Jacquemart (bellstriker)

Last updated
Jacquemart of the Collegiate Church of Saint Pierre in Leuven, Belgium JacquemartCollegialeSaintPierreLouvain.JPG
Jacquemart of the Collegiate Church of Saint Pierre in Leuven, Belgium
The Benfeld, France, jacquemart Benfeld 10.jpg
The Benfeld, France, jacquemart

A jacquemart (sometimes jaquemart and also called a quarter-jack) is an automaton, an animated, mechanised figure of a person, usually made from wood or metal, which strikes the hours on a bell with a hammer. Jacquemarts are usually part of clocks or clocktowers, and are often near or at the top of the construction. The figurine is also known as Jack of the Clock or Jack o'Clock.

Contents

One of the oldest and best-known jacquemarts is found on the south tower of the cathedral Church of Notre Dame of Dijon: it was installed by Philippe II of Burgundy in 1383. Other well-known historic jacquemarts are found on top of the Zytglogge [1] tower in Bern, Switzerland and the Moors on the Torre dell'Orlogio di San Marco in Venice, Italy.

The word is originally French but is sometimes used in English as well. The origin of the word is disputed, but one theory relates it to a tool called a 'jacke', used by the craftsmen building church towers, the steeplejacks.

In the South-West, the only existing one is that of Lavaur, located at the top of the bell tower of the Saint-Alain cathedral. Legend has it that during the wars of religion a Protestant prisoner was locked up in the bell tower and had to ring the bells every hour. He built a mechanism to do it for him. [2]

Notable jacquemart figures

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clock tower</span> Architectural structure housing a clock

Clock towers are a specific type of structure that house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another building. Some other buildings also have clock faces on their exterior but these structures serve other main functions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Astronomical clock</span> Clock with special mechanisms and dials to display astronomical information

An astronomical clock, horologium, or orloj is a clock with special mechanisms and dials to display astronomical information, such as the relative positions of the Sun, Moon, zodiacal constellations, and sometimes major planets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zytglogge</span> Medieval tower in Bern, Switzerland

The Zytglogge is a landmark medieval tower in Bern, Switzerland. Built in the early 13th century, it has served the city as a guard tower, prison, clock tower, centre of urban life and civic memorial.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Striking clock</span> Clock that sounds the time with a bell or gong

A striking clock is a clock that sounds the hours audibly on a bell, gong, or other audible device. In 12-hour striking, used most commonly in striking clocks today, the clock strikes once at 1:00 am, twice at 2:00 am, continuing in this way up to twelve times at 12:00 mid-day, then starts again, striking once at 1:00 pm, twice at 2:00 pm, and the pattern continues up to twelve times at 12:00 midnight.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bourges Cathedral</span> Cathedral in Bourges, Cher, France

Bourges Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church located in Bourges, France. The cathedral is dedicated to Saint Stephen and is the seat of the Archbishop of Bourges. Built atop an earlier Romanesque church from 1195 until 1230, it is largely in the High Gothic or Classic Gothic architectural style and was constructed at about the same time as Chartres Cathedral. The cathedral is particularly known for the great size and unity of its interior, the sculptural decoration of its portals, and the large collection of 13th century stained glass windows. Owing to its quintessential Gothic architecture, the cathedral was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Briggate</span> Shopping street in Leeds, England

Briggate is a pedestrianised principal shopping street in Leeds city centre, England. Historically it was the main street, leading north from Leeds Bridge, and housed markets, merchant's houses and other business premises. It contains many historic buildings, including the oldest in the city, and others from the 19th and early-20th century, including two theatres. It is noted for the yards between some older buildings with alleyways giving access and Victorian shopping arcades, which were restored in late 20th century. The street was pedestrianised in the late-20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lavaur Cathedral</span>

Lavaur Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church and former cathedral located in the town of Lavaur, Tarn, France. The cathedral is a national monument since 1911.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christoffelturm</span> Former tower (1346–1865) in Bern, Switzerland

