Clock Tower

05/10/2022 - 09:30

Following extensive restoration work carried out in 2020, the historic Torre Accursi, better known as the Clock Tower, has reopened to the public. The panoramic view over the rooftops of Bologna from the top is simply stunning.

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Located in Piazza Maggiore, Torre Accursi is also known as the Clock Tower, a very large building that included a school, with its portico facing the square, and a tower at the corner. The tower was incorporated into Accursio’s residence, which, shortly after the owner’s death, was purchased by the newly expanding municipality.

What still catches the eye today is the enormous mechanical clock, installed on the tower’s façade in 1444. The sundial on the Arengo tower remained responsible for marking the hours of the day and, above all, midday, against which all other clocks were calibrated, whilst from 1451 the new mechanism began to mark the hours of the night as well.