The Astronomical Clock is located on the side of the Town Hall Tower. It is very ornate and dates back to the 15th century. Every hour on the hour a door opens and Christ and his disciples march out of the clock. The clock chimes with the death tolls from the skeleton of death. Below the clock there are the 12 signs of the zodiac.

As you can imagine the crowds gather round the clock all day, but as the hour strikes there are twice as many people. I personally found the hour display rather disappointing, but found the details of the clock and indeed the entire tower totally fascinating.

When I visited Prague in July 2002, my friends and I made sure that we visited the Astronomical Clock (Orloj) that is part of the Radnice, or town hall, of Prague's Staromestske Namestie. The clock was added to the Radnice in 1410 and was made by the master clockmaker Mikulas of Kadane. The design was improved upon in 1490 by a Master Hanus, who gave the Orloj its present-day looks and mechanics. Legend has it that Hanus was blinded in order for him not to reproduce the Orloj anywhere else in Europe.

It was about 1:45pm when my friends and I arrived in Old Town Square and arrived at the Orloj. We didn't wander far because we wanted to have a good vantage point to see the clock do its magic at 2pm. So we looked around Old Town Square and then got a spot near the front of the crowd that was gathered in front of the Orloj.

Finally, after what seemed like a long wait, the clock struck 2pm and did its magic. Death rang its bell and turned its hourglass, and then the 12 apostles came around with objects that represent them (for example, Paul with a sword and book and Thomas with a lance). Beside the clock are four figures that represent the troubles that Prague went through during the 15th century. They are Vanity, Greed, Death, and Pagan Invasion. After World War II, the Greed figurine was altered, since at first, it represented a Jewish moneylender and was considered politically incorrect after the war, in which most of Prague's Jewish population perished in the Nazi death camps.

The striking of the hour of the Orloj only lasted about 1 minute, and I stood there for a minute wondering, "Is that it?" I thought it would be a long and big ceremony, but I was disappointed that this magic only lasted a short time. However, I took several beautiful photos of the Orloj, and one of them is enlarged and framed on my table near my bed.

It is free to see the clock do its magic, but for a 30 ck fee, you can go inside and tour the Old Town Hall and tower. It is a brief but shining moment during your visit to Prague.