaars) is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department in France.
It is west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais, and is located in the Artois province. The town is named after Saint Audomar, ...
. The in
Saint-Omer Cathedral
Saint-Omer Cathedral (''Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Saint-Omer'') is a Roman Catholic former cathedral, a minor basilica, and a national monument of France, located in Saint-Omer. It was formerly the seat of the Bishop of Saint-Omer, but the see w ...
is an astrolabe clock of 1558.
*
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
. The
Strasbourg astronomical clock
The Strasbourg astronomical clock is located in the Cathédrale Notre-Dame of Strasbourg, Alsace, France. It is the third clock on that spot and dates from the time of the first French possession of the city (1681–1870). The first clock had b ...
is the third clock housed in
Strasbourg Cathedral
Strasbourg Cathedral or the Cathedral of Our Lady of Strasbourg (french: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Strasbourg, or ''Cathédrale de Strasbourg'', german: Liebfrauenmünster zu Straßburg or ''Straßburger Münster''), also known as Strasbourg ...
, following 14th-century and 16th-century predecessors. Constructed by
Jean-Baptiste Schwilgué
Jean-Baptiste Schwilgué (born in Strasbourg in 1776, died in the same place in 1856) was the author of the third astronomical clock of Strasbourg Cathedral, built between 1838 and 1843 (not 1842, as it is written on the clock itself).
In 1844 Schw ...
from 1838 to 1843, it shows many astronomical and calendrical functions (including what is thought to be the first complete mechanization of the
computus
As a moveable feast, the date of Easter is determined in each year through a calculation known as (). Easter is celebrated on the first Sunday after the Paschal full moon, which is the first full moon on or after 21 March (a fixed approxi ...
needed to compute Easter) and several automata.
*
Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...
. The
Passemant astronomical clock
The Passemant astronomical clock is an astronomical clock designed by Claude-Simeon Passemant in the eighteenth century. It is displayed in the ''Salon de la pendule'' in the petit appartement du roi on the first floor of Palace of Versailles, Vers ...
in the
Palace of Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 19 ...
near Paris is a
rococo
Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...
astronomical clock sitting on a formal low marble base. It took 12 years for a clockmaker and an engineer to build and was presented to
Louis XV
Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (french: le Bien-Aimé), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reache ...
in 1754.
File:2012--DSC 0346-Tour-de-l'Horloge-à-Auxerre.jpg, Tour de l'Horloge, Auxerre
Auxerre ( , ) is the capital of the Yonne department and the fourth-largest city in Burgundy. Auxerre's population today is about 35,000; the urban area (''aire d'attraction'') comprises roughly 113,000 inhabitants. Residents of Auxerre are r ...
File:Bourges Cathédrale 1231.jpg, Bourges astronomical clock in Bourges Cathedral
Bourges Cathedral (French language, French: ''Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Bourges'') is a Roman Catholic church architecture, church located in Bourges, France. The cathedral is dedicated to Saint Stephen and is the seat of the Archbishop of Bou ...
File:Chartres - Horloge astro 03.jpg, Clock at Chartres Cathedral
Chartres Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres (french: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres), is a Roman Catholic church in Chartres, France, about southwest of Paris, and is the seat of the Bishop of Chartres. Mostly con ...
File:Lyon - Cathédrale Saint-Jean - Horloge Astronomique.jpg, Lyon astronomical clock
The Lyon astronomical clock is a seventeenth-century astronomical clock in Lyon Cathedral.
History and description
The 9 metre tall clock is installed in the cathedral of Lyon. An astrolabe indicates the date and position of the Moon, Sun, and ...
in Lyon Cathedral
Lyon Cathedral (french: link=no, Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Lyon) is a Roman Catholic church located on Place Saint-Jean in central Lyon, France. The cathedral is dedicated to Saint John the Baptist, and is the seat of the Archbishop of L ...
Strasbourg Cathedral Astronomical Clock - Diliff.jpg, Strasbourg astronomical clock
The Strasbourg astronomical clock is located in the Cathédrale Notre-Dame of Strasbourg, Alsace, France. It is the third clock on that spot and dates from the time of the first French possession of the city (1681–1870). The first clock had b ...
in Strasbourg Cathedral
Strasbourg Cathedral or the Cathedral of Our Lady of Strasbourg (french: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Strasbourg, or ''Cathédrale de Strasbourg'', german: Liebfrauenmünster zu Straßburg or ''Straßburger Münster''), also known as Strasbourg ...
File:Picardie Beauvais4 tango7174.jpg, Beauvais astronomical clock in Beauvais Cathedral
The Cathedral of Saint Peter of Beauvais (french: Cathédrale Saint-Pierre de Beauvais) is a Roman Catholic church in the northern town of Beauvais, Oise, France. It is the seat of the Bishop of Beauvais, Noyon and Senlis.
The cathedral is in t ...
Georgia
*
Batumi
Batumi (; ka, ბათუმი ) is the second largest city of Georgia and the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, located on the coast of the Black Sea in Georgia's southwest. It is situated in a subtropical zone at the foot of th ...
. The facade of the former National Bank Building on Europe Square has an astronomical clock based on the
clock at Mantua, which shows the positions of the sun and moon in the zodiac, and the moon phase.
