11 Biggest Clocks In The World

The history of clocks dates back millions of years ago. In fact, keeping a track of time was one of the very first things that humans learned and since then, it has come a long way.

The word clock has originated from the French word cloche which means bell. This word entered english language in the 14th century and this was mainly the time when clocks started coming into the limelight.

Before clocks existed, people used to keep a track of time using shadows from the sun and water clocks. However, these methods were not as accurate as the clock.

It was in the middle ages that the mechanical clocks started appearing and the popular pendulum clock is still considered a timepiece and will continue to do so in the years to come.

It was in the 14th century that the mechanical clocks were invented and in 1656, the pendulum clock was invented, which was then used as the standard timekeeping device.

11. Big Ben

Size: 7 metres in diameter
Location: London

The Big Ben clock tower is one of the most famous attractions in London. Big Ben is actually the name given to the massive bell inside the clock tower and this clock weighs more than 13 tons (13,760 kg). This bell is famous for its accuracy.

At night, all the four faces of the clocks are illuminated and the clock looks radiant and beautiful. Each dial of this massive clock tower is seven meters in diameter. The minute hands are 4.2 meters long (14 feet) and weigh about 100 kg.

Each dial of the clock has 312 pieces of glass and the numbers are approximately 23 inches long. When the parliament is in session, a special light above the clock’s face is switched on.

On December 31, 1923, the chimes of Big Ben were broadcast for the first time by BBC. This tradition continues to this day. The latin words under the clockface read DOMINE SALVAM FAC REGINAM NOSTRAM VICTORIAM PRIMAM, which means “O Lord, keep safe our Queen Victoria the First.”

10. Colgate Clock

Size: 12.9 metres in diameter
Location: Clarksville, Indiana

This 40-foot clock resides above the Colgate-Palmolive factory in Clarksville, Indiana. This is the original clock from back in 1924 and is visible even from two miles away. The clock is considered to have one of the largest clock faces in the world and each of its hands weigh 500 pounds!

The Colgate clock was originally built to celebrate the company’s centennial in 1906. Just for the record, the company produced its first toothpaste in 1873. At that time, this clock was mounted on the company’s jersey facility, and later it was moved to Clarksville in 1924.

The factory at Clarksville was used as a state prison in 1923 and was later converted to the Colgate factory. In fact, even while the construction of this building was going on, some prisoners were kept lodged at this prison.

 

9. Allen-Bradley Clock Tower

Size: 12.25 metres in diameter
Location: Milwaukee, USA

On the south side of Milwaukee, USA, this beautiful clock named Allen Bradley sits. The clock has four faces and the clock tower was designed by local architect Fitzhugh Scott.

All the clockworks were designed by Allen Bradley, a company that specializes in making electrical controls. The faces of the clock were designed by Super Sky Products in Mequon. Right from 1962 till 2010, this clock was considered to be the largest four-sided clock in the world.

When the clock was unveiled in 1962, the tower was much smaller in height and the clock stood atop another building. Today, this clock rests upon the Allen-Bradley building (now known as the Rockwell Automation) and is 280 feet tall.

The four faces of the clock are 40 feet high and measure three inches in diameter. This clock is also popularly known as the Polish Moon as the illuminated faces of the clock dominate the skyline on the south side, which has a large population of Polish people.

8. Grozny-City Towers Façade Clocks

Size: 13.6 metres in diameter
Location: Grozny, Russia

This is a two-piece clock which is 13.6 meters wide and stands on a tower 140 meters up. The dials of this clock have been made of bri-curtain LED arrays formed of aluminium. This has been done in order to save weight and also offer less resistance from the harsh winds. The 12 markers per dial are illuminated with light-emitting diodes.

The dial of each clock, including the hands and clock movement, weighs about 5,200 kilograms. The steel support structure for each is about 14,000 kilograms.

7. Flower Clock

Size: 15 metres in diameter
Location: Tehran, Iran

At the intersection of two major highways – Modarres and Hemmat, this flower clock stands. It has been set on a 70-ton pedestal made of concrete and flowers are planted all around the dail.

The diameter of this unique dial is 15 meters and the length of a minute hand is 7.5 meters. The total weight of the flower clock in Tehran is 750 kg. The clock was built by the private sector in cooperation with Tehran Municipality in two years at a cost of six hundred million rials.

The clock was opened in 2005 and a lot of tourists are attracted to Tehran to see this clock. It has a very powerful engine and the best part is that no amount of weather change affects the working of this clock, be it rain, snow or the exhausting heat.

