Meridian of Rouffach

The Adam clock of Rouffach, classified as a Historic Monument in 2003, is one of the most remarkable 19th-century building clocks in Alsace.

Originally, it was accompanied by a cast iron meridian line, a sundial indicating solar noon, used to set the mechanical clock.

This meridian, mentioned in an 1858 contract, has since disappeared, leaving only the mounting bolts on the south tower of the church.

Since June 2006, a replica of this Adam meridian has been reinstalled in its original location on the church facade, allowing the visualization of solar noon, the moment when the Sun reaches its highest position in the sky.

These meridians were mainly used to adjust the mechanical clocks of bell towers and public buildings, whose movements were still unreliable at the time. In Alsace, two types of meridians existed: the Ungerer type, mostly found in Bas-Rhin, and the Adam type, built by the clockmaker Urbain Adam from Colmar.