By+Rowen+译/阿琼

电子时代来临之前，巍峨的钟楼在人们生活中扮演着重要角色。清澈洪亮的钟声响彻整个城市，人们在钟声中度过悠悠岁月。如今，钟楼的报时作用已变得不再那么重要，甚至被世人遗忘，但钟楼却依旧是城市中一道靓丽的风景。

Ranging from the candle clock to the word clock， this instrument has been used to indicate， keep， and co-ordinate time， becoming an essential part of everyday life. Although nowadays clocks are mostly used to show time， they have also become the symbols of important cities， attracting thousands of tourists every year. So sit back and relax while we present our top eight most famous clocks in the world.

从蜡烛时钟到字时钟，时钟这一工具已经成为我们日常生活中必不可少的一部分，一直被用来告诉我们时间，为我们计时，帮助我们协调日程。虽然现在时钟主要被用来报时，但它们也已成为一些重要城市的标志，每年都吸引成千上万的游客前往。所以，现在请坐下来放松一下，听我们为您介绍世界上最著名的八座时钟吧。

Shepherd Gate Clock，

Greenwich， UK

英国格林尼治的谢泼德门钟

The Shepherd Gate Clock adorns the wall outside the gate of the Royal Observatory Greenwich building in Greenwich， London. This fine-looking 24-hour clock， whose divisions1） are marked with Roman numbers， is famous as it provides the Greenwich Mean Time which is the standard measurement of time zones.

谢泼德门钟镶嵌在伦敦格林尼治的格林尼治皇家天文台门外的墙上。这座外观精美的24小时制时钟的刻度用罗马数字标示，所显示的时间被称为格林尼治标准时间，即各个时区的时间标准，这座钟也因此闻名世界。

Spasskaya Tower Clock， Moscow， Russia

俄罗斯莫斯科的斯帕斯卡亚塔钟

The Kremlin chiming2） clock is a historic clock placed in 1852 on the Spasskaya Tower Clock in Red District， Moscow. Major restoration3） of the chimes and the entire clock mechanism were carried out regularly， so now one can listen to Russia's National Anthem while admiring the renovated Kremlin clock. The musical theme is played four times a day with six-hour intervals.

这个克里姆林宫的报时钟历史悠久，于1852年被安放在位于莫斯科红区的斯帕斯卡亚塔钟上。其报时装置以及整个时钟机械装置的主要修缮工作定期进行，所以我们现在可以在观赏修葺一新的克里姆林宫时钟的同时聆听俄罗斯的国歌。这个主题旋律一天播放四次，每六小时播放一次。

The Rathaus-Glockenspiel， Munich， Germany

德国慕尼黑的市政厅钟琴楼

This chiming clock can be found in the central Marienplatz in Munich. Tourists gather to see the Glockenspiel. With its 43 bells and 32 life-sized figures， it chimes every day at 11 a.m. （as well as 12 p.m. and 5 p.m. in summer）. The upper part tells the story of one of the most expensive weddings of the Middle Ages， whereas on the lower level you can see the Schafflertanz4） （ritualistic dance） performed by the red-coated city's coopers （barrel makers）. The show lasts for around 15 minutes， to the pleasure of the crowd.

你可以在慕尼黑的玛丽恩广场中央看到这个报时钟，游客们聚集而来一览这座钟琴楼。……