Abbey House Museum 2025
Yorkshire
Guildhall Greenwich Time Ball 2025
Following restoration, it has reclaimed its position on Hull's skyline and can now rise and fall once again after 100 years. Being the only such timepiece on a municipal building, it is the highest in the UK and is only one of a handful that are still operational today. It reflects the importance of maritime timekeeping, and the role of calculating longitude at sea for accurate and safe navigation.
Contacts
Operator: Hull City Council
Address: Alfred Gelder Street Hull Yorkshire HU1 2AA
- Telephone: 01482 300 300
- Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
- Website: View website
Open Days & Times
The Time Ball operates between 1257 and 1300 daily.
Travel
- By Bus: various
- By Rail: paragon / 0.5 miles
Facilities
- Part disabled access
It was originally installed between April 1915 and November 1916, and is 60m above ground level. It was removed due to severe damage caused by a storm in 1922.
The new Time Ball is over 1m in diameter, and along with the Weathervane at the very top of the mast is 80cm high, 120cm wide, and are both finished in 23½ carat, double thickness English gold leaf. The Weathervane is based on an 18th century merchant ship the Bounty built in Hull and later famous for the ‘Mutiny on the Bounty’, of which there are several film versions.
When the original Time Ball dropped each day it allowed sailors to set their chronometers and confirm longitude, which was vital for accurate navigation and safety. The signal was sent from the Royal Observatory, Greenwich to the General Post Office on Lowgate, who then manually operated the Time Ball at precisely 1pm.
