Clock in the Old Town Square in Prague: photo, description, history

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Clock on Old Town Square in Prague, PragueThe Orloj - astronomical clock, installed on the southern wall of the Old Town Hall, is a popular and world-famous landmark of the capital of the Czech Republic.

History of construction and improvements

Hours in Prague on Old Town Square, historywhich is more than 600 years old, first mentioned in the chronicles for 1402, but already in 1410 they were replaced with new mechanical ones with astrolabe, made by the Kadan master Mikulas. They were made by the project of astronomer J. Schindel.

clock in prague on old town square photo

In 1490, during the repair, the clock was improved: the calendar dials were completed, and the Gothic figures were installed on the facade. Works were carried out by master Ganush.

In the following years, restorations were carried out many more times, because of the inexperience of their caretakers, the chimes sometimes stopped themselves.

In 1552, the restoration of the clockwork was made by master J. Taborsky.

The following improvements were made in the XVII century, when we moved the mechanism, beating time, installed some figures, as well as indexes of the phases of the moon.

History of clock restoration

In 1778 Prague authorities decided to dismantle the mechanism for scrap because of the lack of funds for its repair. The local watchmaker J. Landesberger, who in 1791 repaired them for free to save this landmark for future generations, became the savior of the bells. However, the astrolabe due to poor care began to work poorly and could not fix it. To the mechanism added more figures of the apostles.

In the middle of the XIX century, the chimes again wantedto disassemble. The next saviors were watchmakers L. Heinz, C. Danek and R. Bozhek, who conducted a fundraising for the reconstruction of watches. During the restoration, R. Bozhek made a chronometer, which still controls the mechanism (the clock is only 0.5 minutes a week behind, which is a good result). Since that time, as now, the repair work of the Orloy mechanisms is carried out by the Heinz company.

In 1945, the Prague Astronomical Clock was heavily damaged by the Nazis during the shelling of this part of Prague with anti-aircraft guns. All wooden parts burned, the dial was badly damaged.

Only by 1948 the clock mechanism was restored, and Orloj began to work as before. All wooden figures were made anew by carver V. Sukhardoi, and their originals, which partially survived after the war, are now on display in the Prague Museum.

Since then, the clock in Prague on Old Town Square (photo below) has become a famous landmark of the Czech capital. Masters were able to restore almost 75% of the original parts of the clock mechanism.

clock in prague in old town square history

Hours in Prague on Old Town Square: description

The astronomical clock consists of several parts, the main of which are:

astronomical disks, which determine the position of the Sun and the Moon in the sky, showing some details of astronomy, have a zodiac ring;
“The Apostles' Turn” is a mechanism that drives moving mechanical figures of apostles and characters every hour;
dial with medallions that works like a calendar and shows the months.

The astrolabe with the help of a clock mechanism indicates the time for several systems at once:

Babylonian, in which there is a different hour duration at different times of the year;
Old Bohemian (Schwabacher numbers are used);
Central European - shows Roman numerals;
sidereal time (Arabic numerals).

Unlike other Prague Astronomical Clock, the famousthe clock on the Old Town Square in Prague does not shift to summer time, so half of the year they show inaccurate time (one hour behind the European one).

Clock in Prague on Old Town Square description

The calendar dial is decorated with 12 medallions, each of which represents scenes from the rural life of the Middle Ages.

What does an astronomical clock show?

Clock on Old Town Square in Praguecall a small planetarium that shows the state of the universe. With the help of mechanical astrolabe, although it was built in the Middle Ages, you can see the position of the Sun and the Moon.

The image of the Earth (blue circle) and some part of the sky (top) represent the background. Four moving parts rotate on the disks: the ring of zodiac signs and the outer one, the images of the Sun and the Moon.

In the afternoon, the Sun moves on a blue background, and at night -on black. In the hours of dawn and evening twilight - on the red background area. Avrora (dawn) and ortus (sunrise) are written to the left of the horizon, occasions (sunset) and crepusculum (twilight) to the right.

The Golden Sun moves in a circle of zodiac signs and shows with the help of an arrow and a gilded hand for a certain time:

when pointing to Roman numerals, the local Prague time is visible;
the position of the luminaries on the curved golden lines determines the Babylonian time;
on the outer ring, the hand shows the hours that have elapsed since sunset, according to Old Czech calculation;
the motion of the moon occurs along the ecliptic with greater speed, and the silver sphere shows the lunar phase.

