سقيفة الشبامي - World's Tallest Clock Tower to be Built in Mecca


	http://www.asharq-e.com/english/imag.../C31708309.jpg Jeddah, Asharq Al-Awsat- The holy city of Mecca is soon to become home to the world’s tallest clock tower following the announcement of the decision made by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, to construct the Mecca clock tower.1 The governor of Mecca, Prince Abdul Majeed bin Abdulaziz, announced Tuesday that the clock would be placed on top of the fifth tower of the King Abdulaziz Endowment project opposite the Holy Mosque at 380 meters high, making it the world's highest clock. The four sides of the clock will be adorned by the name of God.2 The project will use four clock faces for each side of the tower, including 2 main clocks that are 80 meters high and that will adorn the name of God, and that will be 65 meters wide with a 39-meter diameter. The other two clocks will be placed 65 meters high and will be approximately 34 meters wide with a 25-meter diameter.3 There will be an elevator to take visitors to the surrounding balcony below the four clocks. Asharq Al Awsat learnt that the project is still tentative. The company that will build and install the clock and the cost of the project are yet to be determined. The source told Asharq Al Awsat Tuesday that one of the world's leading clock makers would be chosen to take on the project.4 The Saudi Binladin Group is in charge of developing the King Abdulaziz Endowment project and may be assigned to oversee or coordinate the details of building the clock. The project is expected to take six months to complete.5 The King Abdulaziz Endowment project, which overlooks the Holy Mosque and has been chosen as the site of the world's highest clock, is one of the world's largest construction projects. The project was rated the largest architectural building in view of the total area, which exceeds 1.4 million square meters. Designed using the Islamic architecture, it contains 7 adjacent towers, with 6,000 housing units, and has over SR6 billion (US$1.6 billions) in investments.6 With the construction of the clock, Saudi Arabia, specifically the western region, will be the site of two world landmarks, including the Jeddah Fountain, which is 261 meters high and was built at the order of King Fahd bin Abdulaziz. The area of flowing water is 4,000 square meters. Three giant pumps are used to pump water at a speed of 320 kilometers per hour and are 261 meters in height.7