This clock on the House of Congress in Plaza Murillo (La Paz, Bolivia) runs anticlockwise! It's the "Clock of the South" and is inspired by the fact the shadows of sundials in the Southern hemisphere move anti-clockwise, unlike their Nothern hemisphere counterparts.

This clock in Corpus Christi college, Cambridge shows exactly the right time once every five minutes. The rest of the time, the seconds run unevenly, representing life's irregularity. It was unveiled by Stephen Hawking and somehow made Time's list of best inventions in 2008.

This clock in Brussels just looks super cool. Rays connect each hour to a statue, ranging from symbols like the tam-tam player representing Brussels' musical history, to historical figures like Emperor Charles V. The clock is also a functioning Carillon!

This clock in Covent Garden, London doesn't work any more, but back in the day water would tip down the building, causing bells to chime, little green figures to tip their watering cans, and passers by to be drenched by the little green man.

The hourly display of this epic clock tower in the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh aims to commemorate the last 1000 years – though seems to focus on the past 100 years (I haven't quite figured this out). Grotesque and skeletal figures perform disturbingly mechanical motions, supposedly representing communism and the human suffering it entailed, all to the dramatic organ soundtrack of Bach's organ concerto in A minor.

This iconic clock in Prague is one of the most famous clocks in the world and attracts throngs of tourists. On the hour, windows open to reveal a rotating display of the Twelve Apostles, while a personification of Death strikes the time. Built in 1410, it's one of the oldest clocks in the world that is still in operation.

The Liberty Clock is housed in a beautiful Tudor revival archway near the Liberty Department Store in Soho, London. Above the clock, you'll see Saint George chase his dragon every 15 minutes. On the hour, he finally manages to catch up with the dragon!

The Royal Clock in the Queen Victoria Building in Sydney comes to life each hour with a trumpet voluntary performed by miniature trumpeters who pop up from the clock's turrets. Then, six scenes of British royal history are revealed, including King Harold's death at the Battle of Hastings and the beheading of Charles I.

This incredible combination of four clocks, a fountain and a carillon stands in Hornsby, Sydney. The mechanisms of these clocks are a Greek clepsydra clock, a Chinese water wheel clock, a Swiss pendulum clock, and a pontoon rotation clock. The 17 tubes of the carrilon chime on the hour.

The Indiana Steam Clock sits outside the Indiana State Museum in Indianapolis. Apparently clocks that are powered by steam are super rare and this is one of only three or four steam clocks known in the world. The clock is famous for its whistled rendition of "Back Home Again in Indiana".

Normal clocks have a second hand that rotates round the clock. This clock on MIT's campus has a clock face that rotates while the second hand stays put. It's an art instalment created in 2019 and it "questions the basis of systems that index and quantify time, addressing the human-made bureaucracies that maintain their global standardization".

 Just across the road from the bombed-out Christchurch Greyfriars in London, the Newgate Street Clock has a "wandering" hour marker. Each hour "rises" and "sets", pointing to the correct minute marker. The clock has a super modern feel, but the "wandering hour" design comes from the mid-17th century.

The Colgate Clock in Jersey City is so huge that you can tell the time from Manhattan. It's the eighth largest clock face in the world with a diameter of 15.2m.

This clock on the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Tower overlooks Madison Square in Manhattan. At 8m in diameter, it's the 26th largest clock face in the world. It's also the fourth tallest clock tower in the world. Built in 1912, its mechanism was controlled by electricity, which was a novelty at the time. The "master clock" from which it was controlled also controlled a hundred other clocks in the area.

Big is even in the name! Big Ben isn't as big as you might think, though. It's "only" 7m in diameter, making it the 35th largest clock face in the world. When it was built in 1859, it was the third largest, after the Torrazzo of Cremona and St. Peter, Zurich.

This clock in Garema Pl, Canberra is about as minimalist as you can get. At least, I think it's a clock...

You'd be forgiven for missing this clock in King's College, Cambridge. It's an octagonal clock tower, with four of its eight sides containing clock faces. But the clock sides look extremely similar to the non-clock sides.

You have to be very well-attuned to spot this clock at the side of Charing Cross station in London! Or at least, to recognize it as a clock rather than a vaguely train-flavoured art installation.

Spot the tiny clock sitting between 1717 and 1967 and marking 250 years of the United Grand Lodge of England, which is the joint oldest Masonic lodge in the world and is the governing lodge for most freemasons in England and Wales.

This tiny clock in Place de la Bourse in Brussels is extremely easy to miss! I can't find anything about it or the building it's on.

This train-themed clock overlooks Hakiaha St in Taumarunui, New Zealand. From Taumarunui, you can ride rail carts along abandoned train tracks through rolling green hills.

Would you even be an eye hospital if your clock wasn't shaped like an eye? This clock belongs to Moorfields Eye Hospital in London.

This clock won't leave you in any doubt that you're on the London Underground, with the distinctive roundel marking each hour. These clocks, as well as tiles depicting the same roundel, adorn the platforms of Gants Hill Station on the Central Line.

Right next to the base of the Oriental Pearl Tower in Shanghai, you can find a fun Disney-themed clock. It's quite a large clock tower and welcomes people to the largest Disney store in the world.

