Clock in the Central Children’s Store
The Russian clockwork movement Raketa in the Central Children’s Store is the largest in the world! It weighs 4,5 tons, and has a size of 6 by 7 metres, and consists of over 5,000 pieces made of steel, aluminum and titanium and covered with gold.
Although some clocks, such as Big Ben in London, look bigger than the one in the Central Children’s Store in Moscow, it is not not the case for their movements, as the large dial of Big Ben hides a movement which is much smaller than the one on Lubyanka, Moscow.
Top-5 Worldwide Monumental Clocks
One of Moscow's sightseeing landmarks, Raketa clock in the Central Children’s Store on Lubyanka ranks in the Top 5 world's largest monumental clocks, alongside Big Ben, Kremlin Chimes, Prague Astronomical Clock and the Clock in Guangzhou.
St. Petersburg's first sundial
In 1723, Peter the Great, who was passionate about sundials, had one built in front of his Monplaisir Palace. This was the first sundial of Saint Petersburg and its suburbs. After two centuries of measuring time of Russia's history, the timepiece ended up being destroyed by World War II.
The Petrodvorets Watch Factory and the Peterhof Museum decided to reconstruct a historical monument that was erected here by their common founder, Emperor Peter the Great.
Reconstruction of the sundial
Its joint restoration by the Peterhof Museum and Raketa Watch Factory is a beautiful example of a 300-year-long cooperation.
The sundial is made of stone, making a symbolic link between the lapidary and the watchmaking periods of the Factory's history.
"May this restored sundial start measuring time of the modern Russian history anew," minister Denis Manturov wrote in his congratulatory address.
The reconstruction was supported by TotalEnergies Marketing Russia LLC.
Restoration of the Clock
Raketa Watch Factory experts help the French Horloge Notre-Dame association to restore the giant clock of the Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral destroyed by fire.
The watchmakers of Horloge Notre-Dame have committed to reconstructing the Clock, however, the manufacturing know-how for such huge timepieces has been lost in France. Raketa specialists immediately joined the association to offer their contribution to this noble cause. Raketa engineers have already started studying the design of the Notre Dame clock movement to figure out which parts could be developed at the St. Petersburg Raketa Watch Factory.
Soul of the Cathedral
The Notre-Dame Clock is much more than just an antique timepiece. “It is the soul of the cathedral, a living mechanism whose parts had been moving tirelessly, counting time through the ages. The clock must definitely be reconstructed!”, Raketa specialists say.
The Raketa watchmakers pride themselves on helping France to restore a part of the world's historical heritage. Their French colleagues, in turn, say they are grateful to the Raketa team for their commitment to this great cause.
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