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After 600 years, world's oldest clock 'to be wound by hand for the last time' | The world's oldest mechanical clock is to be wound by hand for the last time next week. The clock at Wells Cathedral in Somersetthat that has been wound by hand
every week for 600 years will now be fitted with an electric motor. The change
comes following the retirement of the last member of a family who has maintained
it for almost a century. Experts say the clock, which tracks the sun across the
sky and records the stages of the moon, is a marvel of medieval craftsmanship.
Paul Fisher has been undertaking the daunting task of spending an hour, three
times a week, turning the three 250kg weights about 800 times, since 1987. Above
it is a figure, "Jack Blandifers", who hits the bells on the hour with a hammer
and his heels, while a pair of knights chases each other above the dial every
15 minutes. This week, however, he announced his retirement as the official "Keeper
of the Great Clock of Wells". "I'm a bit sad that all these years of history are
coming to an end but winding the clock by hand is just so time consuming," The
Telegraph quoted Fisher, as saying. "I feel very proud and privileged to have
wound this magnificent clock and that my family has been involved in such a historic
task," he added. Fisher's family took over responsibility in 1919 after his grandfather,
Leo Fisher, returned from First World War service. Leo Fisher's sons, Ken and
Toni, continued the tradition in 1935 before his daughters, Ruth and Mary, took
over during the Second World War. "Mr Fisher's leaving is a reminder that we are
responsible for caring for the Cathedral and other spiritual and heritage treasures
for this and future generations to come," said administrator Paul Richards. |
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