The Tower of the Winds | Athens | Greece

Beneath the slopes of the Acropolis of Athens is what has been described as the most well-preserved monument in ancient Greece. This was an ancient clock tower, with working sundials precisely carved onto each of its eight sides, and is sometimes known as the Big Ben of the ancient world. Above the sundials, it is adorned with finely crafted representations of the eight gods of the wind, and the tower once displayed the direction of the wind. Even with all this on the outside of the tower, what was most impressive may have been what was inside. We will explore the theories around this advanced mechanism located within the tower, which was powered by water. This is James from History Victorum, join us as we explore the Tower of the Winds. The Tower of the Winds is a unique monument of the ancient world, and is an impressive technical achievement. It is the first known octagonal building, and was made almost entirely from marble. Its marble roof was completely self-supporting, with no wooden beams necessary, and still stands to this day. The tower was well known in ancient times, and was mentioned by writers such as Vitruvius and Varro. It was designed by the brilliant astronomer Andronikos, who was known for building a unique sundial on the island of Tinos, and he was praised for being able to successfully predict eclipses. The tower is located amidst the atmospheric ruins of what is called the Roman Agora, which was a sort of ancient marketplace. It once had a large square colonnade around an open space, along with other buildings. These arches were once part of the aqueduct that fed water to the tower, and also served as a monumental entrance to a nearby building. Most of these buildings were built after the Tower of the Winds, but remarkably this tower has outlasted them all, and still stands in its original position with very little modern alteration. The date of the tower is not known. The earliest mention of the tower that survives to us today was by the ancient writer Varro in 37 BC. Recent studies date the tower to the late 2nd century BC, in what is known as the Hellenistic period. Great scholars such as Archimedes of Syracuse lived during this time. It was a time of innovation and technology, and some advanced machinery was invented. Most of this is now lost and was forgotten during the Dark Ages, but some remnants survive. This tower served as a showcase for one of these advanced mechanisms, which was powered by water from a spring on the Acropolis. The tower is around 42 feet tall. The building was crafted with great skill, even its walls are impressively flat, and upon looking closely they are not smooth but have been grinded with a pointed chisel. This laborious process would allow more light to reflect off of the surface. The interior walls had decorative columns, and behind these are small slits in the wall, which allowed a small amount of light to shine through and added ventilation. The roof is made up of 24 monolithic triangular slabs, all of which are still in their original position. We can easily see these from inside of the tower, and on the top of the roof they were carved to appear similar to individual roof tiles. On the edge of the roof are water spouts in the shape of heads of lions. The remains of a column can be seen in the center, and we know from the ancient writer Vitruvius that there was once a statue of the sea god Triton on top, probably made from bronze, which served as a weathervane. It held a trident that pointed to one of the eight winds. Triton was a son of Poseidon, and Poseidon was god of the sea and also lord of the winds. The tower may have been modeled in part after one of the wonders of the world, the famous lighthouse of Alexandria. This also had an octagonal middle section, and like the tower of the winds, was also decorated with statues of tritons. The direction of the wind was more important in ancient times, especially to a seafaring people such as the Athenians. Different winds were often accompanied by different types of weather, and eight distinct winds had been identified by Aristotle back in the 4th century BC. The representations of the eight winds on the tower are the largest and most detailed found anywhere in antiquity. They are finely crafted in high relief, with various details representing warmer and cooler weather. The northern winds are shown wearing warm clothes and boots. This cool north wind, known as boreas, is shown wearing high boots and a long-sleeved cloak. He uses a shell as a horn, possibly to show the howling of the wind. This one nearby on the northeast side was feared for bringing violent storms. He is portrayed with a stern expression and is shown pouring out hailstones from a shield. Interestingly, another on the northwest side is shown pouring out hot coals, possibly due to the wildfires which can occur with this dry wind. The winds on the east and west sides are shown as more benevolent. The west wind, Zephyrus, often blows during springtime and is shown with spring flowers, which are held in the folds of his cloak. And the east wind is shown holding various fruits. The ones on the south side do not have quite as much warm clothing as the northern winds. This southern wind often brings storms in late summer and holds an overturned amphora which signifies the pouring of rain. The one adjacent on the southwest side is shown as a muscular athletic figure holding the rudder of a ship. This is possibly a reference to the shipwrecks that could be caused by this strong southern wind. Finally, this last wind on the southeast side is particularly well crafted, holding an intricately draped billowing cloak. The winds were once painted in various colors, and probably more detail would have been shown such as water pouring out of the amphora. The names of the winds are carved barely visible above each of the figures. Unlike many of the other ancient sculptures in Athens, these are still in their original position on the tower. The winds are one of the elements that help us to date the building. They can be compared stylistically with other sculptures from the time period, such as the famous Poseidon of Milos, which is now in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. This tower is more than an architectural and artistic showpiece. Even today, the building can be used for a practical purpose. Somewhat similar to the modern Big Ben in London, this was the ancient clock tower of Athens. The building has the largest vertical sundials known from the ancient world, and is the only one to have a sundial on eight different sides. Each of these originally had a bronze rod, called a gnomon, which would cast a shadow to indicate the time of day. These have been lost, but a hole remained to indicate where they were once located, and they have been replaced in modern times. A circular ball was added to make these more visible, but this did not exist