Germany
* A group of interior astronomical clocks of the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries in churches of
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League (; gml, Hanse, , ; german: label=Modern German, Deutsche Hanse) was a medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Central and Northern Europe. Growing from a few North German to ...
towns in northern Germany, known as the Hanseatic clocks (the group also includes the
clock at Gdańsk, now in Poland).
**
Bad Doberan
Bad Doberan () is a town in the district of Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It was the capital of the former district of Bad Doberan. In 2012, its population was 11,427.
Geography
Bad Doberan is situated just west of Rostock's city c ...
. At
Doberan Minster
The Doberan Minster is the main Lutheran Church of Bad Doberan in Mecklenburg, Germany. Close to the Baltic Sea and the Hanseatic city of Rostock, it is the most important religious heritage of the European Route of Brick Gothic. It is the rema ...
, an astrolabe clock was installed by
Nikolaus Lilienfeld in 1390. Only the dial survives, now positioned above the west door.
**
Lübeck
Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the stat ...
. The astronomical clock of
St. Mary's Church, constructed 1561–1566, was destroyed in the
bombing of Lübeck in 1942. The present clock is a replacement by
Paul Behrens
Paul Behrens (1893–1984) was a clockmaker in Lübeck in northern Germany.
Life
Behrens was the son of Paul Behrens sr, who himself had been a clockmaker in Lübeck. Paul Behrens jr took over the management of the family company ("Uhrenhaus Be ...
, installed in 1967.
**
Münster
Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state distr ...
. The
Münster astronomical clock
The Münster astronomical clock is an astronomical clock in Münster Cathedral in Münster, Germany.
The clock, built between 1540 and 1542, is one of the most significant monumental clocks in the German-speaking world. It belongs to the so-call ...
of 1540 in
Münster Cathedral
Münster Cathedral or St.-Paulus-Dom is the cathedral church of the Catholic Diocese of Münster in Germany, and is dedicated to St Paul. It is counted among the most significant church buildings in Münster and, along with the City Hall, i ...
, adorned with hand-painted zodiac symbols, which traces the movement of the planets, plays a
glockenspiel
The glockenspiel ( or , : bells and : set) or bells is a percussion instrument consisting of pitched aluminum or steel bars arranged in a keyboard layout. This makes the glockenspiel a type of metallophone, similar to the vibraphone.
The glo ...
tune every noon.
**
Rostock
Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state, c ...
. The
Rostock astronomical clock
The Rostock astronomical clock is a fifteenth-century astronomical clock in St. Mary's Church, Rostock.
History and description
The astronomical clock was built in 1472 by Hans Düringer, a clockmaker from Nuremberg. It consists of three partit ...
in
St. Mary's Church dating from 1472, built by
Hans Düringer
Hans Düringer was a clockmaker from Nuremberg in Germany who died 1477 in Rostock. His most famous works are
*the Gdańsk Astronomical Clock in St. Mary's Church, Gdańsk 1470
*the Rostock Astronomical Clock in St. Mary's Church, Rostock 1472 ...
. Clock with daily time, zodiac, moon phases, and month. With a dedicated electronic database this clock is particularly well documented.
**
Stendal
The Hanseatic City of Stendal () is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is the capital of the Stendal District and the unofficial capital of the Altmark region.
Geography
Situated west of the Elbe valley, the Stendal town centre is located s ...
. At , an astronomical clock of the 1580s, rebuilt in 1856 (and vandalized by the clockmaker), and restored in 1977.
**
Stralsund
Stralsund (; Swedish: ''Strålsund''), officially the Hanseatic City of Stralsund (German: ''Hansestadt Stralsund''), is the fifth-largest city in the northeastern German federal state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin, Neub ...
. The
astronomical clock
An astronomical clock, horologium, or orloj is a clock with special mechanisms and dials to display astronomical information, such as the relative positions of the Sun, Moon, zodiacal constellations, and sometimes major planets.
Definition
...
in
St. Nicholas' Church is an astrolabe clock installed by Nikolaus Lilienfeld in 1394. It has not been in working order since the 16th century.
**
Wismar
Wismar (; Low German: ''Wismer''), officially the Hanseatic City of Wismar (''Hansestadt Wismar'') is, with around 43,000 inhabitants, the sixth-largest city of the northeastern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and the fourth-largest city ...
. The 15th-century astronomical clock in was destroyed by bombing in 1945.
* A group of 16th-century clocks on the facade of town halls in southern Germany, which have a 12-hour dial, a moon phase indication, and a calendar dial indicating the positions of the sun and moon in the zodiac, with a dragon hand:
**
Esslingen am Neckar
Esslingen am Neckar ( Swabian: ''Esslenga am Neckor'') is a town in the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany, seat of the District of Esslingen as well as the largest town in the district. Within Baden-Württemberg it is t ...
. The , constructed 1581–1586.
**
Heilbronn
Heilbronn () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, surrounded by Heilbronn (district), Heilbronn District. With over 126,000 residents, it is the sixth-largest city in the state.
From the late Mid ...
. The of of
Isaac Habrecht, installed 1579–1580.
**
Tübingen
Tübingen (, , Swabian: ''Dibenga'') is a traditional university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer rivers. about one in thr ...
. The clock of , installed in 1510.
**
Ulm
Ulm () is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Danube on the border with Bavaria. The city, which has an estimated population of more than 126,000 (2018), forms an urban district of its own (german: link=no, ...
