The Laima Clock ( lv, Laimas pulkstenis) is a landmark in central

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the B ...

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

. Its location between the

Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...

and the

Centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricit ...

commercial district has made it a landmark of the city.

History

The clock was completed in 1924 and initially was called the Big Clock (''Lielais pulkstenis''), but began to carry the name of the Laima confectionery company in 1936. During the

Latvia SSR The Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic (Latvian SSR), also known as Soviet Latvia or simply Latvia, was a federated republic within the Soviet Union, and formally one of its 16 (later 15) constituent republics. The Latvian Soviet Socialist Repu ...

it was used as a political information stand. In 1999 the Laima Clock was fully reconstructed and its original design restored. On December 12, 2012, at 12:00 the clock rang for the first time since its installation. Beginning from November 27, 2017, the clock was reconstructed again. The new style clock designed by Arvis Sproģis was unveiled on December 29, 2017. The reconstruction cost a total of 106,000 euros and was covered by

Orkla Group Orkla ASA is a Norwegian conglomerate operating in the Nordic region, Eastern Europe, Asia and the US. At present, Orkla operates in the branded consumer goods, aluminium solutions and financial investment sectors. Orkla ASA is listed on the Os ...

as a gift for

100th Anniversary of the Latvian Republic The 100th Anniversary of the Latvian Republic ( lv, Latvijas valsts simtgade) also commercialized as Latvia 100 (''Latvija 100'') is a national event in Latvia celebrating the country's 100th anniversary since its 1918 establishment. The main cele ...

. In 2012, construction of another Laima-branded clock was completed in

Sigulda Sigulda (; german: Segewold, pl, Zygwold, russian: Сигулда) is a town in the Vidzeme region of Latvia, from the capital city Riga. Overview Sigulda is on a picturesque stretch of the Primeval forest, primeval Gauja river valley. Because o ...

.https://tourism.sigulda.lv/en/objects/what-to-see/culture-arts-and-crafts/urban-environment-objects-and-sculptures/station-square-and-laima-clock/

References

External links

{{Riga Cityscape Buildings and structures completed in 1924 Buildings and structures in Riga Time in Latvia Individual clocks Tourist attractions in Riga