Torre dell'Orologio (Clock Tower)

The Torre dell'Orologio stands on the north side of Piazza San Marco in Venice, at the entrance to the Mercerie, the main shopping street leading to the Rialto. It was built between 1496 and 1499, probably to designs by Mauro Codussi, and the clock mechanism was made by Gian Paolo and Gian Carlo Ranieri, father and son from Reggio Emilia.

The tower was placed so that the clock face could be seen from the lagoon, showing the wealth of Venice to arriving ships. Wings were added on each side in the early 16th century. A long restoration of the building and the mechanism was completed in 2006.

The large clock face in blue enamel and gold shows the hour in Roman numerals, along with the signs of the zodiac and the phases of the moon. Above it, statues of the Virgin and Child sit in a semi-circular gallery; on Epiphany and Ascension Day, figures of the Three Kings led by an angel come out of side doors and bow before them. Above that, a gold winged lion of St Mark stands against a starry blue background. On the roof, two large bronze figures known as the Moors strike a bell every hour.

The interior, with the clock mechanism and the roof terrace beside the Moors, can only be visited on guided tours in Italian, English or French, booked in advance. The tower is managed by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia, and tours climb steep, narrow stairs.

Behind the clock face and the Magi mechanism

The tour climbs through the floors behind the clock face, past the late fifteenth-century mechanism and the drum-and-chain system that moves the Magi figures on feast days. Guides explain how the dial tracks the hours, the zodiac and the phases of the moon, and how the clock was rebuilt and adjusted over the centuries.

The climb ends on the roof terrace beside the two bronze Moors, close enough to watch them strike the great bell on the hour. The terrace gives a view across the domes of St Mark's Basilica, the campanile and the lagoon. Visitors who suffer from vertigo or have limited mobility should think twice, as the final ladders are steep.