. The 16th-century astronomical clock of has a 24-hour astrolabe format, although the zodiac is repeated as a rotating ring of gold sculptures, and the outer ring of the dial is a 12-hour chapter ring.
*
Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...
. At the , a modern astronomical clock which shows the hour in regular and
sidereal time, the moon phase, positions of the sun and moon in the zodiac, and the rotation of the earth according to the geocentric model.
*
Esslingen am Neckar
Esslingen am Neckar ( Swabian: ''Esslenga am Neckor'') is a town in the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany, seat of the District of Esslingen as well as the largest town in the district. Within Baden-Württemberg it is t ...
. At the headquarters of
Festo
Festo is a German automation company based in Esslingen am Neckar, Germany. Festo produces and sells pneumatic and electrical control systems and drive technology for factories and process automation. Festo Didactic also offers industrial edu ...
, Professor Hans Scheurenbrand has constructed the ''Harmonices Mundi'' (named after Kepler's
book of the same name), which consists of an astronomical clock, a world time clock, and a 74 bell
glockenspiel
The glockenspiel ( or , : bells and : set) or bells is a percussion instrument consisting of pitched aluminum or steel bars arranged in a keyboard layout. This makes the glockenspiel a type of metallophone, similar to the vibraphone.
The glo ...
.
*
Görlitz
Görlitz (; pl, Zgorzelec, hsb, Zhorjelc, cz, Zhořelec, :de:Ostlausitzer Mundart, East Lusatian dialect: ''Gerlz'', ''Gerltz'', ''Gerltsch'') is a town in the Germany, German state of Saxony. It is located on the Lusatian Neisse River, and ...
. and the both have 16th-century clocks which indicate the lunar phase.
*
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
. The
Old Town Hall
Old or OLD may refer to:
Places
* Old, Baranya, Hungary
* Old, Northamptonshire, England
*Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD)
*OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, ...
and the
Deutsches Museum
The Deutsches Museum (''German Museum'', officially (English: ''German Museum of Masterpieces of Science and Technology'')) in Munich, Germany, is the world's largest museum of science and technology, with about 28,000 exhibited objects from ...
both have clocks which indicate the moon phase on a rotating ball, and the zodiac on a fixed ring within a 12-hour dial.
*
Schramberg
Schramberg is a town in the Rottweil (district), district of Rottweil, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated in the eastern Black Forest, 25 km northwest of Rottweil. With all of its districts (Talstadt, Sulgen, Waldmössingen, Heili ...
. The Town Hall has an astronomical clock installed in 1913. Its indications are similar to the clock of Ulm (except that the outer hour ring is 24-hour), with an offset astrolabe ring repeated as a golden zodiac ring.
*
Stuttgart
Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...
. A modern clock in the tower of shows the moon phase and the day of the week.
*
Worms Worms may refer to:
*Worm, an invertebrate animal with a tube-like body and no limbs
Places
*Worms, Germany, a city
**Worms (electoral district)
*Worms, Nebraska, U.S.
*Worms im Veltlintal, the German name for Bormio, Italy
Arts and entertainme ...
. The clock tower has a modern calendar dial that shows the month, the positions of the sun and moon in the zodiac, the moon phase, and has a dragon hand.
File:Stralsund, Nikolaikirche, Astronomische Uhr (2012-12-29) 1, by Klugschnacker in Wikipedia.jpg, St. Nicholas' Church, Stralsund
File:Rostock Marienkirche Astronomische Uhr 2011-02-12.jpg, St. Mary's Church, Rostock
File:WLM-DE-NW-2018-Münster-Dom-Astronomische Uhr-4101.jpg, Münster Cathedral
File:Lübeck Marienkirche - Astronomische Uhr 070311.jpg, St. Mary's Church, Lübeck
File:Ulm - panoramio (14).jpg, Ulm
File:Astronomische Uhr Deutsches Museum Muenchen-1.jpg, Deutsches Museum, Munich
Hungary
*
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
: A modern astronomical clock with automata, at the Clock Museum.
File:Szekesfehervar Historical Facade Clock Closeup 01.JPG, Budapest
Italy
*
Arezzo
Arezzo ( , , ) , also ; ett, 𐌀𐌓𐌉𐌕𐌉𐌌, Aritim. is a city and ''comune'' in Italy and the capital of the province of the same name located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about southeast of Florence at an elevation of above sea level. ...
. The clock of the , installed in 1552, shows the moon phase and age.
*
Bassano del Grappa
Bassano del Grappa ( vec, Basan or ''Bassan'', ) is a city and ''comune'', in the Vicenza province, in the region of Veneto, in northern Italy. It bounds the communes of Cassola, Marostica, Solagna, Pove del Grappa, Romano d'Ezzelino, Campolongo ...
. 24-hour dial with zodiac indication on the Palazzo del Municipio, first installed in 1430, reconstructed by Bartolomeo Ferracina in 1747.
*
Brescia
Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Iseo. ...
. Astronomical clock dated in the
Torre dell'Orologio.
*
Clusone
Clusone ( Bergamasque: ) is an Italian town and ''comune'' in the province of Bergamo, Lombardy, Italy. Located in the Val Seriana, it received the honorary title of city on 15 May 1957 with a presidential decree which ratified a Napoleon's promis ...
.
Fanzago's astronomical clock at the , built by Pietro Fanzago in 1583.
