UAE

UAE then and now: before Burj Khalifa, Deira's Clock Tower was the famed symbol of Dubai

Use our interactive slider to explore a legendary landmark

James Langton
James Langton

July 28, 2021

  • English
  • Arabic

Today, life in the Emirates moves in the fast lane. In a regular series to mark the 50th anniversary of the UAE, we take a little trip back in time to see how much the country has changed.

Long before the Burj Khalifa or Burj Al Arab, the Clock Tower roundabout in Deira was the iconic symbol of Dubai.

Even today it remains an instantly recognisable landmark for anyone who has spent time in the city.

Its story is a classic “chicken or egg". In fact it was the clock that led to the building of the tower.

In the early 1960s, the daughter of Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed, Ruler of Dubai, was married to Sheikh Ahmad Al Thani, Ruler of Qatar.

Sheikh Ahmad reportedly later presented Sheikh Rashid with a large clock.

Dubai Creek in the early 1960s, with Deira on the left. Across the Creek at the top of the photo is Bur Dubai, with Shindagha on the right.
Dubai Creek in the early 1960s, with Deira on the left. Across the Creek at the top of the photo is Bur Dubai, with Shindagha on the right.
The Clock Tower dominates its surroundings in the 1970s.
The Clock Tower dominates its surroundings in the 1970s.
Deira is one of Dubai's oldest neighbourhoods. The Omar Ali bin Haider mosque – with its striking minaret and white dome – has welcomed worshippers since 1952.
Deira is one of Dubai's oldest neighbourhoods. The Omar Ali bin Haider mosque – with its striking minaret and white dome – has welcomed worshippers since 1952.
Deira is also home to striking buildings with distinctive architecture, like Deira Tower.
Deira is also home to striking buildings with distinctive architecture, like Deira Tower.
The neighbourhood's famed gold souq attracts tourists from across the world.
The neighbourhood's famed gold souq attracts tourists from across the world.
Shoppers in a jewellery shop at the Gold Souq in Deira
Shoppers in a jewellery shop at the Gold Souq in Deira
The neighbourhood is also home to small shops and repair services such as Khan shoe shop.
The neighbourhood is also home to small shops and repair services such as Khan shoe shop.
The Deira Clock Tower has remained a much-loved feature of the area through the years.
The Deira Clock Tower has remained a much-loved feature of the area through the years.
Deira is one of Dubai's most densely packed neighbourhoods. Authorities imposed a lockdown in April 2020 to curb the spread of Covid-19 and its normally busy roads fell quiet.
Deira is one of Dubai's most densely packed neighbourhoods. Authorities imposed a lockdown in April 2020 to curb the spread of Covid-19 and its normally busy roads fell quiet.
The roundabout at Deira Clock Tower was eerily empty during the stay-at-home order in April, 2020.
The roundabout at Deira Clock Tower was eerily empty during the stay-at-home order in April, 2020.
Health volunteers pass through a sterilisation chamber installed to disinfect residents entering and leaving the Naif area in Dubai's Deira during the Covid-19 outbreak, on April 15, 2020.
Health volunteers pass through a sterilisation chamber installed to disinfect residents entering and leaving the Naif area in Dubai's Deira during the Covid-19 outbreak, on April 15, 2020.
But now life is returning to normal in Naif. Trader Fawaz Bello said in April 2021 that the situation had improved.
But now life is returning to normal in Naif. Trader Fawaz Bello said in April 2021 that the situation had improved.
Major development now lines the Deira side of Dubai Creek with the distinctive circular top of Deira Tower visible at centre right.
Major development now lines the Deira side of Dubai Creek with the distinctive circular top of Deira Tower visible at centre right.
But the past is never far behind, as this shot of an old water tank in Deira shows.
But the past is never far behind, as this shot of an old water tank in Deira shows.
The Deira Clock Tower reminds Dubai of its past as it looks to the future.
The Deira Clock Tower reminds Dubai of its past as it looks to the future.

On the instructions of Sheikh Rashid, a concept for a tower to display the magnificent timepiece was commissioned from Otto Bulart, an Austrian architect who also designed Zabeel Palace and went on to build the Dubai Zoo in Jumeirah.

The task of actually designing and building the monument, though, fell to Zaki Al Homsi, a Syrian architect with Architecture Design Construction and who later took UAE citizenship. Al Homsi died in 2017.

The site in Deira was chosen, apparently because the Clock Tower would be one of the first things seen by visitors arriving both by ship in the Creek and at the, then new, international airport.

The Clock Tower, with its graceful, swooping Arabian arches, was built in just under a year and completed in 1965.

Four years later it was joined by the Flame Monument, lit in October 1969 by Sheikh Rashid to mark the start of oil production in Dubai.

That is far from the end of the story. By the early 1970s, repairs were needed to the concrete, which had begun to deteriorate because of corrosion caused by the saltiness of the beach sand used in its construction.

By 1982 it had deteriorated further and the structure was completely rebuilt, along with major refurbishment of the clock, said to be by Seiko.

With the rapid growth of traffic in Dubai, the tower was also moved several metres to accommodate a new underpass.

Finally in 2008, the original clock, which was said to have been manufactured in Manchester, was replaced by a model from Omega, whose name can be seen above the faces.

Despite this, at 56 years young, the Clock Tower monument remains a much loved connection between old and new Dubai, listed by the emirate’s Architectural Heritage Department as one of the city’s most significant cultural buildings.

Deira's Clocktower at top and the Flame Monument in the centre taken in the 1970s. Courtesy: Alain Saint-Hilaire
Deira's Clocktower at top and the Flame Monument in the centre taken in the 1970s. Courtesy: Alain Saint-Hilaire
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Updated: July 28, 2021, 4:00 AM