I saw this on the BBC Breakfast news this morning and my first thought was how beautiful it is, my second thought was “what IS it?!”.
The Midsummer Chronophage Clock is one of two clocks in the world to show the experience of relative time. Developed by British inventor Dr John C Taylor, the clock is inspired by the idea that everyone experiences time differently.
Walking atop the 1.5 metre golden clock face is a large kinetic sculpture of a mythical beast which appears to devour time. The clock face was created by a series of underwater explosions and the hour is tolled by the sound of a chain clanking into a small wooden coffin concealed in the back of the clock to remind us that our time on earth is limited. The 3.3 metre high clock took more than two years to make and over a hundred people including artists, engineers, scientists, jewellers and calligraphers were involved in the process.
Wow.
It is just one of those things that you really, truly have to go and see in the flesh to truly appreciate.
The Midsummer Chronophage Clock exhibition at the Science Museum in London is free and opened on 18th April 2011 and runs until the end of October 2011.