Upper Dial of the Eagle

The clock on the Old Town Square in Prague attracts the attention of tourists every hour (the show takes place from 9.00 to 21.00).

The upper dial is astronomical; there are 4 figures to the side of it, which are located on both sides of the watch. These figures symbolize the despised evils of man:

death, reminiscent of the frailty of life;
vanity, depicted figure with a mirror;
greed (a Jew with a wallet);
the Turks, symbolizing the centuries-old danger to the Habsburg Empire, emanating from the Ottoman Empire.

At the top of the dial there are windows withthe doors in which the figures of the 12 apostles move alternately. According to the Skeleton (Death) movement, which pulls the rope, the apostles begin to appear in the window: St. Peter holds the key, St. Matthew threatens with an ax, St. Paul holds the book in his hands, St. Jan - the cup, St. Jakub - the spindle, St. Shimon the saw, St. Tomash the spear, St. Ondřej and Philip hold the crosses, St. Bartholomew wrinkles the skin with his hands, St. Barnabash holds the scroll, and St. Tadeusz holds the paper in the folder under his arm.

famous clock on the Old Town Square in Prague

Bottom face of the Orloya

The clock on the Old Town Square in Prague also has a second dial - the zodiac (added in 1490), which is also decorated on both sides by figures: the chronicler, the angel, the astronomer and the philosopher.

In the outer circle of black color ismovable round part with zodiac signs indicating the position of the sun in the ecliptic. Signs are arranged and go in order counterclockwise. A small golden star indicates the vernal equinox.

clock on Old Town Square Prague Czech Republic

On the zodiacal dial, you can determine the signZodiac, name, day and month of birth. However, a copy of it hangs on the town hall, and the original (written by J. Manes in the 19th century) is on display at the Prague History Museum.

During the presentation all the figures and 12 apostlesare moving. In this case, the Turk shakes his head all the time, and the miser shows the purse. The ending of the whole performance is a cock crow, announcing the beginning of a new hour.

Legends of the Eagle

One of the legends is associated with the times whenthe clock on Old Town Square (Prague, Czech Republic) was still being built. Master Ganush, who added a calendar dial to the chimes, impressed the city authorities with his skill and beauty of work so much that they decided to deprive him of his vision, so that he could not build a similar watch from anywhere else. The angered master decided to commit suicide, having rushed from the height into the Orloy mechanism, after which the chimes stopped for several years due to injuries. However, the story refutes this legend, the master Ganush (really his name was Jan Rouge) really modified the clockwork, and everything else is fiction.

Another legend says that when you stop the clockmust occur cataclysms in the city. Such a halt occurred during the occupation of the Czech Republic by the fascists, which ended directly on the Old Town Square when the last German group was destroyed by the Soviet troops in Prague on May 8, 1945.

One of the last stops of Orloya occurred in 2001, after which a massive flood occurred that flooded the Czech capital (August 2002).

Prague Orloj: reviews and impressions

The astronomical clock on Staromestka Square is one of the main attractions of Prague, attracting thousands of tourists who come in droves to watch the action with moving figures every hour.

At night, there are no performances, butOrloy employees are engaged in the restoration and renovation of mechanisms and figures in the tower. The watches require everyday care (lubrication of mechanisms, etc.), which these people watch for.

Many tourists who came to admire the clock onOld Town Square in Prague, their feedback is expressed with enthusiasm and enthusiasm. Orloj is located in the very center of Prague, on the square where Christmas and other holiday festivals are held, and fairs are held. Here there are numerous restaurants and cafes with delicious pastries and national dishes.

Conclusion

In 2010, Prague Orloj celebrated its 600th anniversary. In the city there were festive events dedicated to this event. Over the past few hundred years, the famous astronomical clock has attracted many tourists to Prague, and they will remain popular for more than one century.

This place is especially beautiful in the New YearHolidays: in the center of the square they set the largest Christmas tree in the city, and around them there are festive shows, which, surrounded by medieval spiers and castles, resemble a fabulous and beautiful theatrical performance.