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The Tower of Winds in Plaka Page 2

Tower by du Moncel 1843 with remains of resevoir, minarets of the Ottoman Medresseathens greece tourism guideThe 8 sides of the structure face the 4 cardinal points of the compass and the supplementary ones as well and each have a frieze depicting the corresponding 'wind'. Below center left is the SE wind.

Within the interior was installed a hydraulic clock, invented by Andronicos, of which nothing remains but some rather extensive fixtures by which we can surmise a rather advanced mechanism. It was likely fed by the resevoir picture right.

Tower by du Moncel 1843 with remains of resevoir, minarets of the Ottoman Medresse

The Tower, called erroneously, in the dark centuries, the Tomb of Socrates or School, was turned, under the Turks, into a small Muslim Tekke where the Dervishes made their whirling dances to the delight of European tourists who came weekly to witness them. Above right one of the 7 manifestations of the wind.

More Tower of Winds page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4