{"id":6414,"date":"2018-10-24T06:00:17","date_gmt":"2018-10-24T05:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/?p=6414"},"modified":"2025-10-23T06:35:18","modified_gmt":"2025-10-23T05:35:18","slug":"ankeruhr-anchor-clock","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sights\/ankeruhr-anchor-clock\/","title":{"rendered":"Ankeruhr (Anchor clock)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/anker_thumb.jpg\" alt=\"Figures on the Ankeruhr\" class=\"wp-image-6417\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/anker_thumb.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/anker_thumb-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>If you wander up the Hoher Markt street in Vienna&#8217;s centre at the top of the hour, expect to see a crowd peering up expectantly at an insurance building. The object of their fascination: a clock called the Ankeruhr.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Jugendstil mechanical clock built in 1914<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>12 historical figures rotate slowly around the front<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Be there at midday (the figures do a complete turn)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Book a short <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiqets.com\/en\/vienna-city-tours-l205280\/?partner=visitingvienna&amp;tq_campaign=LG_CityTours\" rel=\"sponsored\">guided tour<\/a>* in Vienna<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>See also:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/footsteps\/ankerhaus\/\">Ankerhaus<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/footsteps\/joseph-haydn\/\">Haydn location guide<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sightseeing\/\" data-type=\"page\" data-id=\"1632\">Sightseeing overview<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">History of the clock<\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/anchorclock.jpg\" alt=\"Anchor clock from Hoher Markt square\" class=\"wp-image-43532\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/anchorclock.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/anchorclock-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(The installation links two buildings)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Ankeruhr is another creation that falls into that turbulent period of Austrian history when modernism, imperial tradition, and the approaching chaos of war all collided.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Anker Insurance Company (now Helvetia) built this beautiful <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/culture\/jugendstil\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"31716\">Jugendstil<\/a> clock in 1914 as part of the expansion of their headquarters. The installation represents one of several <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sights\/jugendstil-centre\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"34058\">excellent examples<\/a> of that design era in the nearby area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Anker commissioned the work as a contribution to the city&#8217;s art and culture, but also as a subliminal reminder of the importance of life insurance; the clock contains various allegorical motifs representing the inevitable passing of time and the transience of human existence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You have, for example, figures representing Life and Death (with his obligatory hourglass) flanking the sun motif above the centre.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/ankeruhr.jpg\" alt=\"The Ankeruhr\" class=\"wp-image-43533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/ankeruhr.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/ankeruhr-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(Empress Maria Theresa is doing her turn)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The whole installation rests on the heads of Adam, Eve, an angel and the devil. The clock itself has a basilisk underneath, though that symbolism escapes me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The painter and sculptor, Franz Matsch, designed the clock at the height of his fame (he was once a close associate of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/footsteps\/gustav-klimt\/\">Gustav Klimt<\/a>), including the mechanical elements that drive it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But people don&#8217;t collect there just to admire the art and architecture. A set of 12 personalities from Vienna&#8217;s past rotates slowly around the minute display, ensuring a new figure appears each hour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The big excitement and the biggest crowds come at midday, when all twelve Ankeruhr figures go through a complete bonus rotation with musical accompaniment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div align=\"center\"><em>Ad:<\/em><br><\/div><div data-tiqets-widget=\"discovery\" data-cards-layout=\"horizontal\" data-slug-ids=\"exp206741,exp238032\" data-partner=\"visitingvienna\" data-tq-campaign=\"DA_ConcTour\"><\/div><script defer src=\"https:\/\/widgets.tiqets.com\/loader.js\"><\/script>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:25px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Who are the Ankeruhr figures?<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/ankeruhrfigures.jpg\" alt=\"List of Ankeruhr figures\" class=\"wp-image-43534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/ankeruhrfigures.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/ankeruhrfigures-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(The roll of honour)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A plaque next to the clock reveals the identities of these rotating coloured copper figures, who represent a journey through Austrian history. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/footsteps\/joseph-haydn\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"6566\">Joseph Haydn<\/a>: the famous composer. He turns up between 12 and 1, then subsequent hours reveal&#8230;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Roman Emperor, <em>Marcus Aurelius<\/em>: stayed in Vienna (known then as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/culture\/vindobona\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"32729\">Vindobona<\/a>). Look for the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sights\/museums\/roman-museum\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"35392\">Roman museum<\/a> diagonally opposite the clock and go one block west to find Marc-Aurel-Stra\u00dfe <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Charlemagne<\/em>: incorporated &#8220;Austria&#8221; into the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/culture\/holy-roman-empire\/\">Holy Roman Empire<\/a> around AD800. Visit the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sights\/museums\/schatzkammer\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"256\">Schatzkammer<\/a> to see several items that likely belonged to this major historical figure<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Leopold VI<\/em> and his spouse <em>Theodora Angelina<\/em>: Leopold awarded Vienna its city charter in 1221<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Walther von der Vogelweide: famous travelling singer of Leopold&#8217;s time<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Rudolf von Habsburg<\/em> and his spouse <em>Gertrud von Hohenberg<\/em> (I think): Rudolf was the first <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/culture\/habsburgs\/\">Habsburg ruler<\/a> of &#8220;Austria&#8221;, <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"338\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/ankeruhr1920.jpg\" alt=\"The Ankeruhr in 1920\" class=\"wp-image-71320\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/ankeruhr1920.jpg 338w, https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/ankeruhr1920-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 338px) 100vw, 338px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size\">(The Ankeruhr with its crowd of onlookers somewhere around 1920-1930, as photographed by Martin Gerlach jun.; Wien Museum Inv.-Nr. 226599; excerpt reproduced with permission under the terms of the CC0 licence)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Hans Puchsbaum<\/em>: 15th-century architect and master builder closely associated with Vienna&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sights\/stefansdom\/\">Stephansdom cathedral<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Emperor <em>Maximilian I<\/em>: one of the &#8220;great&#8221; emperors, a significant player in the expansion of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/culture\/habsburg-monarchy-introduction\/\">Habsburg monarchy<\/a> in the early 16th century, and a strong supporter of the arts<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Johann Andreas von Liebenberg<\/em>: mayor of Vienna at the time of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/culture\/the-1683-siege-of-vienna\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"29264\">Turkish siege<\/a> of 1683. He has his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sights\/liebenberg-monument\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"60009\">own monument<\/a> elsewhere<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Ernst R\u00fcdiger von Starhemberg<\/em>: led the defence of the city at that 1683 siege<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/culture\/prince-eugene-savoy\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"58031\">Prince Eugene of Savoy<\/a>: military genius, saviour of various Habsburg causes, and builder of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sightseeing\/vienna-museums\/belvedere\/\">Belvedere<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/mapsgeography\/schloss-hof\/\">Schloss Hof<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Maria Theresa<\/em> and her spouse Franz Stephan: Maria Theresa was another of the more notable rulers during Habsburg times and also has her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/footsteps\/maria-theresa-monument\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"6483\">own monument<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to get to the Ankeruhr<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The clock lies very close to the central square dominated by the cathedral. And close to one of my favourite ice cream parlours: Zanoni &amp; Zanoni at Lugeck 7.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Hoher Markt itself has a long history that dates all the way back to Roman times (as noted above, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/sights\/museums\/roman-museum\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"35392\">Roman Museum<\/a> is on the same square), but today&#8217;s view seems rather modern for Vienna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Blame extensive bomb damage in WWII for the disparity. See the rubble for yourself in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/songsfilms\/third-man-locations\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"31222\">final scenes<\/a> of <em>The Third Man<\/em> (when Holly Martins waits for Harry Lime in a caf\u00e9 on the square).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Subway: Take the U3 or U1 to Stephansplatz and walk down<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bus: Take the 2A to Rotenturmstra\u00dfe or the 1A or 3A to Hoher Markt<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Address: Hoher Markt 10-11 | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.helvetia.com\/at\/web\/de\/ueber-helvetia\/helvetia-oesterreich\/ankeruhr.html\">Website<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div align=\"center\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/d\/u\/0\/embed?mid=1-Mx0GGh_eaBN7CtWtZ9_VJZRRGDzy14i\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you wander up the Hoher Markt street in Vienna&#8217;s centre at the top of the hour, expect to see a crowd peering up expectantly at an insurance building. The object of their fascination: a clock called the Ankeruhr. History of the clock (The installation links two buildings) The Ankeruhr is another creation that falls [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6417,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-6414","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sights","8":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6414","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6414"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6414\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":86646,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6414\/revisions\/86646"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6417"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6414"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6414"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.visitingvienna.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6414"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}