The abundance of interesting sights is almost the main reason of those that make thousands of tourists from all over the world fly to London every year. Big Ben is a historic building that the capital of Great Britain is rightly proud of . What is known about the huge clock, indicating the time with amazing accuracy, what is their history?
Big Ben in London: title
Why did the symbol of the capital of England get such an unusual name? Initially, this name was given to a huge bell located in the tower of the Palace of Westminster. The diameter of the base of the product is three meters, the weight goes beyond 13 tons. Gradually, the Clock Tower, in which the bell is located, and the watches, which have an impressive size, began to be called the same. Decades later, the whole world knew that Big Ben was the clock tower in London.
Who came up with the uncharacteristic name that the bell was originally awarded with? There are two legends explaining the origin of the name. The most popular of them says that the watch owes its original name to the architect Benjamin Hall, who was responsible for the construction work. It is believed that this person was called so because of an impressive build.
The second theory is slightly less popular. If you rely on her, then the symbol of London got its name in honor of the famous English heavyweight boxer Benjamin County.
Construction
When was created the attraction that London deserves to be proud of? Big Ben has a long history. It began in 1288, when the Clock Tower was built, which became part of the Palace of Westminster. Unfortunately, the fire that happened in 1834 led to the destruction of this architectural element. Of course, a few years later it was decided to reconstruct it.
Who developed the project of the famous tower, which even today everyone seeks to visit London? Big Ben is the brainchild of architect Augustus Puig, known for his neo-Gothic designs. Unfortunately, this man died before his project was put into practice. The construction of the tower was completed in 1858, in 1859 a grand launch of the clockwork took place.
At first, gas horns were used to illuminate the building , electricity began to be used only in 1912.
Technical specifications
The brick tower, which is crowned with a spire cast in cast iron, is installed on a concrete foundation with a height of 15 meters. For facing the architectural element, colored limestone was used. Even without a spire, the height of the tower is more than 60 meters, with it - 96.3 meters. How to understand how majestic the landmark London is proud of? Big Ben has a height comparable to the parameters of a 16-story building.
Unfortunately, the tower is not intended for mass visits, guests of the capital of Great Britain can see it only from afar, as well as the inhabitants of the metropolis. It is not surprising that the project did not include lifts or elevators. Those who want to go up must overcome a total of 334 steps.
What is a watch
You can’t separately stop at such an element as the Big Ben watch. There are no analogues in London that could compete with them in terms of size. A few decades ago, these were not all over the world. The development of watch dials was also undertaken by Pujin. In their manufacture, 312 copies of glass opal were used; seven-meter steel frames and gilded disks were created.
Outstanding dimensions have arrows. Minutes are 4.2 meters long, made from copper. Cast iron was used for the manufacture of clock hands; their length is 2.7 meters. Clock dials are set at a height of 55 meters. The total weight of the watch movement is 5 tons. The pendulum, weighing about 300 kg, is located inside the tower, located under the clock room.
About accuracy
As you know, Big Ben is located in London. The inhabitants of this city put punctuality above all else. It is not surprising that watches that have established themselves as a standard of reliability have long become a symbol of the capital of Great Britain. The assembly of the clockwork is the responsibility that was assigned to the watchmaker Edward Dent. The master coped with this task by 1854. A unique dual three-step stroke has been developed, guaranteeing high precision watches.
It is known that the error of the clockwork does not exceed 2 seconds per day. Surprisingly, the accuracy of the mechanism is controlled using a single-penny coin, which is either put on the pendulum or retracted.
It is believed that the majestic clock never stopped counting time. This statement is refuted by the story of Big Ben. In London, they first encountered their damage in 1976, the auto-regulator of the movement of the mechanism broke down. The watch repair took about 9 months, during which they did not work. The re-launch was inaugurated in May 1977. There were failures in their work later, but the problems were fixed much faster than what happened during the first breakdown. It is interesting that Big Ben was damaged during the Second World War as a result of the bombing, but damage to the roof of the tower did not make the reliable clockwork fail.
What is a bell?
Not only sizes provide the Clock Tower with popularity, which other London sights are not able to compete with. Big Ben is endowed with a huge bell that publishes a fight. This item is located inside the tower. It is known that the casting of the bell was entrusted to the master Edmund Beckett Denison. This man decided to create something more grandiose than even the "Great Peter", located in York and weighing ten tons. He created the bell, whose total weight was 16 tons.
For transportation of the product a cart was used, which was harnessed by 16 horses. The bell lasted no more than two months, then cracked. As a result, a new version was created, the mass of which did not go beyond 13 tons. It is curious that in this case the weight of the hammer responsible for the blows was halved.
Unfortunately, the second bell cracked, but it was possible to repair it. It was decided to create a square cut, which does not allow cracks to spread. There was also a small Big Ben turn, as a result of which the hammer ceased to affect the damage.
Interesting Facts
The resonant ringing was first heard by the inhabitants of the capital in late May 1859. Big Ben in London has existed for over 150 years. The first contact of the hammer with the bell is made at the first second of the beginning of a new hour. The clock cannot be late, as its progress is controlled with the help of an English penny by a person acting as a caretaker. It is curious that the caretaker was wanted to be fired when once the famous watch was delayed for one second. Of course, the mechanism is regularly checked for health.
Interestingly, it was Big Ben, located in London, that was chosen to proclaim the beginning of the 21st century on the night of December 31, 2000. This watch is an international time standard. A few decades ago, they had the world's largest dial, but the clock installed on the Allen Bradley firm building, which is located in the US state of Wisconsin, managed to break this record.
Symbol of london
Today it is difficult to meet a person who does not know what city Big Ben is located in - London. Famous watches emit a ring, under which the inhabitants of the UK celebrate the New Year. It is he who is used when it is necessary to declare a moment of silence associated with the mournful events that have occurred in the world. Almost all of the art and documentary paintings dedicated to England contain in the screen saver an image of the magnificent Big Ben. Local news programs also begin with photographs of the famous tower.