Taking promotional dealers clocks to the next level, this is a piece made for Jaeger-LeCoultre by Athem. It will live on the wall of JLC’s flagship boutique in Place Vendome for the next 5 months.
The whole unit is over 6 meters tall, and yes – it does tell the time :-)
It’s been a long time since we had a ‘Clocks In Public Places’ post but I was out and about taking some photos this weekend (you can see some of them here if you’re interested) and remembered to grab this one :-)
This is the clock tower for Brisbane’s City Hall.
The building itself – fully opened in 1930 – is undergoing some major renovations, but thankfully the clock is working just fine. The clock chimes on the quarter-hour.
The tower in which it’s housed is 70m tall and is based on the design of the St Mark’s Campanile in Venice, Italy. Ironically, Brisbane did a good impression of Venice last year. Luckily, City Hall was not affected.
Apparently there’s a viewing platform in the tower, although whether that’s still open during the building works, I can’t tell you.
On a final note: an interesting image of the tower under construction can be found here.
If I’d had a bit more time I would have hung around and waited for the show to start under this giant Seiko so that I could grab some more pics for you. Maybe next time.
‘The show, you say?’
Yep, every hour a marionette display drops down from the bottom of this watch with galahs (that’s a bird in case you were wondering), cockatoos and two minstrels performing Waltzing Matilda; under the watchful gaze of some koalas.
This giant fob watch was presented as a gift from Seiko and sits in the QV Centre – a shopping centre in central Melbourne. Directly opposite is the famous ‘Shot Tower’ under its very impressive canopied roof (see below).
Originally the watch had a giant chain, but it never reappeared following some renovations some time back.
Perhaps the fact the chain weighed over two tonnes had something to do with that!
The Shot Tower was originally used to make lead shot for ammunition. Built in 1888 it now features a free museum (and an RM Williams shop!).
Well worth a look if you’re in Melbourne.
The glass cone covering was built in 1991 as part of a broader site refurbishment.
The facade may be somewhat crumbly, but the Forum building is definitely one of Melbourne’s (many) architectural delights.
Built in 1929 as an ‘atmospheric movie theatre palace’ (a cinema) it’s gone through a few iterations since, and today plays host to live music, comedy and theatre performances.
Gary Numan was there recently, but I missed that one – boo!
The clock tower stands 49 meters above street level and features a copper roof and minuets. The whole building certainly has a strong middle-eastern/Egyptian influence to it.
Here’s what the current owners, The Marriner Group, have to say about the building and its history:
“Sold in the first Melbourne land auction in 1837, the site on the corner of Flinders and Russell Streets was originally used as a private residence. Over the years, the land was regularly repurposed – an iron store, coal yards, offices and a bond store – until the turn of the century, when the Herald and Standard Newspaper Company occupied the Flinders Street building, with the State Migration Office around the corner in Russell Street.
Both premises were vacated when purchased by Stuart Doyle, Managing Director of Union Theatres, to make way for the new State Theatre ‘picture palace’.
In the early 1920’s, during a visit to America, Stuart Doyle met John Eberson, who had designed a chain of ‘atmospheric’ theatres, including the famed Riviera in Chicago. Unique for their ceilings that give the illusion of sitting under a night sky, atmospheric theatres were especially popular in North America, and Eberson its main proponent.
Doyle commissioned Eberson to design three Australian theatres – the State Theatre, the Capitol Theatre in Sydney, and the Ambassador in Perth. Construction began in 1927, and was built as a mirror image of Sydney’s Capitol Theatre. The auditorium had the ambience of a Florentine garden, even featuring a copy of the Venus De Capua (the original stands in the Naples Museum), and busts of classic Greek and Roman statues such as Diana of Versailles (the original stands in the Louvre) and Discobolus (now in the Vatican). The majority of the sculptures were cast directly from the originals. To encourage the theatre’s image of a heavenly garden, fresh flowers were placed around the auditorium, to fragrantly complete the picture.
Throughout the entire auditorium, the cerulean blue ceiling – imitating the Mediterranean sky – gave the feeling of being seated under an open evening sky, complete with twinkling stars and projected clouds floating past.
Union Theatres competed with Hoyts’ Regent Theatre in Collins Street to be the first to open an extravagant picture palace. The State won the race after seven months’ construction time and opened on 23 February 1929, three weeks ahead of the Regent. A fabulous creation of fantasy both inside and out, it is also one of only a few atmospheric theatres built outside North America.
Opening night was nothing less than spectacular, and presented the silent films The Fleet’s In starring Miss Clara Bow, and The Cameraman starring Buster Keaton. The first ‘talkie’ was The Doctor’s Secret, premiering on 6 April 1929. By 1938, the longer theatre hours allowed a feature movie, with an orchestral presentation and a Tivoli stage act.
The State Theatre quickly became a Melbourne landmark. Its iconic copper-domed clock tower rose 49 meters from the street, and was immediately noticed by commuters exiting Flinders Street Station. The grand façade featured a replica minaret of one standing on a Cairo mosque alongside smaller minarets with ornate windows. Together with pressed cement walls, lace-like balustrading, slender columns, receding balconies and towers all painted in bright, bold colours and lit with twinkling lights, the Forum was an imposing, magnificent Melbourne monument.