The Christoffelturm was a tower built between the years 1344 and 1346, which featured a prominently displayed statue of Saint Christopher. It was located in the old part of the Swiss city of Bern, in the upper section of Spitalgasse, near Holy Spirit Church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leeds Minster</span> Church in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England

Leeds Minster, also known as the Minster and Parish Church of Saint Peter-at-Leeds is the minster church of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It stands on the site of the oldest church in the city and is of architectural and liturgical significance. A church is recorded on the site as early as the 7th century, although the present structure is a Gothic Revival one, designed by Robert Dennis Chantrell and completed in 1841. It is dedicated to Saint Peter and was the Parish Church of Leeds before receiving the honorific title of "Minster" in 2012. It has been designated a Grade I listed building by Historic England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old City (Bern)</span> Medieval city center of Bern

The Old City is the medieval city center of Bern, Switzerland. Built on a narrow hill bordered on three sides by the river Aare, its compact layout has remained essentially unchanged since its construction during the twelfth to the fifteenth century. Despite a major fire in 1405, after which much of the city was rebuilt in sandstone, and substantial construction efforts in the eighteenth century, Bern's old city has retained its medieval character.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kaspar Brunner</span>

Kaspar Brunner was a Swiss mechanic best known for his construction of the clockwork of the Zytglogge, Bern's medieval clock-tower, in 1527–1530.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zähringerstadt</span>

The Zähringerstadt is a historic section in the Old City of Bern in Bern, Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Käfigturm</span> Historic site in Old City of Bern

The Käfigturm is a Baroque tower in Bern, Switzerland. It is part of the UNESCO Cultural World Heritage Site of the Old City of Bern and the tower is a Cultural Property of National Significance. The original tower was built as a gate house during the second expansion of Bern in 1256. The tower was demolished in 1640 and completely rebuilt immediately thereafter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of Notre-Dame of Dijon</span> Roman Catholic church in Dijon, France

The Church of Notre-Dame of Dijon is a Roman Catholic church in Dijon. Considered a masterpiece of 13th-century Gothic architecture, it is situated at the heart of the preserved old centre of the city. It is located in Place Notre-Dame, near the Palace of the Dukes of Burgundy and opposite the rue Musette.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lund astronomical clock</span> 15th-century astronomical clock in Lund Cathedral

Lund astronomical clock, occasionally and at least since the 16th century referred to as Horologium mirabile Lundense, is a 15th-century astronomical clock in Lund Cathedral. Mentioned in written sources for the first time in 1442, it was probably made and installed sometime around 1423–1425, possibly by Nikolaus Lilienfeld. It is part of a group of related medieval astronomical clocks found in the area around the south Baltic Sea. In 1837 the clock was dismantled. Between 1909 and 1923, it was restored by the Danish clockmaker Julius Bertram-Larsen and the Swedish architect responsible for the upkeep of the cathedral, Theodor Wåhlin. From the old clock, the face of the clock as well as the mechanism, which was largely replaced during the 18th century, was salvaged and re-used. The casing, most parts of the calendar which occupies the lower part, and the middle section were made anew.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norwich Cathedral astronomical clock</span> Historical clock in England

The 14th-century Norwich Cathedral astronomical clock was the earliest example of a large clock with automata in England, and the first to possess an astronomical dial. It replaced an earlier 13th-century "old clock", one of the earliest weight-driven mechanical timekeepers made in England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Wormald Appleyard</span>

John Wormald Appleyard was a British sculptor and monumental mason based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Torre dell'Orologio, Brescia</span> Building in Brescia, Italy

The Torre dell'Orologio is a 16th-century building located in the Piazza della Loggia in Brescia, northern Italy.

References

  1. Marti, Markus (2005). 600 Jahre Zytglogge Bern - Eine kleine Chronik der Zeitmessung. Bern: Staempfli. p. 48. 3-7272-1180-6.
  2. "Lavaur, cité d'histoire". tourisme-tarnagout.com. Archived from the original on 24 March 2023. Retrieved 19 April 2021..
  3. Historic England. "Thornton's Arcade (1255837)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 28 February 2019.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Jacquemarts at Wikimedia Commons