| There are two legends surrounding its beginning. | | | | victor of the competition was an architect from |
| The first legend is that a clockmaker named | | | | Italy who had built railway guard houses for the |
| Anton Ketterer from Germany's Black Forest | | | | new railroad that cut through the Black Forest. He |
| added a cuckoo bird to one of his existing clocks | | | | integrated grape leaves from his native Italy into |
| around 1738 and the cuckoo clock was born. The | | | | his design, as well as the facade of the many |
| second story is that a Bohemian peddler (from | | | | railway houses he had built. This style was |
| what is now the Czech Republic) traveling through | | | | instantly popular and is the style people imagine |
| the Black Forest sold two cuckoo clocks to the | | | | when they think of the Black Forest cuckoo clock. |
| clockmakers there. They copied the clock design | | | | The cuckoo clocks that are sold today as |
| and began the thriving cuckoo clock industry of | | | | souvenirs are based on this winning design. |
| the Black Forest. Since neither tale can be | | | | Today's clocks have some variations on the |
| verified, we'll have to be content with the part of | | | | original railway house style -- some have birds, |
| the story we actually know for sure -- which | | | | leaves, deer, hunting equipment, or other |
| came later. | | | | woodland animals. These clocks are synonymous |
| The Black Forest had a clockmaking history that | | | | with Germany's Black Forest. |
| began at least a hundred years before cuckoo | | | | Variations by Other Countries - Swiss Chalet |
| clocks came to the Black Forest. Since the | | | | Style |
| winters were harsh in the Black Forest, people | | | | In the late 1800s, Swiss clockmakers felt they |
| stayed indoors and worked on handcrafted items. | | | | could improve the cuckoo clock's style, so they |
| So, when the cuckoo clock was introduced to the | | | | designed what is known as the Swiss Chalet style |
| Black Forest, it was a perfect fit for the residents | | | | cuckoo. Chalets come in three varieties: |
| in the Black Forest region. Building the cuckoo | | | | - Black Forest Chalet |
| clocks gave them something profitable to do | | | | - Swiss Chalet |
| during the long, hard winters when their fields lay | | | | - Bavarian Chalet |
| dormant. In the spring, traveling peddlers would | | | | Besides just adding to the outward design, the |
| sell the handmade cuckoo clocks throughout all of | | | | Swiss clockmakers also added music to their |
| Europe on behalf of the Black Forest craftsman, | | | | clocks. They added Swiss music boxes (for which |
| carrying them in backpacks to a welcoming | | | | they were already famous), moving figures, and |
| audience who quickly grew to love them. | | | | other animated features to their clocks. These |
| Shield Style - Schilduhr | | | | could include children swinging on rope swings, |
| There are several different styles of cuckoo | | | | movable water wheels, beer drinking figures and |
| clocks that emerged over the years. In the | | | | woodcutters. The Swiss musical cuckoo clocks |
| beginning, most cuckoo clocks were crafted in the | | | | played a song at the top of every hour. The song |
| Schilduhr (or "shield clock") design. These designs | | | | was usually Edelweis or some other traditional one. |
| were open on the sides and revealed the clock's | | | | Conclusion |
| mechanical movement. This style included a half | | | | While other countries have tried to get on the |
| circle just above the shield which housed the | | | | band wagon, Germany's Black Forest region is still |
| cuckoo bird. This was the standard cuckoo clock | | | | the center of production for cuckoo clocks. It is |
| style from the 1750s to the 1850s. | | | | more than just a source of income for the people |
| Railway House Style - Bahnhäusle | | | | of the Black Forest. It has become part of their |
| In 1850, a school of clockmaking in the town of | | | | identity. This close tie between a people and their |
| Furtwangen in the Black Forest announced a | | | | product is one of the reasons the cuckoo clock |
| contest to create a clockcase that combined the | | | | has such an enduring history and is beloved |
| look of handcrafted design with the | | | | throughout the world. |
| professionalism of a manufactured clock. The | | | | |