Saudi Arabia unveils world’s largest clock
By DPA, IANSMonday, August 2, 2010
RIYADH - Saudi Arabia is ready to begin operating the world’s largest four-faced clock, in Makkah, Islam’s holiest city, Saudi state news agency reported Monday.
The tower, designed by German and Swiss engineers, will be over 600 metres high, six times the height of London’s Big Ben.
The front portion of the clock is decorated with glass mosaic, and is made of carbon fibre, a highly-resilient material used in aerospace and other technologies.
The clock tower is part of Abraj al-Bait hotel and residential complex, built by the Saudi Bin Laden construction group.
The two main faces of the clock are 43 metres squared each, with the other two faces measuring 43 by 33 metres.
Visitors will be able to stand in a terrace beneath the clock to take in views of the city.
The clock will officially start running in mid-August to mark the first day of Ramadan, a month of fasting from sunrise to sunset for Muslims around the world.