6. Colgate Clock

Size: 15.2 metres in diameter
Location: Jersey City, USA

Among the many amazing landmarks that adorn the New York harbour, the Colgate Clock, with its giant neon-red hands attracts a lot of visitors. Even from miles away, this clock is visible along the New Jersey side of Hudson river.

The surface of the clock measures 1,963.5 square feet and is 50 feet in diameter. The minute hand is 25 feet 10 inches long; the hour hand is 20 feet long.

While the clock may not hold a lot of historical significance, it is a replacement for an original 1908 steel clock face. The original clock had been placed above the Colgate-Palmolive factory in Jersey City all the way up until the 1980s. 

When the Colgate headquarters were razed down to make place for the Goldman Sachs building in New Jersey, this clock was kept safely. It now rests on an empty lot which is leased to Colgate-Palmolive by the state of New Jersey, and maintained by Goldman Sachs.

5. Duquesne Brewery Clock

Size: 18 metres in diameter
Location: Pittsburgh, USA

This marvel has been adorning the south side of Pittsburg since 1933 and is the largest clock face in the world. At one point, this timepiece was the largest clock in the world.

The clock measures 60×60 foot, has a 35-feet-long minute hand and a 25-feet-long hour hand. Both these needles are laminated with aluminium. When compared to Big Ben in London, this clock is twice its size and was built by Audichron for $12,500 in Georgia and shipped to Pittsburgh. This humongous clock is powered by a 1.25 horsepower Janett motor.

For many years, this clock was used to advertise various brands like Coca Cola as well as various local and national breweries. However, when Duquesne (pronounced doo-KANE) Brewery purchased this clock in 1961, it was moved to the top of its plant and had a slogan “Have a Duke” painted on its face.

4. Central do Brasil Clock

Size: 20 metres in diameter
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

The Central do Brasil clock is the fourth largest clock in the world and rests above a 443-feet-tall tower at the Central do Brasil train station in Rio de Janeiro. This station is the last stop in Rio and links the city with Minas Gerais and Sao Paulo.

The fourth-largest clock-face in the world is on a 443 feet tall tower in Central do Brasil train station in Rio de Janeiro. The station is the last train stop of the railway network in Rio and it links the city with Minas Gerais and Sao Paulo.

With a neighborhood and a garden with the same name, the Luz quartier is an elegant cultural hub. Preceding the nearby Julio Prestes Station, the Luz train station was designed by British architect Henry Driver and fabricated in England. 

The Victorian building was completed in 1901 and became an entry port for immigrants from Japan and Europe and an exit point for Brazilian coffee. The building is now home to the Museu da Língua Portuguesa. This incredible clocks sits atop this building and is a popular tourist spot.

3. Floral Clock

Size: 24.2 metres in diameter
Location: Surat, India

This clock in Surat, India was set up on the occasion of the golden jubilee of Gujarat’s statehood year 2010. The Surat Municipal Corporation built the clock on a 93,000 sq metre of land given by Navin Flourine Company.

The diameter of the clock, made on natural soil and plantations, is 24.2 metres and each of its hands weigh 800 kgs. Around 25 per cent of the clock’s dial area has RCC slab incline under which the machinery has been fitted and the rest is just natural soil.

The Municipal Corporation took three years to complete the RCC work and then the Chennai based clock contractors took another one year to fix the machinery. The clock has been set up on Global Positioning System (GPS) and it can operate on light and battery too, which was installed at an additional cost of $16,000.

2. Istanbul Cevahir

Size: 36 metres in diameter
Location: Istanbul, Turkey

The second largest clock in the world is on the large glass roof of the Istanbul Cevahir Mall in Sisi district, Istanbul. The clock has a diameter of 104.99 feet and it was designed to beat the record set by the Flower clock which is in Tehran.

Constructed in 2005, the digits of the clock are about 10 feet high. The mall had the largest leasable area in Europe from 2005 to 2011 and it is one of the largest malls in the world.

1. Abraj Al Bait

Size: 43 metres in diameter
Location: Mecca, Saudi Arabia

The Abraj Al bait clock in Mecca, Saudi Arabia is the biggest clock in the world. It has a diameter of 43 metres and the clocks sits atop the third tallest building in the world!

Abraj Al Bait, also commonly known as Makkah Royal Clock Tower, which refers to the clock tower in the middle of the complex, the building is also informally called Mecca Clock Tower or Makkah Clock Tower.

The 1,972-foot tower was completed in 2012 and is the third tallest building in the world. The clock features observation decks below the 141-foot-diameter clock faces and is topped with an eight-story spire containing a scientific center, observation deck, and prayer center.

Five times a day, the clock issues a call to worship using 21,000 green and white LED lights and speakers that can be heard from over four miles away.