*
Cremona
Cremona (, also ; ; lmo, label= Cremunés, Cremùna; egl, Carmona) is a city and ''comune'' in northern Italy, situated in Lombardy, on the left bank of the Po river in the middle of the ''Pianura Padana'' ( Po Valley). It is the capital of th ...
. The 16th-century astronomical clock of the
Torrazzo
Torrazzo is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Biella in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about southwest of Biella.
Torrazzo borders the following municipalities: Bollengo, Burolo, Chiaverano, Ma ...
, the bell tower of
Cremona Cathedral
Cremona Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Cremona, ''Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta''), dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is a Catholic cathedral in Cremona, Lombardy, northern Italy. It is the seat of the Bishop of Cremona. Its be ...
, is the largest medieval clock in Europe.
*
Macerata
Macerata () is a city and ''comune'' in central Italy, the county seat of the province of Macerata in the Marche region. It has a population of about 41,564.
History
The historical city centre is on a hill between the Chienti and Potenza ri ...
. An astronomical clock installed in the , a modern replica of the original clock of 1571, which shows the orbits of the planets.
*
Mantua
Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard language, Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, province of the same name.
In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture ...
. Astronomical clock was installed in 1473 in the
Torre dell'Orologio of the Palazzo della Ragione.
*
Merano
Merano (, , ) or Meran () is a city and ''comune'' in South Tyrol, northern Italy. Generally best known for its spa resorts, it is located within a basin, surrounded by mountains standing up to above sea level, at the entrance to the Passeier V ...
. Clock tower at the entrance to
Merano town cemetery, installed in 1908 by Philipp Hörz of Ulm, with a calendar dial showing the month, zodiac, and moon phase.
*
Messina
Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in ...
. The
Messina astronomical clock
The astronomical clock of Messina is an astronomical clock constructed by the Ungerer Company of Strasbourg in 1933. It is built into the campanile of Messina Cathedral.
The mechanism was designed by Frédéric Klinghammer, with the artistic desi ...
in the tower of
Messina Cathedral
Messina Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Messina; Basilica Cattedrale metropolitana di Santa Maria Assunta) is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in Messina, Sicily. Formerly the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Messina, it became in 1986 the archiepisc ...
. Multi-dial clock equipped with complex automata. Constructed between 1930 and 1933 by the Ungerer Company of Strasbourg. It is one of the largest astronomical clocks in the world.
*
Padua
Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...
. 15th-century astronomical clock in the
Torre dell'Orologio.
*
Rimini
Rimini ( , ; rgn, Rémin; la, Ariminum) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It sprawls along the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient ''Ariminu ...
. The clock tower on Piazza Tre Martiri has a calendar dial installed in 1750 showing the date, zodiac, and moon phase and age.
*
Soncino. 24-hour dial with zodiac indication in the town hall. The terracotta zodiac dial dates from 1977.
*
Trapani
Trapani ( , ; scn, Tràpani ; lat, Drepanum; grc, Δρέπανον) is a city and municipality (''comune'') on the west coast of Sicily, in Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Trapani. Founded by Elymians, the city is still an impor ...
. Astronomical clock of 1596 in the Porta Oscura, with a dial for the hours and the zodiac, and a lunar dial.
*
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...
.
St Mark's Clock, in the
clocktower
Clock towers are a specific type of structure which house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another buildin ...
on
St Mark's Square, was built and installed by Gian Paulo and Gian Carlo Rainieri, father and son, between 1496 and 1499.
File:Cremona-Orologio astronomico sul Torrazzo perspec.jpg, Cremona
File:Torre dell'Orologio2.JPG, Mantua
File:Brescia astro clock.jpg, Brescia
File:Padova Piazza dei Signori Torre dell'Orologio Zifferblatt 1.jpg, Padua
File:Venezia Torre dell'Orologio Tierkreis 5.jpg, Venice
File:Messina duomo tower 2.JPG, Messina
Latvia
*
Riga
Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...
: The clock on the facade of the
House of the Blackheads shows the time, date, month, day of the week, and lunar phase.
File:Riga - House of the Blackheads - Astronomical clock.jpg, Rebuilt clock on the House of the Blackheads (Riga)
The House of the Blackheads ( lv, Melngalvju nams, german: Schwarzhäupterhaus) is a building situated in the old town of Riga, Latvia. The original building was erected during the first third of the 14th century for the Brotherhood of Blackh ...
Malta
*
Valletta
Valletta (, mt, il-Belt Valletta, ) is an Local councils of Malta, administrative unit and capital city, capital of Malta. Located on the Malta (island), main island, between Marsamxett Harbour to the west and the Grand Harbour to the east, i ...
. The clock of the
Grandmaster's Palace, installed in 1745, shows the hour, date, month, and lunar phase, and has bells struck by four jacquemarts.
* Malta has several church clocks that show calendar indications on separate dials, including those of
St John's Co-Cathedral, Valletta;
St Paul's Cathedral, Mdina; the
Rotunda of Mosta
The Sanctuary Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady ( mt, Santwarju Bażilika ta' Santa Marija), commonly known as the Rotunda of Mosta ( mt, Ir-Rotunda tal-Mosta) or the Mosta Dome, is a Roman Catholic parish church and Basilica in Mosta, Malta, ...
