Dubai: Mecca, the holiest city in Islam, is home to the world’s largest clock, the Mecca Clock, located on the iconic Abraj Al Bait Clock Tower. This engineering marvel is part of one of the tallest buildings in the world, standing at an impressive height of 601 metres.
The clock itself boasts a massive 43-meter diameter, illuminated by approximately 2 million LED bulbs, making it a stunning feature visible across the city.
The Mecca Clock is not only the largest in the world by diameter but also stands more than 400 metres above ground level, allowing it to be seen from over eight kilometers away in all neighborhoods of Mecca.
Its four faces are designed in Islamic architectural style, with the front and back facades measuring 43 by 43 metres, while the side facades are slightly smaller at 43 by 39 meters.
Atop the clock, the world’s largest "takbir" (the phrase "Allahu Akbar") can be seen, with the letter "A" in the word "Allah" measuring over 23 meters in length.
The crescent at the top of the structure has a diameter of 23 meters, making it the largest crescent ever constructed. Additionally, the two Islamic testimonies ("There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is His messenger") are inscribed above the side facades of the clock.
Built to meet the highest safety standards, the clock tower features a visitor's balcony located beneath the clock faces. The total weight of the clock structure is a staggering 36,000 tons.
Its iron framework, weighing around 12,000 tons, was constructed with 14,000 specially designed pieces, some weighing up to 16 tons each.
More than 250 skilled workers, specializing in ironwork, assembled the structure at a height of 600 meters using seven cranes for installation, with four permanent cranes added for maintenance purposes.
In terms of size, the Mecca Clock outshines other notable tower clocks around the globe. The second largest is the clock at Istanbul’s Jewel Center in Turkey, which has a 32-metre diameter, followed by the Bhestan Clock in Surat, India, with a diameter of 24.25 metres.
The fourth largest is the Hirokiv Park Clock in Ukraine, measuring 22 meters, followed by the Central do Brasil Clock in Brazil at 20 metres. The Duquesne Berry Clock in the United States ranks sixth at 18 metres, followed by the Colgate Clock in the U.S. at 15.24 meters and the Dokumo Yoyogi Watch in Japan at 15 metres. Completing the top ten are the Abbas Abad Clock in Iran and the Grozny Towers Clock in Russia, both measuring 14 metres.
