Eight winds, eight faces
Each side faces one of the eight main compass points and carries a carved wind god. Boreas, the north wind, blows a conch shell; Notos, the south wind, empties a jar of rain.
Urban Tales › Athens › Tower of the Winds
Tower of the Winds: the history, and the eight winds on its walls
Around 50 BC, the astronomer Andronikos of Cyrrhus built an eight-sided marble tower in Athens' market that told the time by sun and by water. Here's what you're looking at, and what to listen for in the Roman Agora.
Built≈ 50 BC
Designed byAndronikos of Cyrrhus
Sides8
Height≈ 12 m
Hear the Tower of the Winds story, in the app's voice
A short preview. The full story plays on its own when you walk up to it with Urban Tales.
Three stories most visitors miss
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A clock for any weather
Sundials on the outside told the time on sunny days. Inside, a water clock fed by the Klepsydra spring on the Acropolis worked at night and under clouds, and a bronze Triton on the roof turned with the wind.
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Many lives
In late antiquity it was used by a Christian church, and in the 18th century, under Ottoman rule, it became a tekke, a lodge for Dervishes. It is the only clock tower to survive from classical antiquity.
TipThe tower stands in the Roman Agora, a short walk from Monastiraki. Look up at the frieze to find each wind, then search the walls for the faint lines of the sundials. With Urban Tales running, the tower's story plays as you reach it.
Nearby landmarks
Tower of the Winds: common questions
What was the Tower of the Winds used for?
It was a public timepiece and weather station: sundials outside, a water clock inside and a weathervane on top.
When was the Tower of the Winds built?
Around 50 BC, designed by the astronomer Andronikos of Cyrrhus.
Where is the Tower of the Winds?
In the Roman Agora of Athens, between Monastiraki and Plaka.