Merewether Clock Tower or Merewether Tower () Reprinted by Pakistan Herald Publications Ltd, Karachi Pg 62 is a

neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

clocktower built during the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. The tower is a landmark in central Karachi, and is at the termini of two of the most important roads in central Karachi:

Muhammad Ali Jinnah Road Muhammad Ali Jinnah Road (), frequently abbreviated as MA Jinnah Road, is a major thoroughfare in central Karachi, Pakistan. The road was originally named Bandar Road ( ;''"Port Road"''), owing to the fact that it linked the city to the Port of ...

and

I. I. Chundrigar Road I. I. Chundrigar Road ( ur, ), previously known as McLeod Road, is a road located in central business district of Karachi, Pakistan, and is named after former Pakistani Prime Minister Ibrahim Ismail Chundrigar. The road serves as the spine of ...

. The tower used to mark the boundary of the city when arriving from the port at

Kiamari Keamari ( sd, ڪياماڙي, ur, کیماڑی ) is a neighbourhood in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Keamari was originally an independent settlement that was built on a sandy ridge on the eastern side of Karachi Harbour. History Keamari was a l ...

, and marked the dividing line between Karachi's Old Town and its newer European quarters to the east. It currently is the westernmost point of the

Serai Quarter Serai Quarter ( ur, ), sometimes called Serai Quarters, is a neighbourhood in central Karachi, Pakistan that forms much of its historic central business district. In addition to Karachi's financial centre centred on Serai Quarter's I. I. Chund ...

History

Merewether Tower was raised by public subscription as a

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or works of a ...

for Sir William L. Merewether, who served as Commissioner of Sindh from 1867 to 1877. Designed by James Strachan, the Municipal Engineer of Karachi, the foundation stone was laid by the

Governor of Bombay Until the 18th century, Bombay consisted of seven islands separated by shallow sea. These seven islands were part of a larger archipelago in the Arabian sea, off the western coast of India. The date of city's founding is unclear—historians tr ...

, Sir James Fergusson in 1884. It was formally opened to the public in 1892 by the Commissioner in Sind, Sir Evan James, at a total cost of 37,178 rupees.

Architecture

Strachan designed the tower in the

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

style popular in Victorian England, to evoke the architecture of Medieval England (11th to 15th century CE). The architecture takes the form of an

Eleanor cross The Eleanor crosses were a series of twelve tall and lavishly decorated stone monuments topped with crosses erected in a line down part of the east of England. King Edward I had them built between 1291 and about 1295 in memory of his beloved wi ...

. The clocktower stands on a base of 44 feet square and rises to a height of 102 feet. 4 clocks are situated at a height of 70 feet on each facade, with a bell that weighs 300 pounds that strikes on the hour.Rehman, Q.-U.-A. and Soomro, R.-U.-H., 2019. Revitalizing cultural heritage: conservation of Merewether tower and its impact on urban morphology. ''Built-Environment Sri Lanka'', 13(1), pp.38–50. DOI: http://doi.org/10.4038/besl.v13i1.7667 Smaller bells weighing 100 pounds strike on the quarter-hour. It is made of local

Gizri Gizri is one of the neighborhoods of Clifton Cantonment in the city of Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. One of the oldest neighborhoods of Karachi was considered as Fishermen Village. There's still a small number of fisher live here who speak Bravhi & ...

sandstone, and

Star of David The Star of David (). is a generally recognized symbol of both Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram: the compound of two equilateral triangles. A derivation of the ''seal of Solomon'', which was used for decorative ...

is also visible on its exterior. The tower is decorated with delicate stonework, which was carved by stonemasons of the

Silawat The Silawat, also known as Sangtarash (both ), are a Muslim community from the Marwar region of the state of Rajasthan in India.People of India Rajasthan Volume XXXVIII Part Three edited by B.K Lavania, D. K Samanta, S K Mandal & N.N Vyas Popu ...

community, who are also known as Gazdars.

Significance

The tower used to mark the southern extent of the city when arriving from the port in

along Napier Mole Road. It also serves as a marker of the dividing line between the Old Town from the new European Serai Quarters. It is also located at the termini of two major thoroughfares:

and

, and is a major bus-stop.

References

External links

"Architecture: Merewether Tower, Karachi"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Merewether Clock Tower Clock towers in Pakistan Buildings and structures in Karachi Towers in Karachi Heritage sites in Karachi

History

Architecture

Significance

See also

References

External links