; and the
Church of St Bartholomew, Għargħur
The Church of St Bartholomew is a Roman Catholic Parish church in the village of Għargħur, Malta.
History
The original chapel of St Bartholomew, which stood on the site of the present church, was documented by inquisitor Pietro Dusina on his ap ...
.
File:Großmeisterpalast Valletta Astronomische Uhr.jpg, Grandmaster's Palace, Valletta
Netherlands
*
Arnemuiden
Arnemuiden is a city of around 5000 people in the municipality of Middelburg in the province of Zeeland in the Netherlands. It is located on the former island of Walcheren, about 3 km east of the city of Middelburg.
On the 23 September 1338, ...
. The 16th-century church clock at Arnemuiden indicates the lunar phase and the time of high tide.
*
Franeker
Franeker (; fry, Frjentsjer) is one of the eleven historical cities of Friesland and capital of the municipality of Waadhoeke. It is located north of the Van Harinxmakanaal and about 20 km west of Leeuwarden. As of 1 January 2014, it had 12, ...
. The
Eise Eisinga Planetarium
The Royal Eise Eisinga Planetarium ( nl, Koninklijk(e) Eise Eisinga Planetarium) is an 18th-century orrery in Franeker, Friesland, Netherlands. It is currently a museum and open to the public. The orrery has been on the top 100 Dutch heritage sit ...
, built 1774–1781, is an orrery and astronomical clock which shows the movements of the solar system.
File:AstroClockArnemuiden.jpg, Arnemuiden
Arnemuiden is a city of around 5000 people in the municipality of Middelburg in the province of Zeeland in the Netherlands. It is located on the former island of Walcheren, about 3 km east of the city of Middelburg.
On the 23 September 1338, ...
clock showing high and low water
(''hoog'' and ''laag'')
Planetarium Franeker (36) (29621381347).jpg, The Eise Eisinga Planetarium
The Royal Eise Eisinga Planetarium ( nl, Koninklijk(e) Eise Eisinga Planetarium) is an 18th-century orrery in Franeker, Friesland, Netherlands. It is currently a museum and open to the public. The orrery has been on the top 100 Dutch heritage sit ...
in Franeker
Franeker (; fry, Frjentsjer) is one of the eleven historical cities of Friesland and capital of the municipality of Waadhoeke. It is located north of the Van Harinxmakanaal and about 20 km west of Leeuwarden. As of 1 January 2014, it had 12, ...
Norway
*
Oslo
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
. A 20th-century astronomical clock at
Oslo City Hall
Oslo City Hall ( no, Oslo rådhus) is a municipal building in Oslo, the capital of Norway. It houses the city council, the city's administration and various other municipal organisations. The building as it stands today was constructed between ...
.
File:Astronomical clock 0910.jpg, Oslo City Hall
Poland
*
Gdańsk
Gdańsk ( , also ; ; csb, Gduńsk;Stefan Ramułt, ''Słownik języka pomorskiego, czyli kaszubskiego'', Kraków 1893, Gdańsk 2003, ISBN 83-87408-64-6. , Johann Georg Theodor Grässe, ''Orbis latinus oder Verzeichniss der lateinischen Benen ...
. In
St. Mary's Church there is the
Gdańsk astronomical clock dating from 1464 to 1470, and built by
Hans Düringer
Hans Düringer was a clockmaker from Nuremberg in Germany who died 1477 in Rostock. His most famous works are
*the Gdańsk Astronomical Clock in St. Mary's Church, Gdańsk 1470
*the Rostock Astronomical Clock in St. Mary's Church, Rostock 1472 ...
of
Toruń
)''
, image_skyline =
, image_caption =
, image_flag = POL Toruń flag.svg
, image_shield = POL Toruń COA.svg
, nickname = City of Angels, Gingerbread city, Copernicus Town
, pushpin_map = Kuyavian-Pom ...
. It was reconstructed after 1945.
*
Wrocław
Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...
. A 16th-century clock showing the moon phase at
Wrocław Town Hall.
File:13 Danzig (36).jpg, Gdańsk
File:Ratusz3zegar.jpg, Wrocław Town Hall
Slovakia
*
Stará Bystrica
Stará Bystrica ( hu, Óbeszterce) is a village and municipality in Čadca District in the Žilina Region of Northern Slovakia. It is the home to the world's youngest astronomical clock, completed in 2009. : An astronomical clock in the stylized shape of
Our Lady of Sorrows
Our Lady of Sorrows ( la, Beata Maria Virgo Perdolens), Our Lady of Dolours, the Sorrowful Mother or Mother of Sorrows ( la, Mater Dolorosa, link=no), and Our Lady of Piety, Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows or Our Lady of the Seven Dolours are names ...
was built in the town square in 2009. The astronomical part of the clock consists of an
astrolabe displaying the astrological signs, positions of the Sun and Moon, and the lunar phases. Its statues and automata depict Slovakian historical and religious figures. The clock is controlled by computer using
DCF77
DCF77 is a German longwave time signal and standard-frequency radio station. It started service as a standard-frequency station on 1 January 1959. In June 1973 date and time information was added. Its primary and backup transmitter are located ...
signals.