in ancient times. The carved lines would have originally been painted so that they are more easily visible. The series of straight lines on the sundial represent the hours of the day. In antiquity, the hours were divided into twelve equal parts of daylight, and they were different lengths depending on the time of the year. The curved lines on the top and bottom represent the summer and winter solstice, which are the longest and shortest days of the year. This line in the center shows the spring and autumn equinoxes. Each of these sundials had to be carved very differently depending on the direction it faced. This sundial on the south side receives the most sunlight and has lines for all the hours of the day. The one to the right on the southeast side only has sunlight for the first four hours of the day, and the one on the southwest side only received sunlight for the last four hours. The building has the only known northern facing sundials from the ancient world. This sundial on the north side only received sunlight in the summer months, and even then only for a few hours each day. There was originally an additional ninth sundial on this semicircular extension to the tower, which was unusual and difficult to execute due to its shape. This part of the tower collapsed at some point, and only small traces of the sundial survive. This semicircular extension to the tower once held a water tank for the complex mechanism that was located within the tower itself, the remains of which are still visible on the floor. The tower could be accessed via two entrances, which partially survive. These porches may have had the only wooden beams in the building, which once supported a marble roof. The remains of one of these can be seen here. These two entrances were the only source of natural light for the building, which originally had no windows. Inside, various channels, holes, and markings can be seen on the floor. There was also a canal that allowed water to flow underneath the tower. The water source was from a spring on the north side of the Acropolis, and flowed down to the water tank in this semicircular extension from the tower. An outflow pipe would allow water to be stored at a constant level in the tank, which would allow for a consistent level of water pressure. It is known that the mechanism was surrounded by a railing in this circular area here, parts of which still survive, and the mechanism seems to have been viewable from all sides. We can see that water was led to this central hole, and also diverted to two other directions. In some reconstructions, the water was diverted for two water fountains with decorative statues, and in the center was the mechanism itself, which was protected by the railing on all sides. It is believed that these channels powered an ancient water clock, which could tell time at any point in the day without having to rely on the sun. Various types of water clocks existed at the time. These range from this simple timer, which was sometimes used in law courts, to others which were much more complex and were operated by a system of gears. The mechanism in the Tower of the Winds may have been a type called an anaphoric clock. These are described by Vitruvius. In this type of clock, a float would rise up in a tank, which is slowly filled up in a span of 24 hours. This would turn a large bronze disc in a slow rotation to indicate the time of day. This would also serve as a calendar, with a peg to show the day in the year. This is a rare surviving piece of a similar water clock, which is now in the Museum of Salzburg in modern day Austria. We can see part of a former depiction of the constellations. A similar device may have existed in the tower. However, some have noted that the water pressure would have been quite high for just a water clock, and the device in the tower may have been something even more complex. The ceiling of the tower may give us clues to the type of mechanism that existed. The ceiling is still intact, and interestingly, instead of the 8-sided pyramid that makes up the roof, it has been changed to a smooth hemispherical shape inside. It also has traces of blue paint. This led to the suggestion that the tower may have been a sort of planetarium, with the roof painted with stars to simulate the heavens. A similar device had been created by Archimedes, which showed the motions of the planets and the sun and moon with their relationships to each other. The ceiling also has clear signs of erosion, which would result from exposed water in the tower. Some of the water may have been used for decorative fountains. The water originally flowed underground from a spring on the Acropolis to the water tank, and passed underground again before it was fed up to the mechanism via water pipes. During the Roman period, the device apparently needed repair, and the inflow of water was converted from flowing underground to an above-ground aqueduct, the arches of which still remain. This groove seems to have been an addition at this time as well. It was likely easier to repair the device by adding a pipe at this level than digging underground to repair the original pipes. After the water passed through the tower, it continued underground and would have been put to other use, likely in the nearby latrine, the remains of which are still visible near to the tower. It is not known how long the device was able to function, but it would have needed repair and maintenance, and all of the valuable bronze elements would have been melted down at some point. Due to an inscribed cross which was found on the eastern wall, and some fragments of frescoes on the walls, the building appears to have been used as a Christian church or a baptistry in late antiquity and into the medieval period. It was then converted to an area for dervishes in Turkish times, who would perform dances in the tower. This niche, called a mirab, was created in the direction of Mecca, and lamps hung from the ceiling. At the time, the tower was partially buried, and people had to stoop down to enter through the doors. In the 19th century, the tower was restored and new rods were added to once again give the tower working sundials, and some semi-circular ceramic tiles were added to the roof to bridge some gaps in the marble slabs. The tower is one of the few Greek interiors that have survived to us with the roof mostly intact. Only a few other examples come to mind, such as the great tombs of Mycenae. In our opinion, the tower is one of the most underrated monuments in Athens. Before we end this video, there's just one more detail we would like to share. Inside the tower on the floor is a small line in the north-south direction, which doesn't seem to have any purpose. Some have suggested that it may have been drawn by Andronikos himself to align the tower precisely to the north. Hope you enjoyed this, if you have anything else to add, let us know in the comments, and thanks for watching.