The Orologio Planetario (1583) by Pietro Fanzago is a one-of-a-kind gem of Renaissance mechanics, as it turns counterclockwise. The clock features a 3-metre circular dial, comprising concentric crowns and a central disc. The outermost white crown marks the 24 hours of the day in Roman numerals, and is the only fixed part of the clock. The innermost crowns mark the months, zodiac signs, and hours of darkness in a day, respectively. The central disc is divided into 29 and a half boxes – the days of the lunar phases. Two arrows protrude from this disc: the longer one indicates the day of the lunar cycle, while the shorter one, in a diametrically opposite position, marks the days after a full moon. At the centre of the disc, there is a small star representing the Earth. The clock is wound manually every day, and works through an ingenious gears and levers mechanism. It is an extraordinarily articulated piece – although less complex compared to other mechanisms of the time – which required great technical skills and a deep knowledge of astronomy.

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