Hour clock in Brno will be out of service for the first time, the reason is maintenance

Brno - The multifunctional clock machine in Freedom Square in Brno, also known as the Brno astronomical clock, is out of service for a week starting today. The reason is extensive professional maintenance, said magistrate spokesperson Soňa Haluzová today. According to her, this is the first major maintenance since 2010, when the machine started operating. The work will cost nearly 60,000 crowns.
    "The maintenance will be carried out by the restoration company Marston-CZ after five years of operation of the machine. Since the maintenance will be extensive, it will require the machine to be shut down," Haluzová stated. The work includes the conservation and polishing of the stone casing. "Routine maintenance, which is regularly provided by the Technical Services Brno, does not require the machine to be shut down," she added.
    The unique clock machine is 5.8 meters tall and 1.7 meters wide. It started operating on September 18, 2010, to commemorate the 365th anniversary of the city's resistance to the Swedish siege during the Thirty Years' War. "The casing of the object is made of black polished foreign granite of the highest quality. Every day at 11 o'clock, the clock machine releases a glass ball in the colors of the city of Brno, known as a glass ball," Haluzová added.
    The initiator of the project was the former mayor Roman Onderka (ČSSD). As early as 2007, the city announced a competition for the design of the clock machine. The clock was supposed to provide not only information about the time but also aesthetic quality and historical significance. The authors of the machine are Oldřich Rujbr and Petr Kameník, and the production cost 12 million crowns. The clock has sparked passionate debates. According to some, its modern design does not fit the city center, while others criticized the costs and the fact that the current time is not immediately apparent on the device.