R J Evans once again presents us with an intriguing and inciteful tour of unique and bizarre timepieces and clocks around the globe.

The term astronomical clock is one that is used fairly loosely. Effectively any clock that shows astronomical information – as well as the time – can be so classified. They can show the location of the sun in the sky, for example. In addition to that they can show the position of the moon – and further information such as its phase and its age. Others go further and show the current sign of the zodiac or even go as far as showing a rotating map of the stars. We will begin with perhaps the most famous example, the Orloj of Prague. Read more about astronomical clocks