[Slovenský orloj v Starej Bystrici](_blank)
, municipality official website (in Slovak)
File:Stará Bystrica1.jpg, Stará Bystrica
Spain
*
Astorga: The interior face of the clock of
Astorga Cathedral
The Cathedral of Astorga (Spanish: ''Catedral de Santa María de Astorga'') is a Roman Catholic church in Astorga, Spain. It was declared a national monument in 1931.
The gothic edifice was begun in 1471, within the same walls of its Romanesque ...
has a 24-hour dial which shows the lunar phase and the date.
Sweden
*
Lund
Lund (, , ) is a city in the southern Swedish provinces of Sweden, province of Scania, across the Øresund, Öresund strait from Copenhagen. The town had 91,940 inhabitants out of a municipal total of 121,510 . It is the seat of Lund Municipali ...
:
Lund astronomical clock
Lund astronomical clock, occasionally and at least since the 16th century referred to as Horologium mirabile Lundense (''Latin'': "the wonderful clock in Lund"), is a 15th-century astronomical clock in Lund Cathedral. Mentioned in written sources ...
in
Lund Cathedral
Lund Cathedral ( sv, Lunds domkyrka) is a cathedral of the Lutheran Church of Sweden in Lund, Scania, Sweden. It is the seat of the Bishop of Lund and the main church of the Diocese of Lund. It was built as the Catholic cathedral of the archiepi ...
in Sweden, (''Horologium mirabile Lundense'') was made around 1425, probably by the clockmaker Nicolaus Lilienveld in Rostock. After it had been in storage since 1837, it was restored and put back in place in 1923. Only the upper, astronomical part is original, while some of the other remaining medieval parts can be seen at the Cathedral museum. When it plays, one can hear ''
In Dulci Jubilo
"In dulci jubilo" (Latin for "In sweet rejoicing") is a traditional Christmas carol. In its original setting, the carol is a macaronic text of German and Latin dating from the Middle Ages. Subsequent translations into English, such as J. M. N ...
'' from the smallest organ in the church, while seven wooden figures, representing the three
magi
Magi (; singular magus ; from Latin ''magus'', cf. fa, مغ ) were priests in Zoroastrianism and the earlier religions of the western Iranians. The earliest known use of the word ''magi'' is in the trilingual inscription written by Darius th ...
and their servants, pass by.
* : Emil Ahrent, the local priest, constructed and donated an astronomical clock to
Fjelie Church in 1946.
* : K.L. Lundén, the local priest, installed an astronomical clock in in 1954.
*
Rinkaby
Rinkaby is a locality situated in Kristianstad Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 745 inhabitants in 2010. It is close to Lake Hammarsjön and 12 kilometres from Kristianstad. The village has a pre-school and primary school which is housed ...
: An astronomical clock was installed in
Rinkaby Church
Rinkaby Church ( sv, Rinkaby kyrka) is a 13th-century church in Rinkaby, Scania, Sweden. Rinkaby Church contains Church murals in Sweden, medieval murals and an astronomical clock. It belongs to the Church of Sweden.
History
Rinkaby Church was bui ...
in the 1950s. Modelled on medieval clocks, it was made by a local electrician.
File:Lunds astronomiska ur-2.jpg, Lund astronomical clock
Lund astronomical clock, occasionally and at least since the 16th century referred to as Horologium mirabile Lundense (''Latin'': "the wonderful clock in Lund"), is a 15th-century astronomical clock in Lund Cathedral. Mentioned in written sources ...
File:Nottebäcks kyrka 014.JPG, Nottebäck church clock
File:Rinkaby kyrka int15.jpg, Rinkaby
Rinkaby is a locality situated in Kristianstad Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 745 inhabitants in 2010. It is close to Lake Hammarsjön and 12 kilometres from Kristianstad. The village has a pre-school and primary school which is housed ...
church clock
Switzerland
*
Bern
german: Berner(in)french: Bernois(e) it, bernese
, neighboring_municipalities = Bremgarten bei Bern, Frauenkappelen, Ittigen, Kirchlindach, Köniz, Mühleberg, Muri bei Bern, Neuenegg, Ostermundigen, Wohlen bei Bern, Zollikofen
, website ...
. The
Zytglogge
The Zytglogge (Bernese German: ; ) is a landmark medieval tower in Bern, Switzerland. Built in the early 13th century, it has served the city as guard tower, prison, clock tower, centre of urban life and civic memorial.
Despite the many re ...
is a famous 15-century astronomical clock housed in a medieval fortification tower.
* A set of 16th-century clocks which show the zodiac and the days of the week in concentric rings within a 12-hour clock face, with a moon phase ball above:
**
Bremgarten. The clock of the , installed in 1558.
**
Diessenhofen
Diessenhofen is a village and a municipality in Frauenfeld District in the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland. The village is situated on the south shore of the High Rhine just opposite the German town of Gailingen am Hochrhein.
History
Diessenhofe ...
. The clock of the Siegelturm, installed in 1546.
**
Mellingen
Mellingen is a historic town and a municipality in the district of Baden in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland. The town is located on the Reuss.
History
Mellingen is first mentioned in 1045 as ''Mellingen'' though this comes from a 16th-cen ...
. The clock of the , installed in 1554.
**
Schaffhausen
Schaffhausen (; gsw, Schafuuse; french: Schaffhouse; it, Sciaffusa; rm, Schaffusa; en, Shaffhouse) is a list of towns in Switzerland, town with historic roots, a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in northern Switzerland, and the ...
