Cuckoo for Clocks 

In the first half of the semester, I visited the black forest with a couple of other students, and after our hike, which was amazing, we went into town and ate some Black Forest cake (which I recommend trying), and we also walked into a shop that sold cuckoo clocks. I was fascinated by the designs of the clocks, and I found them to be a very interesting intersection between technology and art.

A Short History of Cuckoo Clocks

The first Black Forest clocks were made in 1630 by poor farmers who needed an extra source of income and a way to spend their time while trapped in their houses during the winter months. Due to the abundance of wood in the area, residents had always made small crafts, so the transition to detailed clocks was natural. 

The first cuckoo clock was made by Franz Ketterer in 1738. He took inspiration from large artistic clocks that had rooster calls, but it was much easier to mimic a cuckoo’s song with just two organ pipes. He included a cuckoo that would appear behind doors that opened on the hour, and this type of clock became very popular and expanded into a significant industry for the people living around the Black Forest.  

Designing My Own Cuckoo Clock

I decided to try to design a clock myself, based on some elements I had seen in cuckoo clocks in shops, but also some personal additions. In addition to designing the clock, I carved my own cuckoo bird. The goal was to learn how the process might work and how difficult it would be. I put my own spin on the carving, but the method I used with just a knife and saw was similar to how it was traditionally done.

– Champe M

Citations:

The world of cuckoo clocks: Original German black forest cuckoo clocks. The world of Cuckoo Clocks: original German Black Forest Cuckoo Clocks. (2023, June 1). https://www.cuckooclock.de/