At the Culture Quarter, you can see the beautiful Hjo Clock, constructed by Harald Larsson from 1945 to 1950. The Hjo Clock is a calendar clock that displays true solar time, time equation, days of the week, calendar, world time, civil time, and an astronomical dial.
About clockmaker Harald Larsson
Harald Larsson (1888-1955) moved to Hjo with his parents at the age of six. Completely self-taught, Harald eventually started designing and building, primarily wall clocks in his spare time, but eventually, he also created the famous calendar clock. The idea came to Harald during a visit to Lund Cathedral, where he saw the Lund Clock. However, that clock was built in the medieval era when it was believed that the Earth was the center of the universe.
In 1945, when Harald began constructing his calendar clock, this notion had been entirely revised. Thus, Harald had to think in entirely different terms and consequently studied astronomy.
The clock was completed in 1950
The clock was entirely finished in 1950 after five years of painstaking work, with all time calculations made based on Hjo's horizon. Harald was living in the property at Regeringsgatan 10, and the clock was housed at home in the residence for interested visitors from near and far.
The calender clock inte the culture quarter
The Hjo Clock was eventually donated to the Västergötland Museum. In 1998, the museum deposited the clock with the Hjo Local Heritage Society. Since 2016, the calendar clock has been housed in the Culture Quarter Pedagogien, and the Hjo Local Heritage Society was responsible for the clock for many years. Today, Hjo Municipality borrows the clock through an agreement with the Västergötland Museum. The Hjo Clock chimes four times an hour, every quarter.