The grandness of the theatre was immediately apparent as soon as audiences entered the foyer. Patrons’ attention was immediately drawn to the illuminated clock in the centre of the floor, synchronised to the clock tower. Audiences in the 1,372 seat Dress Circle entered through rotundas on either side, while audiences in the 1,999 seat Stalls were overwhelmed by the vast night sky, complete with accurately placed constellations. At 3,371 seats, the Forum featured the largest seating capacity in the southern hemisphere.
By the early 60’s, television had made serious cuts to theatre attendance, so Greater Union decided to convert the State Theatre into two smaller theatres. The walls were brought in, reducing the seating area, and wall decorations were repositioned. The Dress Circle and Stalls were then split into two theatres – the Forum downstairs, and the upstairs Rapallo, for which a new stage was built.
The Forum opened in 1962, and the Rapallo opened in 1963. In November 1978, the building was added to the Historic Buildings Register and came under the protection of the National Trust. In 1981, both theatres were extensively refurbished and opened as Forum I and Forum II.
In November 1986, the Forum complex was purchased by the Melbourne Revival Centre and used as their meeting place for almost ten years. In 1996, David Marriner bought the complex, converting the Forum into one of Melbourne’s premier live music and cabaret venues, with comedians, magicians, dancers and live band performing under the cerulean sky. Forum II is a 500 seat theatre-style auditorium used for film screenings and smaller-scale live performances.”
Bentleigh Jewellers in, yes Bentleigh, Melbourne actually have three clocks outside of their premises: one on the front awning and two on a smaller sign hanging just outside the shop.
Not much to report on these in the way of any clues, except to say that the two smaller clocks have the business name and website printed on them and a rather nice smooth sweep-hand.
The business itself has been around for the past thirty years or so.
Looking at their website, I’m not sure they even sell watches and clocks, but the shop was shut so I can’t confirm that one :-)
If anyone from Bentleigh’s is listening, we’d love to hear from you!
Who would have thought – a Rolex clock, outside a Rolex shop?
This one is on Collins Street, Melbourne and – yes – the time was spot on :-)
My understanding of these promo clocks is that despite featuring the famous Rolex crown, they are powered by a Japanese quartz movement, and cost somewhere between $500-$1000, depending on the model.
This one would make a rather large wall clock :-)
It’s been a while but finally had a day that wasn’t washed out by either rain or insane amounts of work; upshot of which was having some time to get back to photo-hunting for the ‘Clocks In Public Places’ series.
This one was a bit of a surprise as I’ve walked past this corner on so many occasions but had clearly never looked up!
The clock is attached to an Agfa advertising hoarding, which is on the corner of Russell and Lonsdale Streets in Melbourne.
Non-functioning, it is marked as a ‘Whiteway’ clock. The dial markers are roman numerals.
A quick spot of Googling resulted in .. nothing at all about either the clock or the manufacturer.
Any ideas?
Real-life got in the way of too much photo hunting today, but I did manage to grab one shot on the way home for the ‘clocks in public places’ series.
It was getting quite dark so had to use a bit of hipster-esque Instagram magic to spruce it up (hence why it’s a grainy pic!).
What can I tell you about this one?
Construction of the Town Hall started in 1850, but the first building didn’t open until 1854 (everyone was off digging for gold apparently). Obviously no’one was a big fan of the first effort though as this was demolished less than 10 years later.
Version 2 – including the Prince Alfred Tower - was opened in 1870.
The clock was actually made 4 years after the town hall’s completion. Designed by Smith and Sons of London, the clock was presented to the Council by Vallange Condell, son of Melbourne’s first Mayor, in 1874.
The clock measures 8 feet in diameter and its hands, which are purely made from copper, measure 3 feet and 10 inches long (for the longer hand) and weighs 8.85 kilograms.
If you’re interested in checking the building out, you can book a free tour: tours run at 11am and 1pm weekdays.
The end :-)
My Melbourne hunting expedition to find ‘clocks in public places’ was somewhat curtailed by the rain today (and it was v.cold!), but I did manage to grab a few pictures.
This last one is somewhat scant on details.
Googling around gives me no further information on the clock above the ‘Watches Of Switzerland’ shop at 249 Collins Street.
I think it’s fairly safe to assume that a clock above a watch shop is related to the business.
It appeared to be working, but there were no identifiable markings that I could see.
Anyone?
Don’t forget .. send in your own ‘clocks in public places’ pictures to webcontact at winderz dot com.
Let’s see how many different cities we can cover :-)
Gog and Magog have lived in Melbourne’s Royal Arcade for over 100 years. The Royal Arcade straddles Little Collins and Bourke Streets.
Below the Gaunt clock is a plaque that gives you a bit more of their story. It says:
“These two 7-feet giants have been striking the time on Gaunt’s clock since 1892. They were carved from clear pine and modelled on the figures erected in Guildhall, London, in 1708 to symbolise the conflict between the ancient Britons and the Trojan invaders
Mythology tells of the giants Gog and Magog (also known as Corineus and Gogmagog) having been captured in battle by the Trojans and made to serve as porters at the gateway of an ancient palace on a site later occupied by the Guildhall. It is traditional for Gog to stand to the north and Magog to the south.”
The Royal Arcade is another of Melbourne’s many fantastic buildings to visit if you’re in town.
Thomas Gaunt & Co., clockmakers and jewellers, had been original tenants of the arcade and whilst the clock bears Gaunt’s name it is generally thought to be the work of one Frederick Ziegler.
Don’t say you never learn anything here :-)