: The astronomical clock by in the gable of the Fronwagturm, installed in 1564, has five hands, including indications of the positions of the sun and moon in the zodiac, and a dragon hand indicating the
lunar node
A lunar node is either of the two orbital nodes of the Moon, that is, the two points at which the orbit of the Moon intersects the ecliptic. The ''ascending'' (or ''north'') node is where the Moon moves into the northern ecliptic hemisphere, w ...
s.
*
Sion
Sion may refer to
* an alternative transliteration of Zion
People
* Sion (name) or Siôn, a Welsh and other given name and surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with the name
* Shion or Sion, a Japanese given name
Pl ...
: The
Sion astronomical clock on the town hall dates from 1667–68. Its current mechanism was installed in 1902.
*
Solothurn
Solothurn ( , ; french: Soleure ; it, Soletta ; rm, ) is a List of towns in Switzerland, town, a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality, and the Capital (political), capital of the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. It is located in the n ...
. This astronomical clock, installed by and in 1545 to replace an original of 1452, shows the positions of the sun and moon in the zodiac.
*
Winterthur
, neighboring_municipalities = Brütten, Dinhard, Elsau, Hettlingen, Illnau-Effretikon, Kyburg, Lindau, Neftenbach, Oberembrach, Pfungen, Rickenbach, Schlatt, Seuzach, Wiesendangen, Zell
, twintowns = Hall in Tirol (Austria), La ...
. This astrolabe astronomical clock was installed in 1529. The building which housed it was demolished in 1870. The clock is now an exhibit at the Museum Lindengut.
*
Zug
, neighboring_municipalities = Cham, Baar, Walchwil, Steinhausen, Unterägeri
, twintowns = Fürstenfeld (Austria), Kalesija (Bosnia-Herzegowina)
Zug (Standard German: , Alemannic German: ; french: Zoug it, Zugo r ...
: The astronomical clock of the
Zytturm was installed in 1574. Its calendar dial shows the zodiac, the lunar phase, the day of the week and the leap year cycle.
File:Zytglogge 04.jpg, Zytglogge, Bern
File:Zeitglockenturm 03.JPG, Solothurn
File:Detail Siegelturm Diessenhofen.jpg, Siegelturm, Diessenhofen
File:Schaffhausen - Fronwagplatz 2010-05-31 16-17-26.JPG, Fronwagturm, Schaffhausen
File:Zug - Zytturm 2010-06-18 18-00-00 ShiftN.jpg, Zytturm, Zug
File:Sion, hôtel de ville, horologe astronomique - ch.jpg, Sion
United Kingdom
* A group of four famous astronomical clocks in the
West Country
The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is a loosely defined area of South West England, usually taken to include all, some, or parts of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and, less commonly, Wiltshire, Gloucesters ...
, dating from the 14th and 15th centuries, all of which show the 24-hour time and the moon phase:
**
Exeter
Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol.
In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...
. The
Exeter Cathedral astronomical clock
The Exeter Cathedral Astronomical Clock is a fifteenth-century astronomical clock in Exeter Cathedral, England. It displays the hour of the day, the day of the lunar month and the phase of the moon. The modern clock mechanism was installed in ...
()
**
Ottery St Mary
Ottery St Mary, known as "Ottery", is a town and civil parish in the East Devon district of Devon, England, on the River Otter, about east of Exeter on the B3174. At the 2001 census, the parish, which includes the villages of Metcombe, Fair ...
. The
Ottery St Mary astronomical clock (15th century)
**
Wells
Wells most commonly refers to:
* Wells, Somerset, a cathedral city in Somerset, England
* Well, an excavation or structure created in the ground
* Wells (name)
Wells may also refer to:
Places Canada
*Wells, British Columbia
England
* Wells ...
. The
Wells Cathedral clock
The Wells Cathedral clock is an astronomical clock in the north transept of Wells Cathedral, England. The clock is one of the group of famous 14th to 16th century astronomical clocks to be found in the West of England. The surviving mechanism, d ...
(1386–1392)
**
Wimborne Minster
Wimborne Minster (often referred to as Wimborne, ) is a market town in Dorset in South West England, and the name of the Church of England church in that town. It lies at the confluence of the River Stour and the River Allen, north of Poole ...
. The
Wimborne Minster astronomical clock (14th century)
*
Durham Durham most commonly refers to:
*Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham
*County Durham, an English county
* Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States
*Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...
.
Prior Castell's Clock
Prior Castell's Clock is an astronomical clock in Durham Cathedral.
History and description
The clock was placed in the cathedral between 1494 and 1519, during the tenure of Prior Thomas Castell.
Dean Richard Hunt renovated it between 1620 and ...
in
Durham Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham, commonly known as Durham Cathedral and home of the Shrine of St Cuthbert, is a cathedral in the city of Durham, County Durham, England. It is the seat of t ...
, installed between 1494 and 1519.
*
Hampton Court Palace
Hampton Court Palace is a Grade I listed royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, southwest and upstream of central London on the River Thames. The building of the palace began in 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the chie ...
. The
Hampton Court astronomical clock (1540) is on the interior façade of the Main Gatehouse. It is a fine early example of a pre-
Copernican astronomical clock.
*
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
. The
Leicester University astronomical clock
The Leicester University astronomical clock is a modern astronomical clock at the University of Leicester.
