Great Clock of Lima
![]() 1872 photograph by Eugenio Courret | |
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12°3′50.65″S 77°2′17.88″W / 12.0640694°S 77.0383000°W | |
Location | Lima, Lima, Peru |
---|---|
Designer | Pedro Ruiz Gallo |
Type | Clock |
Opening date | December 6, 1870 |
The Great Clock of Lima (Spanish: Gran Reloj de Lima),[1] also known as the Pedro Ruiz Gallo clock (Spanish: Reloj de Pedro Ruiz Gallo) after its inventor, was a monumental clock created by Pedro Ruiz Gallo, and which was installed in the Parque de la Exposición in 1870 for the celebration of the Exhibition of 1872. The watch disappeared during the occupation of Lima by the Chilean Army in the War of the Pacific.[2]
History
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Laguna_parque_expolima.jpg/220px-Laguna_parque_expolima.jpg)
After the Spanish-South American War, colonel and inventor Pedro Ruiz Gallo was able to dedicate himself entirely to the ambitious project of building a great clock for the Peruvian capital, which he achieved under the patronage of then-President José Balta, who appointed him attached to the General Staff and financed his work. To carry out the mechanism, he obtained a budget of S/.31,000 from the Peruvian State, to which he added some S/.10,000 from his own pocket.[1][3]
Despite the opposition and criticism that his work received, after 6 years of work he was able to inaugurate his mechanical work on December 6, 1870, at 00:00, a few days before the anniversary of the Battle of Ayacucho was celebrated, before the admiration of the public gathered in the gardens in front of the Palacio de la Exposición.[3][4][5][6]
The clock was one of the main attractions of the
Theories about its destruction
The clock was exposed in the park for about 10 years. During the
Another theory suggests that the clock was not transferred to Chile, but that its machinery was destroyed by the victorious army and its structure used as a home for the officers of the troops stationed in the Parque de la Exposición. Once the troops withdrew, they reduced the invention to ashes.[1][3]
See also
References
- ^ La República. 2019-04-24.
- ^ ISBN 9972401499.
- ^ a b c Pino, David (2014-06-06). "El Reloj de la Exposición". Lima La Única.
- ^ Vértiz Cabrejos, Roberto; Telenta de Vértiz, Elizabeth (1994). Pedro Ruiz Gallo: una vida consagrada al servicio del Perú (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Lima: Concytec.
- ^ .
- ^ ISBN 978-612-306-353-5.
- ^ Contreras, Carlos; Cueto, Marcos (2016). "Era del guano. El estado caudillista y la intelectualidad liberal (1845-1879)". Historia del Perú republicano (in Spanish). Lima: Editorial Septiembre. p. 23.