Comayagua cathedral clock facts for kids
The Comayagua Cathedral Clock is a very old and special clock. It's also called the Arabic Clock or just the Comayagua Clock. You can find it in the city of Comayagua, in Honduras.
This clock was made a long, long time ago, during the Middle Ages. It's thought to be the oldest clock in all of the Americas. Even more amazing, it might be the oldest working gear clock in the entire world! It has been ticking for over 900 years.
History of the Comayagua Clock
The parts of this clock were made by Spanish Moors around the year 1100. This was in a part of Spain called Al-Andalus, during the time of the Almoravid dynasty. It was first used in the famous Arab palace of the Alhambra in Granada, Spain.
Later, after the Reconquista (when Christian kingdoms took back Spain), the Spanish kings took over the palace. In the 1600s, King Philip III of Spain decided to send the clock to the Americas. It traveled to a region called Las Hibueras, which is now Honduras.
The clock was first put in the Church of La Merced in 1636. This church was the main cathedral of the city back then. But in 1711, it was moved to the new Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. This was the biggest building in Comayagua at the time. The clock was placed high up in the cathedral's bell tower.
In 2007, the clock needed some care. Experts from the city and the Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History helped. A master clockmaker named Rodolfo Antonio Cerón Martínez from Guatemala worked for five months. He finished restoring the clock on December 20, 2007, making sure it could keep ticking for many more years.
How the Clock Works
The Comayagua clock works using a system of gears, ropes, weights, and a pendulum. All these parts work together to show the time. You can see the clock face on the front of the church.
One interesting thing about the clock face is how it shows the number 4. Instead of the usual "IV" that we see today, it uses "IIII". This was an older way of writing Roman numerals.
Why This Clock is Special
For a long time, people thought the oldest working gear clock was in Salisbury Cathedral in England. That clock was made in 1386.
However, when experts studied the Comayagua clock, they found something amazing. It was built using a much older way of working with iron. This means it was made even before the Salisbury clock. Because of this, many historians now believe the Comayagua clock is the oldest working gear clock in the entire world!
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