St. Paul’s Cathedral Clock

St Paul’s Cathedral in London is an instantly recognisable symbol of the London skyline. Smith of Derby are proud to have built and installed the current clock in 1893 and have taken care of it ever since.

St Paul’s welcomes approximately 1,500,000 visitors
every year, which puts a high responsibility on us to keep the clock working and maintaining its appearance. Our programme, working closely with St Paul’s own clock team, includes regular inspection and maintenance with planned restoration of components to eliminate potential problems before they occur.

The dials are integral to the fabric of the building, so cannot be removed. Members of our team quali ed for full rope access are on hand to perform such restoration tasks. As with all dial conservation work we use the best quality paints and gold leaf, to ensure as long a life as possible.

The cathedral clock installed in the clock tower of St Paul’s Cathedral is one of our most celebrated and iconic public clocks.  The original St Paul’s cathedral clock was installed in 1893 and is as reliable today as it ever was.  To this day, Smith of Derby carrying on the tradition of maintaining the clock ensuring precision timekeeping is upheld in this very public clock.

The clock incorporates a weight driven mechanism with gravity escapement designed by Edmund Denison Beckett, which is similar to the one used by Edward Dent on ‘Big Ben’ in 1895.  With quarter chimes and hour striking the clock mechanism is now fitted with an electric winding system and the clock movement sits proudly in its 18 foot flat bed frame.

Details:
18 foot flat bed frame contains the clock movement
Originally manufactured and installed by John Smith and Sons in 1893
Incorporating a design of escapement by Edmund Denison Beckett
Electronic winding system designed and installed by Smith of Derby Ltd in 1969
Clock mechanism is 5.8 metres long

  • Categories:
    Community
  • Client
    Whites of Appleton
  • Location
    London, UK
  • Size
    3 X 5.4m diameter stone skeleton dials
  • Date
    Ongoing since 1893
  • Ref
    4005

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