The Cuckoo clock or Schwarzwälder Kuckucksuhr

On my visit to Triberg Waterfalls I saw many Cuckoo clocks and got to see a clockmaker at work.

Often it is a wall clock whose mechanical pendulum work is equipped with a chain pendulum and percussion. The basic form of the housing has been modeled since the mid-19th century usually a “Bahnwärterhäuschen” with pitched roof and decorated with more or less intricately carved wood ornaments.

The acoustic cuckoo time signal is movably mounted in the housing behind a door-like flap. It is usually swung open and one or more cuckoo calls will sound at the hour depending on the hour.

The “cuckoo call” is traditionally created by a pair of differently high-pitched organ pipes inside the clock. However, some also manage with only one flute. Depending on the design, the mechanical cuckoo – traditionally carved and painted in wood, today often made of plastic – moves to the cuckoo’s call or opens the beak.

In addition, outside the clock there are other movable decorative elements attached, which sometimes also move, like dancers and birds. Today, in addition to the traditional mechanical cuckoo clocks and electro-mechanical models are offered with quartz movement, electronically generated cuckoo call, and “Kettenzug,” dummy pendulums.

Eble Uhrenpark above at the Schonachbach 27 in Triberg was recreated on the scale 60: 1 of an original movement of a cuckoo clock and can be viewed from the inside and outside. The superlative watch is a completely one-off production. The largest wheel diameter is 2.60 m, the work has a weight of 6 ton, the pendulum is 8 meters in length. It took 5 years to build.

This local clock maker below built an enlarged mechanism of cuckoo clock that is 40 times larger:

The clock maker beautiful Black Forest home

Between 1800 and 1850 alone 15 million Black Forest clocks were sold worldwide. The “Uhrenhändler” or cuckoo clock sales people left home to gain steady employment by traveling to foreign lands to sell their goods.

We had an enjoyable afternoon that was followed walking the Triberg Waterfalls and have outdoor early dinner with friends. See my Blog here: Germany’s highest Waterfall

After a full day of sightseeing and hiking in Triberg we drove back through the Black Forest Country side to Bad Krotzingen where we were staying with good friends.