The Astronomical Clock is located in the middle of the Old Town Centre and is actually mounted on the southern wall of the Old Town Hall. The Clock is one of the most popular attractions in Prague and hundreds of tourists gather at the base of the clock just before the hour to see the clock chime.
The astronomical dial on the clock represents the position of the Sun and Moon in the sky and also displays other various astronomical details. The mechanical clock and the astronomical dial are the oldest parts of the clock tower and date back to 1410. There are three main faces to the clock, these being the astronomical dial, the stationary background and the Zodiacal ring. I visited this attraction at around midday and we got to the clock at around a quarter to the hour. At this time there were not too many people around, although the crowds soon began to gather. Before we knew it, there were hundreds of people around us, all waiting to see the clock chime and the display that happens every hour on the hour.
Once the hour hits, the first thing you notice, is obviously the clock chiming. Soon after you hear the first chime, you will notice two doors just above the astronomical dial open. From these doors emerge the apostles. Starting with the left hand door, first out, is St Paul who holds a sword in one hand and a book in the other, next out is St Thomas who carries a spear, he is followed by St Juda Tadeus holding a book in just his left hand, then comes St Simon holding a saw, then St Bartholomew holding a book and finally St Barnabas carrying a papyrus. This display happens fairly quickly with each apostle on view for probably around 7-10 seconds.
The right hand door has the following apostles; St Peter, holding a key, St Matthew holding an axe, St John holding a snake, St Andrew holding a cross, St Phillip holding another cross and finally St Jacob holding a tool. Again, this display happens fairly quickly, with each apostle being on display for around 7-10 seconds. Once the doors close after the apostle display, a cockerel flaps and crows in an alcove near the door.
I am unable to remember the exact order of the display as it happened but other things I noticed while watching the display was a skeleton who pulls a bell cord and nods his head several times.
Overall I have t admit that I wasnt as impressed with this attraction as I thought I would be. I was impressed with the building itself and the various faces were interesting and very well preserved considering their age but the display itself was fairly disappointing. I was expecting maybe a 5 or 10 minute display from the clock when it reality, the whole display probably lasted a maximum of 30 seconds which I felt was a little disappointing.
One added bonus to this attraction is that you can pay about £2.50 to go up inside the Clock Tower which we found interesting. You can either take the lift, or walk up the spiral staircases and from the top of here, you can get stunning views across the City of Prague. Inside the tower, you can also see the inside of the clock such as all the components that make up the clock. You can also see all the apostles waiting for the hour to chime before they put on their show.
I would recommend a trip to the Clock purely to admire the work that has been put into creating it, and all the Gothic statues that decorate it. Be warned though, if you are expecting a magical display when the hour chimes, you will be disappointed.
Pictures of Astronomical Clock, Olomouc
The Saints inside the Clock
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