I’ve
just returned from a brief visit with friends in East Sussex and in London so
there’ll be a few blogs about some of the architectural features I noticed on my
travels. The first of these concerns clocks.
I
wondered why so many churches have clocks on their towers but, as a friend
pointed out, in times past many people wouldn’t have had clocks or watches, so
a clock in a prominent position provided a public service – and possibly helped
ensure the congregation was on time for church services.
Hailsham: Parish Church
Hailsham Parish Church dates from the mid-fifteenth
century but its clock was installed much later, to celebrate Queen Victoria’s Diamond
Jubilee. The church’s website says ‘Until that time the tower had a single
diamond shaped clock face which had the distinction of having only one hand,
the intervals between the numerals being divided into four quarters instead of
five minutes.’
Lewes: Dial House, 221 Cliffe High
Street
Dated
1824 and restored in January 2009, this stunning metal sun dial carries the
motto Nosce Teipsum, which translates
as ‘Know thyself’. Though I don’t know the original purpose of this building,
which was built in the mid-17th century, I did discover that it housed a Quaker School for young women a couple of years after the date of the sundial, in 1826.
In 2019, the building is home to the local branch of Waterstone’s bookshop.
Lewes: St Michael’s Church
According
to the Sussex Parish Churches website, this grand clock dates from the 19th century.
The clock is not attached to the church itself but projects on decorative
cast-iron brackets from the neighbouring church hall.
Lewes: Trinity Church, Southover (below, left)
The
Trinity Church website has an excellent guide to the history of this
magnificent old church – unfortunately, the guide makes no mention of the clock
on the tower.
Lewes: Market Tower (above, right)
Lewes’s Market Tower, a Grade-II listed building, was constructed from red and brown brick in 1792. The crest below the clock depicts the arms of Lewes.
Pevensey: St Nicolas Church
Though
this Anglican church is old, completed in 1216, its clock is rather more
modern. According to Wikipedia, the two-sided tower
clock was manufactured by Smiths of Derby and installed in 1908.
Bexhill: Clock Tower
Though
intended as a memorial to the coronation of Edward VII in August 1902, this
clock tower was not completed until two years later. Except for the garish
colour scheme, it is a rather plain construction of imitation Bath stone, with
clock faces on all four sides. The Public Sculptures of Sussex website reports
that the clock is not the original one.
