There are still things we have on our "To Do" list and this time we wanted to make sure we saw the Famous Astronomical Clock in Action.
So, once more we waited in a queue to get our tickets.
And I wondered just how much of our time away was spent either in a queue or in transit.
We were up the front of the line and an entire River Cruise Group was behind us - (We could tell by their matching White jackets!)
But - The Staff at the Cathedral have been doing this a LONG time so they had Tickets sorted and groups through in a very short time.
Once inside we waited for the hour to arrive and Marvelled at the Pillar of Apostles which stands beside the Clock.
This Column, built around 1230 is the central pillar which supports the vaulted ceiling above us.
It features twelve sculptures: the 4 Evangelists, 4 Angels announcing the Last Judgement and, further up, Christ the Redeemer/Judge, surrounded by another 3 Angels carrying the Instruments of the Passion.
The pillar is also called “Pillar of Last Judgement” because it stages the judgement mentioned in the Book of Revelation.
Close by, there is a statue of a man resting his
elbows on a balustrade.
According to one legend this was a rival architect
to the one who had built the Pillar of Angels. He stated that one single pillar could never support such a
large vault, and he would wait to see the whole
thing come crashing down.
790 years later ... it is still standing and HE is still waiting!
A screen was dropped from the balcony and a Video presentation in French and German with English subtitles told us the History of the Clock and its Incredible mechanism.
The Clock is certainly not just one time-keeping piece.
When it was created in 1571, its makers aims were to describe Time by Every Means,
in a work which was to be useful and to also Ornament the Cathedral and add to the Town's Prestige.
After it's renovation in 1838 it became a Masterpiece which was Unique to the World.
TIME is indicated by a dial which shows the Official Time (France) and a second set of hands show the Local (Strasbourg) Time by which the Chimes and Automata are activated.
The CALENDAR -
Days of the Week are personified by the gods - Apollo, Diana, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn seated in Chariots drawn by their attributed animals.
Apollo and Diana - symbolising Night and Day stand either side of the large Dial of the Perpetual Calendar.
Apollo with Arrow in hand points to the current day.
Here, he is pointing to the day I took this photo on our previous visit, 13th April 2017 - which this year was Maundy Thursday.
The Black lines on the Dial are yet another movable ring which highlights the Holy Days on the Christian Calendar.
These are calculated each year on the night of 31st December by the 'Ecclesiastical Computation' - another part of this incredible timepiece.
No Computers or electricity, just this beautifully crafted series of Brass Cogs and Wheels that accurately does all the calculations that enable the new year to be established.
It is the most complex Clock Mechanism ever built.
This sets the date for the most important day of the Christian Calendar -
Easter Sunday.
On the other side of the Perpetual Calendar is another Curious Cabinet filled with yet more beautiful Brass instruments -
These wavy discs were designed to take into account
1. The elliptical orbit of Earth around the Sun
2. Also it takes into consideration the angle between the equator and the plane that the Earth rotates around the Sun
The same principles are applied to the Moon's Orbit, when added together it gives the precise positions of the Sun and Moon.
It is so accurate that 200 years ago it predicted when Solar and Lunar Eclipses would take place, as was observed in Strasbourg on August 11, 1999!
The Presentation went on to explain one last marvel.
The CELESTIAL GLOBE which stands in front of the Clock's Cabinet.
This reproduces the Starry Sphere above the Earth.
It includes more than 5000 stars and revolves in one sidereal day.
(A sidereal day is the time it takes the Earth to rotate about it's axis so that stars will appear at the same place in the sky. It is ∽4 mins shorter than a Solar Day.)
Underneath the Globe is a wheel movement which reproduces the gyration of the Earth's Axis which takes 25,806 years!
.... Things you learn when on Holidays!!!
the Clock swung into action.
An Angel Child strikes a bell,
Figures of a Child, Youth, Adult and Old Man walk in front of Death who rings the Hour
A Second Angel-child turns the hour glass.
Then the Apostles walk before the Christ Figure who blesses them and then the crowd after the last has passed.
During this procession the Cock - The Oldest working automaton in the world - Crowed THREE times.
The Presentation was now over leaving us in total Awe - this was NOT a modern machine, and it is still accurate today!
We bought a copy of the the Artwork of the Clock and the DVD presentation to enjoy at home
and bade Farewell to this Grand Lady,
perhaps for the last time
- Who Knows?
* * *
*Information From "Strasbourg Cathedral's Astronomical Clock by Roger Lehni
Purchased from Strasbourg Cathedral
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