In 1775, the French traveler Chevalier visited Varna and left a vivid description of the city: “There are approximately 16,000 inhabitants, 12 mosques, two churches, and a bell tower built twenty years ago, topped by a clock with a bell…” His account reveals that as early as the mid-18th century, Varna already had a city clock, highlighting the city’s long urban and cultural tradition. The clock tower was located in the green grounds behind the present-day Drama Theatre and also served as a watchtower for the city’s firemen. Its exact appearance remains a mystery — it is not known whether it was built of wood or stone, nor when it was destroyed. The tower may have been lost during the siege of Varna in 1828 or in the devastating fire that swept through the city during the Crimean War.
The clock tower and Saedinenie (Union) Hall.
The idea to build an impressive city clock tower came to fruition in 1888, during the mayoralty of Krastyu Mirski. The Varna municipality commissioned architect Sava Dimitrievich to design a 24-meter-high stone fire tower with a clock. The location was carefully chosen: the new clock tower, together with the Cathedral, marked the boundaries of Varna’s city centre at the time. That same year, the Concordia Theatre Hall burned down, prompting plans to build a new hall for meetings and theatrical performances near the tower.
Within two years, the new clock tower and Saedinenie (Union) Hall were completed and officially opened to the public. The tower also served as a watchtower for firemen, as tall buildings were still rare. During the day, they signaled fires using colored flags, and at night with lanterns. These fire-watch activities continued until 1898, when they were replaced by a telephone line. The clockwork, imported from abroad, was installed by the prominent public figure Oton Ivanov.
Although hidden from public view, the clockwork is a true masterpiece. Unusually, the name of the producing company was never inscribed on it. The mechanism is housed in a large wooden “box,” accessible via a narrow winding staircase along the stone walls. The dial plate inside allows the clock’s pace to be monitored and adjusted, while every fourth second a system of axles and gears transmits the motion to the hands on the tower outside. Unlike contemporary clocks that use springs, this clockwork is powered by weights suspended in the center of the tower. The weights are wound using a simple crank attached to a large drum beside the main gears. Another axle transfers motion to the bell striker at the top of the tower. Until 1930, the bell would chime the hours twice within a one-minute interval.
Red weights are still visible atop the clock tower. The prominent Varna public figure and watchmaker Oton Ivanov (d.1932) dedicated his life to the tower, and his son, also Oton Ivanov, inherited both his profession and passion, maintaining the clock until his death in 1976.
