Corpus Clock, Cambridge, UK — Visitor Guide & Things to Do Nearby

The Corpus Clock is one of the most unusual timepieces in the world, mounted on the front of Corpus Christi College in Cambridge. Unveiled by Stephen Hawking on September 19, 2008, it cost over 1 million pounds and took five years to develop.

The clock was designed and funded by Dr. John C. Taylor, a Trinity College alumnus and inventor. Taylor is also the man who perfected the electric kettle thermostat, a device found in virtually every British kitchen.

The clock's most striking feature is the Chronophage, a mechanical insect-like creature perched on top of the dial that appears to "eat" time. Its jaw snaps shut once per second, and its expression shifts between triumph and menace. The name comes from the Greek "chronos" (time) and "phage" (eater).

The clock face itself has no hands or numbers. Instead, LED lights running around the edge of the gold-plated dial indicate hours, minutes, and seconds in a pattern that takes some study to read. The clock is deliberately accurate only every five minutes, with the intervening time speeding up and slowing down, a reminder that our experience of time is rarely constant.

Building the clock involved over 200 specialists, including engineers, sculptors, scientists, and jewellers. The Chronophage was sculpted by Matthew Sanderson.

The clock is free to view from the street at any time. If you're on a Questo quest through Cambridge, the Corpus Clock is a stop where the science of timekeeping meets the art of making you think about what time actually means.