The Porte Saint-Éloi is better known as the Porte de la Grosse Cloche… And what a bell!
Because nearly 7,750 kilos hang from its bell tower.
Among the inscriptions around the bell, this one proudly announces its role for all to see:
« I announce the days, I call to arms, I mark the hours, I drive away storms, I signal the feasts, I bring help against fires ».
But that's not all: it is the oldest medieval gate in Bordeaux, dating from the 13th century. The monument holds an astronomical clock (1759), the only one of its kind made south of the Loire, whose solar equation dial adds or subtracts 5, 10 or 15 minutes to solar time depending on the season.
And finally, at the very top sits a golden Leopard, inherited from the Kings of England, during the English rule over Bordeaux (the coat of arms of England is a single gules field with three gold leopards armed and langued azure).
Bordelais like to say that if the leopard is turned towards the Garonne, the weather will be nice; if it is turned inland, it will rain.