This Harry Potter store in the Flatiron District in Manhattan has a Harry-Potter themed clock guarded by its very own dragon. I'm not sure what the clock itself is supposed to represent but it fits the general vibe.

This clock finds its way into millions of tourists' photos, though most people don't pay much attention to the clock in the sea of eye candy that is Times Square. I love this clock at night, with its red and yellow lights to fit right in with the crazy lights of Times Square.

This 8.2m-wide clock on the Williamsburgh Savings Bank Tower in Fort Greene in Brooklyn grows bright red each night. The tower was the tallest building in Brooklyn for 80 years, from 1929 to 2009. Incredibly, 13 skyscrapers have pushed this tower into 14th place since 2009 – Brooklyn is developing fast!

The Clyde Clock in Glasgow is perched atop a pair of legs which are "running late". So fun! The clock used to chime once a day at 8pm – the perfect time to meet according to the artist George Wyllie – but (mysteriously?) stopped working when Wyllie died in 2012.

This squiggly clock in Providence, Rhode Island just looks so cool and funky. Don't overthink the name! In the words of the artist himself: "It's not supposed to be something you have to think too much about. It's supposed to be fun".

The Delacorte Clock greets you as you approach the Central Park Zoo in Manhattan. In my picture you'll see a penguin playing a drum, a kangaroo playing a horn, and an elephant playing an accordion. On the other side there's a hippo playing a violin, a goat playing a horn, and a bear playing a tambourine. Two chimpanzees strike a bell on the top. So fun! The clock plays music every half hour, selected from 44 pre-recorded songs.

Technically a flower clock has to have its clock face made of flowers. But this clock definitely has flower clock vibes – and also mad-hatter vibes. The clock was on the land of Birmingham Cathedral and the photo was taken in 2015. I have no idea what the significance of the clock was or how long it was there for.

I found this clock in Birmingham Coach Station many years ago, and it's probably not still there – I certainly can't find anything about it online. The perimeter of the clock is filled with the train stations you'd reach if traveling in that direction. And it's colourful!

I found this cool lit-up clock in Bratislava, Slovakia. As I was researching it to add it to the "clocks that light up at night" section I found it on Google Street View and discovered it's actually just the sign for a sushi chain.

Turns out clocks are useful not only for telling the time but also for checking what floor the lift is on at Grand Central Station in New York.

This absolutely gorgeous clock takes center stage on the Town Hall Tower in Krakow, Poland. There's a sun in the center with a little face, and a star and a moon sit on the end of each hand. My photo doesn't capture the full glory of this ornate design, but this photo I found on Wikimedia does!

A more modern take on the moon-and-star design can be found on a non-descript building on the corner of Oxford St and Center St in Berkeley. If you're rushing past, you might not notice these cute hands which turn the circular glass window into a clock.

St James's is one of the churches in London that boasts a full schedule of concerts. Rightly so as it's a wide church with great acoustics and a lovely organ. I love taking photos of organs almost as much as I love taking photos of clocks, so it's extra special to get both!

Grace Cathedral in San Francisco is the cathedral of the Episcopal Diocese of California. The clock is a tad underwhelming, but it's attached to an organ and sits below a spectacular stained glass window.

This church in Birmingham stands near the famous Bull Ring shopping center. It has two very different clock faces: one is large, ornate and predominantly white, and the other is smaller, simpler, and predominantly black.

St Leonard's (Shoreditch, London) is one of the church's referenced in the old children's nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons ("when I grow rich, say the bells of Shoreditch"). It has a large clock on its tower, but a smaller clock just above the main entrance.

St Mary's (Islington, London) was originally built in the twelfth century but has been rebuilt many times since, most recently after it was almost entirely bombed out in the Second World War. Its clock has two very distinct faces.

St Dunstan-in-the-West is another super old church, which just escaped the Great Fire of London in 1666 but was rebuilt in 1831-1832 when Fleet St was being rewidened. It's two clocks are extremely disctinct. The lower clock dates back to 1671 and was the oldest public clock in London to have a minute hand! The clock's bells are struck each quarter by the figures of two giants. It's a pretty famous clock, referenced in various literary works including Dickens' Barnaby Rudge.

There's a nice clock on the 18th Century Stiftskirche in Vienna. It's niceley juxtaposed against the clock outside the Böhnel watchmaker and jeweller.

The Independence Hall in Philadelphia has a nice clock on its clock tower, but also has a less conventional clock below with faded numerals and no minute hand. This clock is actually a replica of the very first clock that the Independence Hall had in 1753, made by Thomas Stretch.

Old St Mary's Cathedral was the first cathedral in California. It's a Roman Catholic "proto-cathedral", which apparently just means it used to be a cathedral but is no longer (since being superseded by "new" St. Mary's). It has two very distinct clock faces, one of which has the caption "Son, observe the time and fly from evil. Ecc.IV.23."

The clock on the left is the clock of the General Register House in Edinburgh. The clock in the centre is the clock of the Balmoral Hotel, Edinburgh. They're across the road from each other and I'm not sure how I managed to get a photo that makes them look like the same building.

