Clock Tower, History Museum
Turnul cu Ceas
Clock Tower, History Museum
Turnul cu Ceas
Original function:
municipal tower / fire tower
town hall
Historical Hungarian county:
Nagy-Küküllő
GPS coordinates:
46.2193137005, 24.7933482294
History
The gate tower is the main entrance to the castle, the eastern gate separating the Lower Town from the Upper Town. Unlike the other towers, it was not defended by the guilds but by the town's military. It was originally built in the 14th century. Until 1556 the town council met in the hall on the first floor. The tower housed the town treasury, archives and the ammunition store. It was rebuilt in 1677 after a fire the previous year, when it was given a baroque roof.
In 1604, the tower was given the name Stundturm (Clock Tower), after a wooden clockwork was installed in it. In 1648, the clockwork and dial were replaced, and it was at this time that master Johann Kirschel installed the figures (silver statues of the 12 apostles) that circulated at each hour. The clockwork was destroyed by fire in 1676 and replaced by a new one.
In 1704, during the Hungarian war of independence, the kuruc insurgents attacked the town and their cannons hit the weathervane on top of the tower and the crescent moon, a symbol of Turkish vassalage. In 1774 the crescent moon was replaced by a two-headed eagle, the symbol of the Habsburgs.
During the 1894 restoration, the tower was covered with coloured tiles. In 1899, the building was converted into a museum of the town's history. In 1906, the clock was restored and since 1964 it has been powered by an electric motor. The tower is 64 metres high.
The tower now houses a museum. In Budapest, the Apostles' Tower in Vajdahunyad Castle, made for the Millennium of Hungary, is reminiscent of the clock tower in Segesvár.
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