THE MIDSUMMER CHRONOPHAGE

Shopping is one of our favourite pastimes and what could make it more entertaining than a unique display of time in the form of the new Midsummer Chronophage clock?

You may well recognise the shape of the clock being similar to the one outside Corpus Christi college, only a four-minute walk away from Lion Yard.  This fascinating clock was created by the same renowned inventor and philanthropist Dr John C Taylor OBE, who gifted the Corpus clock to his alma mater in 2008.

We are thrilled that Dr Taylor has kindly loaned the clock to us where it will be on display until British Summertime ends on October 27 2019.  Apart from its stunning and colourful design, the clock is remarkable because it engages with people and is a timely reminder that once a minute passes, it can never be had again.  (The name ‘Chronophage’ is derived from the ancient Greek words ‘chronos’ meaning time and ‘phage’ meaning eater.)  If you look carefully you will see that as the clock gets to 59 seconds (shown on the outer circle of lights) the creature eats the minute and you cannot get it back.

Dr Taylor says, “I’ve had an interesting life and believe that every day should be lived to the full.  The Midsummer Chronophage reminds us that time quickly marches on before we know it, so it’s a good habit to make the most of each hour, week and month.  To complicate matters, time is relative, so minutes can move fast when we are happy and excited yet seem to slow down when less is happening.  All this is summed up in the clock.”

Shopping Centre manager Roger Allen said, “I heard that Dr Taylor was looking for a location for the Midsummer Chronophage this summer and jumped at the chance to be involved.  Our culture is highly visual and we know that Lion Yard visitors are going to love taking photos and sharing them on social media.  The clock makes people smile and it’s going to be an enormous draw for us and for Cambridge as a whole.”

If you share your photos on social media, add the hash tags #LionYard and #Chronophage and we will look out for your posts!