So many clocks in one place! Only the top one is functional, but it's still fun to have so many clocks. These can be found at the amazing Powerhouse Museum in Sydney (or used to be... as of February 2024 the museum has been closed for rennovations).

The Queen of Time overlooks Oxford Street above a Selfridges store, surrounded by nymphs and standing aboard the Ship of Commerce.

Atlas holds not the world but a 4m-wide clock above the Tiffany & Co store on 5th Av in Manhattan. It was originally built in 1853 to make the façade of the shop at 550 Broadway less monotonous, and has been moved gradually further uptown to various different Tiffany & Co stores during its lifetime.

There's a little clock on top of the ticket office in Leicester Square, London. In 2020, a set of sculptures was installed to celebrate 100 years of British theatre, called Scenes in the Square, and the clock was joined by a depiction of the comedy duo Laurel and Hardy.

The exterior of St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican City has two clocks. According to Wikipedia, the left-hand clock shows "Rome Time" and the right-hand clock shows "European Mean Time". Unfortunately I don't know what the difference is. The right-hand clock has no minute hand and seems to show a time about half an hour later than the left-hand clock. The clocks are flanked by angels and set beside statues of Christ the Redeemer, St. John the Baptist and 11 Apostles.

A statue of Lady Justice with her scale and sword stands atop the cupola of Brooklyn's Borough Hall. The original statue of Justice – and the original clock – were destroyed in a fire in 1895. When the cupola was rebuilt, the statue was replaced by a flag until the new Lady Justice was finally installed in the 1980s.

Brussels Town Hall is absolutely spectacular. Most strikingly, it features almost 300 intricate statues. Most of the statues were crafted in the 19th century, though the Town Hall itself is from the 15th century. I don't know anything about the clock, though!

This magnificent clock dominates the transept of St Peter's Church in Leuven, Belgium. Spot the lil guy hitting the bell on the left – adorable! This was actually a 1998 addition. Lil guys striking bells are a recurring clock motif and are called Jacquemarts.

The Italian six-hour system was invented before the 24-hour system we know today. The day began shortly after twilight, and the following 24 hours were divided into 4 six-hour periods. These were popular from the 1400s to 1600s and many can be seen on old buildings in Italy today. This one is inside St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican City.

This truly stunning astronomical clock sits above the entrance of Bracken House on Cannon St in the City of London. The various concentric rings rotate so that the current time, day, month and star sign align with the marker at the top of the clock. Bizarrely, Winston Churchill's face sits in the centre.

Cockle Bay Wharf in Sydney has a large and aesthetically unique astronomical clock, which shows the constellations currently in the night sky and is bordered by 10 large metal balls. I can't find any information about the clock online – I'd love to know more about it!

This 14th century astronomical clock in St Mary's Church (Oterry St Mary) shows earth in the centre. The sun rotates around the outer circle to show the time, while the moon rotates around the inner circle to show the day, and rotates on its axis to show the phase of the moon.

Caledonian Park in North London used to be a cattle market. The rest of the market no longer exists but the imposing clock tower remains, surrounded by interesting signs about the market's history. The other remaining part of the market's legacy is found in South London: the bric a brac part of the market moved to Bermondsey, which is why Bermondsey Market is also known as New Caledonian Market.

The San Francisco ferry building has a nice clock with an inner circle surrounded by a concentric ring marking the numerals. But if you look closely, the inner circle also has numerals! What I love about this clock is that while the inner circle is inconspicuous by day, it's the only part that is lit up at night – I like to think of it as a 24-hour clock, marking the daylight hours on the outer numerals and the nighttime hours on the inner face.

So much to love about the Torre del Mangia in Siena, Italy. Firstly, although it's a very tall tower (the second tallest bell tower in Italy), the clock is uniquely positioned at the base of the tower. It's a secular building, and was built to be exactly the same height as Siena Cathedral to represent the balance of power between church and state. The tower was built in 1338-1348, and the clock was added in 1360, which by my reckoning makes it one of the oldest surviving mechanical clocks (when I google "oldest clock in the world", Google tells me it's the Salisbury Cathedral clock from 1386 – I'm sure there are all sorts of technicalities here).

An iconic feature of UC Berkeley's campus, the Sather Tower, also known as the Campanile, is the second tallest freestanding bell-and-clock tower in the world. This fact is a bit surprising to me –it honestly doesn't seem that tall, compared to some others in my collection! The tower houses an impressive and regularly used 61-bell carillon.

I love the deep blue and surrounding gold this clock in Goodenough College in London. The gold layer is confusing to me, though – it spaces 24 numerals around the 12-hour clock. How is that supposed to work? Do you set the mechanism to run at half speed when your continental colleagues are visiting?

This clock on Sorrento Cathedral's clock tower is so funky and fun! The exterior of the clock tower is from 1924, but the main doors date to the 11th century, while the base is from the Roman Empire.

This wacky Art Deco clock is attached to the Daily Telegraph Building on Fleet Street in London. The building was built in 1928, and the clock added in 1930. While googling to try and find out more about this clock I discovered this website which has weirdly similar vibes to my own.