The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1870-09-28
The Wonderful Clock of Strasburg.

1t is feared that the Cathedral OF
Strasburg, celebrated for its wondrous
beauty, will hardly escape serious dam
age owing to the present siege. Its eel
ebrated clock, no less renowned, is thus
described For ingenuity and compll-
cation, all ancient clocks must hide their
dials in the presence Of that of Stras-
burg Cathedral. Before this clock
stands globe on the ground, showing
the motions Of the heavens, stars and
planets. The heavens are carried about
by the first mover in twenty-four hours.
Saturn by its proper motion, is carried
about in thirty years; Jupiter, in twelve;
Mars, in two; the Sun, Mercury and
Venice, in one year; and the moon in
one month. In the clock itself are two
tables on the right and left hand, show
ing the eclipses of the sun and moon
for the years 1873 to 1924. The third
table in the middle is divided into
two parts. In the first part the
statues of Apollo and Diana show
the course of the year and the
day Thereof, being carried about one
year. The second part shows the year
of our Lord, and the equinoctial days,
the hours of each day, and the minutes
of each hour, Easter Day, and all the
other feasts and the dominica letter ;
and the third part has geographical
description of all Germany, and partic-
larily of Strasburg, and the names of
the inventor and the workmen. In the
middle frame Of the clock is an astrolabe,
showing the sign in which each planet is
every day, and there are statues of the
seven planets upon circular plate OF
iron; so that every day the planet that
rules the day comes forth, the rest be
ing hid within the frames till they come
out of course, at their day, as the sun
upon Sunday, and SO on for the week.
There is terrestrial globe, which
shows the quarter, the half hour and
the minutes. There is a figure ola hui
man skull, and statues Of two boys,
whereof one turns the hour glass when
the hour hath struck, and the other
puts forth the rod in his hand at each
stroke of the clock. Moreover, there are
statues of Spring, Summer, Autumn
and Winter, and many observations OF
the moon. In the upper part of the
clock are four old mems statues, which
strike the qnarterhours. The statue OF
Death comes out at each quarter to
strike, but is driven back by the statue
NJ Christ with a spear in his hand, for
three-auarters; but in the fourth quar-
ter death strikes the hour with the
bone in his hand, and then the chimes
sound. On the top of the clock is the
image of a cock, which twice in day
crows aloud and claps his wings. Be
sides, this clock is decked with many
rare pictures, and, being on the inside
of the church, carries another frame to
the outside OF the walls, whereon the
hours of the sun, the courses of the
moon, the length of the, day, and suci
other things are set up with mnch art
But perhaps, the most striking par
of the history of this Strssburg clocE
was that it was made, or, at all events
perfected, by blind man. The artl
san who contrived it lost his sight, anc
was superseded but since nobody els
could carry out his ideas, and he refused
10 communicate them, he was relnsta
ted in his work, and actually carrie,
out the affair, in all its intricate deli
cacy, to the end.