the strasburg clock model

THE STRASBURG CLOCK MODEL
Sydney clockmaker Richard Bartholomew Smith
(1862–1942) was only 25 years old when he
decided to build a model of the Strasburg Clock as
a centenary ‘gift’ to the state of NSW. He began
work on Australia Day in 1887 and completed the
clock in 1889. The next year it was on display at the
Technological Museum (as this museum was then
known), where it quickly became the chief
attraction.
How does it work?
The Strasburg Clock model marks the passage of
time both scientifically and symbolically.
Smith based his clock on the famous astronomical
clock in Strasbourg Cathedral, France. Strangely he
never visited Strasbourg (which in his day was
called Strasburg or Strassburg) and claimed to have
based his design on a postcard and a book.
At five minutes to every hour the procession of the
twelve apostles, in the uppermost alcove, represents
the passing of the hours. During this procession each
apostle turns towards Christ and then bows his head
for Christ’s blessing, except St Peter who turns his
back, in denial. At this the rooster on the tower crows
three times. Judas, the twelfth apostle (carrying his
money bag) bows deeply to Christ. Satan appears in
the window to the left of Christ for both St Peter and
Judas. The accompanying music is from Dawn
mantras by Australian composer Ross Edwards.
For more than a century, the Strasburg Clock model
has delighted visitors to the Museum. Even though
the vision it embodies strictly belongs to a past era
of science and technology, the clock remains an
object of fascination today.
In the second alcove figures representing the four
ages of life rotate into view every 15 minutes. In the
next alcove the phases of the Moon and the tides
are shown. Next is an orrery which shows the
relative positions of the planets as they orbit the
The Strasburg Clock model
Sun and underneath this is a dial which shows
Eastern Standard Time.
clock (hourglass) and the other strikes a bell each
15 minutes.
The days of the week are represented by chariots
driven by the deities from which we get our day
names. At about 4.10 pm each day the chariot
representing the next day advances to the front.
The case of the clock is decorated with allegorical
figures, such as the three Fates of Greek
mythology, and portraits of the astronomer
Nicholas Copernicus, the clockmaker J B Schwilgué
who restored the Strasbourg Cathedral clock in
1842, and others.
Underneath the chariots, the Grand Astronomical
Dial (pictured below) shows the apparent
movement of the Sun, the Moon and the stars
across the southern sky. Also on this model of the
clock are dials which give the local time in six major
capital cities around the world and mechanisms
which show the solar cycle, the equation of time
and the lunar cycle. The two cherubs symbolise
an older method of timekeeping: one has a sand
The showcase next to the clock includes original
parts of the clock that were replaced during
restoration work by Richard Smith, and later by
Museum staff, as well as photos of Smith and the
ancient clock in Strasbourg Cathedral.
Syllabus links
NSW syllabus for the Australian curriculum
SCIENCE K–10
Physical World
Stage 1
ST1-7PW — describes effects of pushes and pulls on objects they encounter
Stage 2
ST2-7PW — describes everyday interactions between objects that result from contact
and non-contact forces
Stage 2
ST2-9ES — describes how relationships between the sun and the Earth cause regular
changes
Stage 3
ST3-8ES — describes how discoveries by people from different cultures and times have
contributed to advancing scientific understanding of the solar system
Information
Stage1
ST1-15I — describes a range of familiar information sources and technologies and how
their purposes influence their design
Products
Stage 2
ST2-16P — describes how products are designed and produced, and the ways people
use them
Stage 3
ST3-16P — describes systems used to produce or manufacture products, and the social
and environmental influences on product design
Early Stage 1
MAe-13MG — sequences events, uses everyday language to describe the durations of
events, and reads hour time on clocks
Stage 1
MA1-13MG — describes, compares and orders durations of events, and reads half- and
quarter-hour time
Stage 2
MA2-13MG — reads and records time in one-minute intervals and converts between
hours, minutes and seconds
Earth and Space
MATHEMATICS K–10
Time
TEACHERS NOTES 2
The Strasburg Clock model
Further resources
• Barrett, Des and Ward, Carey, ‘Strasburg’ clock
model, Powerhouse Museum, Sydney, 1992
• Davison, Graeme, ‘The secret life of the
Strasburg Clock’, in Yesterday’s tomorrows: the
Powerhouse Museum and its precursors, edited
by Graeme Davison and Kimberley Webber,
Powerhouse Publishing, Sydney, 2005
For more information on the exhibition
The Strasburg Clock model,
visit the Powerhouse Museum’s website
http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/exhibitions/
strasburg_clock.php
For more information about education support
or your booking, contact Bookings at the
Powerhouse Museum:
Telephone — (02) 9217 0222
Fax — (02) 9217 0622
Email — [email protected]
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500 Harris Street
Ultimo NSW 2007
www.powerhousemuseum.com
© 2005 Trustees of the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences. Revised June 2012, April 2014. The design and images in this publication are copyright. Apart from fair dealing for the
purposes of research, study, criticism or review, or as otherwise permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any process without written permission.
Text may be used under Creative Commons Licence Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 3.0 Australia.
The Powerhouse Museum, part of the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences also incorporating Sydney Observatory, the Powerhouse Discovery Centre and the NSW Migration
Heritage Centre, is a NSW government cultural institution.
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