The astronomical clock was a complex medieval mechanism that combined the functions of a modern planetarium, clock and calendar. The manufacturer of such watches had to have considerable knowledge in the field of astronomy, exact sciences and construction of mechanisms.
The astronomical dial represents the geocentric system of the world. In the center is the Earth, around which the Sun and Moon revolve.
On the stationary background of the astronomical dial, depicting the Earth and the sky, the following components move: the outer ring, the zodiacal ring, pointers with the symbols of the Sun and the Moon, and two hour hands with a golden hand and a golden star at the end.
There is no minute hand on this watch. Unlike conventional watches, the astronomical dial has two sets of Roman numerals, each from I to XII.
The blue circle in the very center of the stationary background is a stylized image of the globe. The axes of the pointers moving along the dial are attached to the center of the image of the Earth.
A part of the stationary background on the dial is divided by curved lines into 12 unequal parts, which serve to indicate Babylonian time. Babylonian time is historically the oldest time and is associated with the rising and setting of the sun; the time period between these two moments is divided into 12 "hours".
At dawn, the Sun shows the first hour of the day, at sunset - the first hour of the night. The length of one Babylonian hour is inconsistent throughout the year: in summer it is the longest, and in winter, on the contrary, it is the shortest. The rod with the Sun symbol serves as an indicator of Babylonian time.
Promotional video:
The zodiacal ring rotating on the dial with a displaced geometric center in conjunction with the indicators of the Sun and the Moon shows in which zodiacal constellation these celestial bodies are located. The zodiac ring contains symbols of the signs of the zodiac, as well as 72 rays, which serve to divide months into days.
The gap between the rays means approximately 5 days. Thus, looking at the zodiac ring, one can determine not only in which sign of the zodiac, but also in which sector of the zodiac sign the Sun and the Moon are located, and, therefore, determine the approximate calendar date. The zodiac ring revolves around the axis of the astronomical dial, making a complete revolution in one year.
The pointer with the sun symbol moves on one lever with a clockwise hand. However, unlike the hour hand, the axis of rotation of the Sun pointer (as well as the Moon pointer) is fixed not in the geometric center of the dial, but in the geometric center of the zodiacal ring. The sun is one of the most informative signs. It shows:
- day, dawn, dusk and night.
- the height of the Sun at its culmination above the horizon (according to the distance of the Sun pointer from the geometric center of the dial);
- the position of the Sun among the signs of the Zodiac (according to the position of the pointer of the Sun in relation to the zodiac ring);
- the approximate date of the calendar (according to the position of the Sun pointer among the 72 rays of the zodiacal ring);
- hour according to Babylonian time (according to the position of the Sun pointer between the curved lines of the sector of a stationary background).
The Moon Pointer is a 130 mm diameter hollow ball. There is a hidden mechanism inside that turns the ball body from the inside. As a result, depending on the phase of the moon, the ball turns in different directions, and you can see what phase the moon is in at the current time.
The body of the ball makes one revolution around its axis in a synodic month - 29 days 12 hours 44 minutes 3 seconds. The moon pointer, like the sun pointer, revolves around the axis of the astronomical dial, but somewhat more slowly.
History of appearance and distribution
Devices similar to astronomical clocks are mentioned in more than a dozen literary works that have been written since 300 BC. e. to 500 AD But the first find of such a mechanism is the Antikythera Mechanism - dated to about 100 BC. e. (possibly before 150 BC or 205 BC).
Stored at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. The mechanism contained no less than 30 bronze gears in a wooden case, on the front and back sides of which bronze dials with arrows were placed, and was used to calculate the movement of celestial bodies.
The approximate dimensions of the assembled mechanism are 31.5 × 17 × 6 cm. It allows you to find out the date of 42 astronomical events. According to the results of calculations of scientists, the device was made on the 35th parallel on the island of Rhodes.
This find is exceptional: no similar device has been found to date. Before the decline of the Roman Empire, the technology for its creation was lost. Until the XIV century, there were no devices of such complexity, until the appearance of mechanical astronomical clocks in Europe.
