The clock Ankeruhr is another creation that falls into that turbulent period of Austrian history when modernism, imperial tradition, and the approaching chaos of war all collided.The Anker Insurance Company (now Helvetia) built this beautiful Jugendstil clock in 1914 as part of the expansion of their headquarters. The installation represents one of several excellent examples of that design era in the nearby area.Anker commissioned the work as a contribution to the city’s art and culture, but also as a subliminal reminder of the importance of life insurance; the clock contains various allegorical motifs representing the inevitable passing of time and the transience of human existence.
You have, for example, figures representing Life and Death (with his obligatory hourglass) flanking the sun motif above the centre.