Michelangelo Sapiano
Encyclopedia
Michelangelo Sapiano was a Maltese
clock maker and inventor born in Mqabba
, Malta
.
repair shop and at such a young age he managed to repair the clock found in the Parish Church
of Mqabba when other clock makers couldn’t do so. This paved the way for him to become famous and gave him the courage to start making clocks. He went to live in Luqa when he was 21 years of age after he married a girl from the town.
s and sacristies
in various towns and villages in Malta and Gozo
and also for a large clock he made for the Church of Saint Catherine of Alexandria
in Egypt.
His masterpiece is a grandfather clock
which till a few years ago could be found in No.11, Pawlu Magri Street, Luqa, the house (which still exists) where Michelangelo Sapiano used to live after he married. The clock can now be found in the Mdina Cathedral Museum. For this clock he was awarded a silver medal in an Industrial Exhibition
which was held in 1864. Apart from showing the time, days and date this clock also shows the phases of the moon and the time at which the sun rises and goes down. This clock also has a mechanism which marks when a year is a leap year
.
Sapiano made other interesting inventions. He invented an alarm clock
, which at the time of ringing, produced a spark and lighted a candle
to show the time. Another clock he invented had a moving globe with the world map, and every half an hour it showed the position of the world in relation to the sun. He made other precision instruments, including a balance
for the Malta Customs, to take weights from 700 lbs down to a fraction of an ounce. For his wife he made a mechanical egg timer
with a bell, and to know the time at night he devised a mantel clock
to which a long string was attached which would chime the most recent time when pulled in the darkness.
Sapiano was awarded a certificate and a gold medal by the Society of Arts, Manufacture and Commerce on the 26 February 1908. He died on the 2 December 1912.
Maltese people
The Maltese are an ethnic group indigenous to the Southern European nation of Malta, and identified with the Maltese language. Malta is an island in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea...
clock maker and inventor born in Mqabba
Mqabba
Mqabba is a town in the south of Malta. Situated at the heart of a soft limestone area, the surrounding of the village is barren and stripped with quarries. Mqabba is renowned for the construction industry, and holds more than a quarter of the quarries in Malta...
, Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
.
Early life
Michelangelo Sapiano was born in Mqabba in 1826. When he was 14 years of age he opened a watchWatch
A watch is a small timepiece, typically worn either on the wrist or attached on a chain and carried in a pocket, with wristwatches being the most common type of watch used today. They evolved in the 17th century from spring powered clocks, which appeared in the 15th century. The first watches were...
repair shop and at such a young age he managed to repair the clock found in the Parish Church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
of Mqabba when other clock makers couldn’t do so. This paved the way for him to become famous and gave him the courage to start making clocks. He went to live in Luqa when he was 21 years of age after he married a girl from the town.
Achievements
Sapiano is most famous for large clocks which were made for churches, conventConvent
A convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...
s and sacristies
Sacristy
A sacristy is a room for keeping vestments and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records.The sacristy is usually located inside the church, but in some cases it is an annex or separate building...
in various towns and villages in Malta and Gozo
Gozo
Gozo is a small island of the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Southern European country of Malta; after the island of Malta itself, it is the second-largest island in the archipelago...
and also for a large clock he made for the Church of Saint Catherine of Alexandria
Catherine of Alexandria
Saint Catherine of Alexandria, also known as Saint Catherine of the Wheel and The Great Martyr Saint Catherine is, according to tradition, a Christian saint and virgin, who was martyred in the early 4th century at the hands of the pagan emperor Maxentius...
in Egypt.
His masterpiece is a grandfather clock
Longcase clock
A longcase clock, also tall-case clock, floor clock, or grandfather clock, is a tall, freestanding, weight-driven pendulum clock with the pendulum held inside the tower, or waist of the case. Clocks of this style are commonly 1.8–2.4 metres tall...
which till a few years ago could be found in No.11, Pawlu Magri Street, Luqa, the house (which still exists) where Michelangelo Sapiano used to live after he married. The clock can now be found in the Mdina Cathedral Museum. For this clock he was awarded a silver medal in an Industrial Exhibition
Trade fair
A trade fair is an exhibition organized so that companies in a specific industry can showcase and demonstrate their latest products, service, study activities of rivals and examine recent market trends and opportunities...
which was held in 1864. Apart from showing the time, days and date this clock also shows the phases of the moon and the time at which the sun rises and goes down. This clock also has a mechanism which marks when a year is a leap year
Leap year
A leap year is a year containing one extra day in order to keep the calendar year synchronized with the astronomical or seasonal year...
.
Sapiano made other interesting inventions. He invented an alarm clock
Alarm clock
An alarm clock is a clock that is designed to make a loud sound at a specific time. The primary use of these clocks is to awaken people from their night's sleep or short naps; they are sometimes used for other reminders as well. To stop the sound, a button or handle on the clock is pressed; but...
, which at the time of ringing, produced a spark and lighted a candle
Candle
A candle is a solid block or cylinder of wax with an embedded wick, which is lit to provide light, and sometimes heat.Today, most candles are made from paraffin. Candles can also be made from beeswax, soy, other plant waxes, and tallow...
to show the time. Another clock he invented had a moving globe with the world map, and every half an hour it showed the position of the world in relation to the sun. He made other precision instruments, including a balance
Balance
- Equipment :* Balance beam, a piece of gymnastics apparatus.* Balance board, a piece of training equipment.* Balancing machine, a machine that balances mechanical rotating parts to lessen vibration.* Balance wheel, a watch component....
for the Malta Customs, to take weights from 700 lbs down to a fraction of an ounce. For his wife he made a mechanical egg timer
Egg timer
An egg-timer is a device the primary function of which is to assist in timing the cooking of eggs. Early designs simply counted down for a specific period of time. Some modern designs are able to time more accurately by depending on water temperature rather than an absolute time...
with a bell, and to know the time at night he devised a mantel clock
Mantel clock
Mantel clocks — or shelf clocks — are relatively small house clocks traditionally placed on the shelf, or mantel, above the fireplace. The form, first developed in France in the 1750s, can be distinguished from earlier chamber clocks of similar size due to a lack of carrying handles.These clocks...
to which a long string was attached which would chime the most recent time when pulled in the darkness.
Sapiano was awarded a certificate and a gold medal by the Society of Arts, Manufacture and Commerce on the 26 February 1908. He died on the 2 December 1912.