Reconstruction of the 1344 clock, Padua, Italy:
Clock Tower of Saint Mark, Venice:
Munster, Germany (1408):
Astronomical clock on the bell tower of the Cathedral, Sicily, Italy:
Astronomical clock Gros Orlozh in Rouen (Normandy), France 14th century:
Prague Astronomical Clock or Prague Orloj, Czech Republic 15th century:
Lund Amazing Clock, Sweden (15th century):
Zytglogg tower clock in Bern, Switzerland 1530:
Giovanni Manzini of Pavia wrote in 1388 that it is “a thing full of ingenuity, created and perfected with his own hands and carved with a skill unattainable for any master. I come to the conclusion that such a magnificent and ingenious invention has never been created."
Can I single out the phrase "unattainable for any master", what did the author mean?
Where did you hang such a clock? If we assume that the clock towers served precisely for astronomical clocks, then the conclusion suggests itself that such clocks were not uncommon at that time. Below are photos of clock towers from all over the world, such towers stand in every country, in every big city.
Spasskaya Tower, Moscow, Russia:
It is known about the clock on the Spasskaya Tower that until 1625 other clocks hung on it and worked according to the same principle as the astronomical ones. But in 1705, by decree of Peter I, the Spassky clock was redesigned in the German style with a 12 o'clock dial.
The old clock on the Spasskaya Tower measured day and night time, indicated by letters and numbers. The dial was called an index word circle, a notable circle. The numbers were designated by Slavic letters. The role of the hand was played by the image of the sun with a long ray, fixed motionlessly in the upper part of the dial. There was also a minute hand in this watch.
The unusual design of the clock gave rise to Samuel Collins (1619 - 1670), an English doctor in the Russian service, sarcastically remarking in a letter to his friend Robert Boyle:
I never found information about who Mr. Galloway was, but it becomes clear from the letter that such a watch was produced in Russia, although I do not presume to assert this on the basis of one letter. It would not be very logical to think that only one such clock existed on the territory of Russia, even if Samuel Collins was inclined to mythologize. (After all, this is what official science, most often, explains any inconsistencies with their version of "true" history.)
A distinctive feature of such towers is that the clock dial is directed to all directions of the world, in which particular direction the astronomical clock was looking, it is rather problematic to install due to the fact that many towers have been repeatedly destroyed and reconstructed, but to look for such towers in Russia on this basis, let's try.
Alexander Nevsky Orthodox Church (Gothic Chapel):
Znamenskaya (Tsar's) chapel near the Valaam monastery. Karelia:
Lipetsk, restored Peter and Paul Chapel:
It turned out that any Russian chapel fits this criterion, in Russia there are approximately 24,000 such chapels. What is known about them?
Chapels - this is how small churches are called, without altars. They were placed above the entrance to the underground cemeteries, as well as above the underground churches, which settled on the graves of the martyrs. Thus, the chapels served as tombstones and marked the location of the thrones. The custom of setting up Chapels dates back to the deep antiquity of the Christian world; these are indicated by the acts of the Trull Cathedral and the capitulary of Charlemagne.
During the reign of Peter I, the rules for the existence of chapels were legislatively tightened, the reason for which was the secret services that the Old Believers performed in them. So, the imperial decrees of 1707 and 1722, without any limitation, demanded that all chapels be dismantled, regardless of whether they are Old Believers or not.
However, the execution of the decrees was not carried out everywhere, since in some places the churches were remote from the settlements, and in this case the chapels were partly replaced by them. From here, petitions began to come to the Most Holy Governing Synod, so that it would be allowed not to dismantle the chapels.
In 1727, it was officially allowed to restore the old chapels and build new ones, but already in 1734 the decree of 1707 was confirmed, which entailed a ban on the construction of new chapels, although it was allowed not to dismantle the existing ones.
Judging by their prevalence, such chapels were not uncommon before and were intended for ordinary people, therefore it turns out that all people of that time were aware of the structure of the solar system and astronomy was developed everywhere.
Each person understood exactly how to interpret the meanings on the clock. Why, then, all over the world these buildings are called by their proper names, and on the territory of Russia we are offered to take the clock towers for temples / churches / chapels (holy places).
I think you have noticed the similarities and differences between the chapels of Russia and the clock towers of the world, we continue the topic of discrimination against Russian history and the fact that in the Middle Ages a cataclysm occurred on Earth, which is hushed up by academic science, I will present you with several images. Draw your own conclusions!