History and description
The clock was installed in 1989 on the side of the Rattray Lecture Theatre at the University of Leicester
, m ...
(1989) is on the Rattray Lecture Theatre opposite the Physics department.
*
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. The astronomical clock of
Bracken House was installed in 1959.
*
Snowshill
Snowshill ( , ) is a small Cotswolds village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, located near Broadway, Worcestershire. The population taken at the 2011 census was 164.
Prehistoric history
An important early Bronze Age hoard was f ...
. The Nychthemeron Clock, installed in the garden of
Snowshill Manor
Snowshill Manor is a National Trust property located in the village of Snowshill, Gloucestershire, United Kingdom. It is a sixteenth-century country house, best known for its twentieth-century owner, Charles Paget Wade, an eccentric who amassed ...
.
*
St Albans
St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...
. A modern clock dating from 1995, built from notes by Richard of Wallingford held in the
Bodleian Library
The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford, and is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. It derives its name from its founder, Sir Thomas Bodley. With over 13 million printed items, it is the second- ...
, Oxford. On display in
St Albans Cathedral
St Albans Cathedral, officially the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban but often referred to locally as "the Abbey", is a Church of England cathedral in St Albans, England. Much of its architecture dates from Normans, Norman times. It cease ...
.
*
York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
. The
York Minster astronomical clock, an astronomical clock installed in 1955 as a memorial to airmen killed in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, shows the positions of the sun and stars from the perspective of a pilot flying over York. It was damaged by fire in 1984, and is not currently working.
File:Wells clock.jpg, Wells Cathedral clock
The Wells Cathedral clock is an astronomical clock in the north transept of Wells Cathedral, England. The clock is one of the group of famous 14th to 16th century astronomical clocks to be found in the West of England. The surviving mechanism, d ...
File:Exeter Cathedral astronomical clock.jpg, Exeter Cathedral astronomical clock
The Exeter Cathedral Astronomical Clock is a fifteenth-century astronomical clock in Exeter Cathedral, England. It displays the hour of the day, the day of the lunar month and the phase of the moon. The modern clock mechanism was installed in ...
File:Astronomical clock, Ottery St Mary's.jpg, Ottery St Mary astronomical clock
File:Hampton Court Avri 2009 33.jpg, Hampton Court astronomical clock
File:Astronomical Clock (7569108538).jpg, York Minster astronomical clock
File:Clock-Calendar on Bracken House - geograph.org.uk - 1304709.jpg, Bracken House, London
Bracken House is a building at 1 Friday Street and 10 Cannon Street in the City of London, occupied by the ''Financial Times'' newspaper until the 1980s, and again beginning May 2019. A late example of modern classicism, it was constructed fro ...
clock
See also
*
Astrolabe
An astrolabe ( grc, ἀστρολάβος ; ar, ٱلأَسْطُرلاب ; persian, ستارهیاب ) is an ancient astronomical instrument that was a handheld model of the universe. Its various functions also make it an elaborate inclin ...
*
Astrarium
An astrarium, also called a planetarium, is the mechanical representation of the cyclic nature of astronomical objects in one timepiece. It is an astronomical clock.
History Greek and Roman World
The first astraria were mechanical devices. Archi ...
*
Clock of the Long Now
The Clock of the Long Now, also called the 10,000-year clock, is a mechanical clock under construction that is designed to keep time for 10,000 years. It is being built by the Long Now Foundation. A two-meter prototype is on display at the Sci ...
, also called the ''10,000-year clock''
*
Solar System model
Solar System models, especially mechanical models, called '' orreries'', that illustrate the relative positions and motions of the planets and moons in the Solar System have been built for centuries. While they often showed relative sizes, these ...
s
*
Torquetum
The ''torquetum'' or turquet is a medieval astronomical instrument designed to take and convert measurements made in three sets of coordinates: Horizon, equatorial, and ecliptic. It is said to be a combination of Ptolemy's astrolabon and the p ...
Notes
References
*
*
*
Borgarsyssel Museum, Sarpsborg, 2003 Norwegian edition, and 2008 English edition (available from the museum).
*
Further reading
*
External links
The search for Rasmus Sørnes 4th clock*
Prague Astronomical ClockThe Annosphere, a contemporary astronomical clockLes Cadrans Solaires (Sundials) also showing European astronomical clocks
The horologium, the local astronomic monumental clock from any spot on EarthTHE ASTRONOMICAL CLOCK OF THE ST.-MARIEN-KIRCHE IN ROSTOCKMoonlightClock.com – Handmade Astronomical ClocksSimple astronomical clock for Android platform
{{Authority control
Clock
A clock or a timepiece is a device used to measure and indicate time. The clock is one of the oldest human inventions, meeting the need to measure intervals of time shorter than the natural units such as the day, the lunar month and the ...
Clock
A clock or a timepiece is a device used to measure and indicate time. The clock is one of the oldest human inventions, meeting the need to measure intervals of time shorter than the natural units such as the day, the lunar month and the ...
Clock
A clock or a timepiece is a device used to measure and indicate time. The clock is one of the oldest human inventions, meeting the need to measure intervals of time shorter than the natural units such as the day, the lunar month and the ...
Chinese inventions
English inventions
Greek inventions
Arab inventions
Hellenistic engineering
History of astrology
Historical scientific instruments
Italian inventions