THE BELL OF HOURS
It is known that people from Milan are early risers and that their working day ends very late. Azzone Visconti, who was the Lord of Milan in 1336, built the elegant octagonal bell tower of San Gottardo to mark the so precious time for his citizens. It is however on the bell tower of the Dominican church of S. Eustorgio, of beautiful Romanesque forms, that the first mechanical public clock of Milan, and also Italy, appears in 1306.

CLOCK TOWER IN PADUA
The Astronomical Clock was very ancient, attributed to Giovanni Dondi, the maker of the Astrarium of the "Leonardo da Vinci" Museum of Milan. Repeatedly damaged, it was rebuilt in 1436 by Matteo Novello and Gian Pietro delle Caldiere.The beautiful Zodiac is realized with the Zodiac signs in relief, golden on a blue background. Also in this tower there is the bell (XVIII century), which beats the hours and the stroke.

VENICE - THE CLOCK TOWER
It is in Piazza San Marco, and it was built between 1496 and 1499. A large clock is inserted; it is very decorative and the blue dial is crowned by the golden zodiac signs. It marks the time, the day, the moon phases and the position of the sun in the Zodiac. It is a work of Giancarlo Ranieri. It is however known as the Clock of the two Moors. In fact, above the tower two large statues, of excellent workmanship, represent two Herculean men dressed only in a short goat skin, and they beat a large bell with a long hammer. The popular name “Moors” comes from the brown patina metal. First beat one, then the other so that the chime is repeated.

LONDON-THE BIG BEN
It is the main bell of the Clock Tower of the Palace of Westminster in neo-Gothic style, now subjected to a long restoration. The clock is equipped with a pendulum mechanism and it was designed in 1856 by George Biddell Airy, a real astronomer, and by E. Beckett Denison.