Wall clocks are another important item in the Sicilian tradition. They decorate our homes like nothing else.
Usually, these valuable artworks of Sicily’s creativity are hung on the walls of the kitchen and living room. These are rooms where we Sicilians spend a lot of our life.
If you live abroad, a Sicilian wall clock may be another product that helps you feel Sicily closer to you.
Especially now, with Christmas which is about to come, Sicilian wall clocks are ideal items to donate as gifts. Truth to tell, these products are so unique, original and captivating to be suitable for every occasion.
You can buy them to decorate your own home or as a holiday gift, and even as wedding gifts.
Chattery aside, I wrote this post to allow you to find original Sicilian clocks handmade and crafted in Sicily and ready to buy, right away, here, in this same article.
If you are eager to have a true Sicilian wall clock, keep reading!
Sicilian Wall Clock Materials
The Sicilian artisans have limitless creativity. They use a wide range of materials to make wall clocks. The most used material is ceramic, which allows them to sculpt Sicilian themes on the surface of the clock.
As regards this type of product, you can buy the Sicilian wall clock crafted by Domenico, a Sicily’s artisan who lives just in the capital of ceramics, Caltagirone.
Other materials for wall clocks always come from the stone of Earth, such as clay and terracotta.
These materials are patiently polished with enamel, and, then, painted with brilliant colors.
Many of them depict the beautiful theme of the Sicilian lemons.
You can buy a Sicilian wall clock hand painted with the depiction of lemons at the online shop of Ketty Messina, another creative woman of Sicily who lives in a pretty Etna town named San Gregorio di Catania.
In the profile of her online shop, Ketty explains that the main feature of the authentic Sicilian wall clocks is that none is equal to another. Each of the items is unique, because it is artisanally crafted.
As Domenico does, Ketty also makes other ceramic items, such as plates, ashtrays and wedding favors.
Moreover, Sicilian ceramic wall clocks are rare pieces which are often hard to find. One of them is sold by a shop called Ceramiche di Caltagirone, namely true Sicilian artisans who live in the heart of my island. It is an extremely decorative wall clock you can buy here.
Another rare piece is sold by Alessandro, a Sicilian artisan who lives in Taormina. You find this handmade Sicilian wall clock on his online shop.
Sicilian Wall Clock Themes
As said above, most of the Sicilian products depict themes of the Sicilian tradition.
The most iconic motives are surely the ones of Trinacria, lemons, prickly pears and Sicilian cart.
Very often, to enhance the nuances of these themes, the Sicilian artisans use other types of material, such as wood.
Wood is a challenging material to tame; it requires hours of hard work to carve wooden pieces with the shape of a wall clock.
Since Sicilian artisans run small businesses, they prefer to make ceramic clocks. Furthermore, wooden items derive from trees, which are pivotal for our planet.
Artistic Wall Clocks Dedicated to Sicily
Wall clocks can be really artistic, especially when they are made by creative artisans. Indeed, I discovered a fabulous wooden wall clock with the theme of the Sicilian cart. It is made by Emilio Tellini, an Italian artisan who lives in the North of Italy. You can visit his online shop here.
This wall clock is round and depicts the shape of the Sicilian cart wheel, where other Sicilian elements are painted inside. This product evokes a timeless tradition of my beloved Sicily, and is, authentically, made in Italy.
Irina, instead, an artisan who lives in Sicily (not sure she is Sicilian), crafted a bizarre wall clock through acrylic painting on wood depicting the Valley of the Temples (see the image above). You can admire and buy her creation here.
Another curious wall clock is made with leather and depicts the shape of Sicily. The seller is not Sicilian, but is Italian. His name is Giovanni and has been crafting leather items since 1976.
Carved leather is a very ancient art, but if you use it to form a Sicilian wall clock, this art gives rise to real masterpieces.
The leather wall clock is made in Italy, because Giovanni is Italian. The clock has Sicily as a shape to hang to the wall, and, hence, it deserves a special place on my blog. Keep in mind this is a rare artisanal product. You can try buying it on this online shop.
A separate mention is for wall clocks depicting the iconic figure of Trinacria. The latter is the heraldic symbol of Sicily, a female creature with three legs derived from Greek mythology. The artisan who crafts these types of wall clocks is from Florida. Consequently, the Sicilian Trinacria wall clocks you’ll buy on his online shop are not made in Sicily.
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed this fantastic parade of Sicilian wall clocks. They are original and unique masterpieces ready to be bought.
Many are made in Sicily and signed with fire, as a symbol of the passion of the artisan who crafted them, a few items are beautifully made in Italy. I did my best to find them. You can take a further look at this online shop for a complete overview of the items I described.
However, the artisans who make these products live in a harsh land, where it is extremely hard earning a living with the fruits of creativity.
It is not by change that many Sicilians emigrated abroad. If you buy their creations, you’ll help these men and women of Sicily and Italy remain in their native Country.
And for that, I say to you: thanks, on behalf of them, from the bottom of my and their hearts.
Photocredits: Etsy
Rosalba Mancuso is a freelance journalist born in Sicily. Passionate about her loved island and with extensive writing experience, Rosalba worked as a contributor for the main Sicily’s newspapers and as a bilingual Italian – English writer. Thanks to her skills, she also founded four websites in English. On Sicilyonweb, Rosalba tells every corner of her beloved Sicily. Furthermore, she writes this blog thanks to your help. Rosalba, in fact, earns a small commission, with no cost for you, when you book your travel or buy products through the affiliate widgets or links you find in her posts.