The Oscura door and the Clock Tower

The oldest city's door, where you can find the astronomical clock from 1596, among the most ancient in Europe.

One of the most important tower in Trapani, where you can admire the still-working astronomical clock which is one of the most ancient in Europe.

Trapani was marked, already in the Carthaginian era,  by the presence of four tower and four doors which are visible still nowadays on a very symbol of the city. The Old tower, the tower of theLand Castle, Pali Tower, and the Tower of the Clock. It was during the Punic Battles that Amilcare Barca made a fifth door were built up. It was that of La Colombaia, also called the Sea Castle. The four main doors were on the boundary walls and that under the Clock tower is the most ancient and the only one which remains nowadays. It opens on Via Torrearsa the historical centre of the city and leaves at its back two old popular quarters: Casalicchio e the Middle quarter. On the top of the tower there is an astronomical clock by the Trapanese master Giuseppe Mennella (1596). It includes an almanac and a sun-dial. The big hole in the very centre of the almanac stands for our planet, the earth. Both the dials are round and they have been add with lead hand made pickings and surrounded with a light blue stone which stands for the sky. On the sun dial, a hour-hand with its fleur-de-lis shaped end, marks 24 hours, while another hand points the seeming motion of the sun itself around the  zodiac symbols. It points even equinoxes and solstices, besides cardinal points.You could easily notice the Ram corresponding with spring equinox, the Scales with autumn equinox, the Crab with summer soltice and the Capricorn with winter solstice..
The moon dial points counterclockwise the lunar cycle and a second hand points the 29 days, 44 minutes and 3 second which the moon needs for its circle. On the dial are visible four main lunar phases: new moon, waxing moon, full-moon and waning moon.