A sound picture of the eclipse across Europe from BBC World at One

A curious stillness held as the Moon's shadow swept across the face of the Earth, bringing the depth of night to the middle of the day.

Millions travelled to be in line with the Sun and Moon. Crowds in Cornwall in south-west England, the first to experience the eclipse, kissed, cheered, and drew suns on the sand as the last light of Baily's Beads died.

Spectators throughout Europe and the Near East were equally awestruck as the Moon's shadow chased across the globe into Iran and then Pakistan.

A wealth of cultures greeted the same spectacular event in a variety of ways as the eclipse rolled past them.

Two French astrophysicists got married to one another minutes before the Sun and Moon came together, enabling them to watch the phenomenon as man and wife.

The BBC's Nick Bryant: Nature seldom offers such a brilliant spectacle

Thousands crammed the streets of Ramnicu Valcea, the south-central city in Romania where the spectacle of totality could be seen the longest - a full two minutes and 23 seconds.

In Egypt, Muslims shut themselves away on the orders of clerics. Others flocked to mosques as earthquakes and an out-of-season hailstorm intensified unease.

Jordan and Syria declared a national holiday, but warned people to stay indoors to avoid eye damage.

In some Indian villages, priests rang temple bells and took turns beating steel plates with sticks to ward off evil.

Emma Simpson looks at some of the best eclipse images from around the world

Not everyone greeted the event with enthusiasm. Russian TV found that Moscow residents were more worried about their domestic difficulties - with one woman commenting: "I'm not really interested in the sky."

And residents in Afghanistan painted a similar picture - too busy with a daily struggle for survival against poverty and the relentless conflict of 20 years to bother with the eclipse

"More important for us is our stomachs and safety," said shopkeeper, Gul Agha.

But for most, the clouds which denied UK spectators a clear sigh - and the rain which soaked those in Munich - could not obscure the wonder of living through one of nature's greatest spectacles.

An eerie twilight covered a vast tract of Europe as the wall of darkness raced towards Asia at 1,500mph (2,400 km/h).

The eclipse as seen from the Hercules at 1025BST

Darkness ruled as the Sun's smooth and rounded corona told onlookers and those watching on television that it would be back. But two short minutes proved the much quoted John Milton wrong - it was not "irrecoverably dark". There was hope of day.

Britain's best known astronomer, Patrick Moore, experiencing his ninth eclipse and an event he had waited 70 years for, was one of those denied a clear view by clouds.

"It was a very eerie experience," he said. "We were under total cloud ... the drop in the light and temperature was quite amazing and the rise in the end was equally remarkable.

"It was a strange experience but I am very sorry we did not see what was quite clearly a magnificent solar corona."

Crowds in Cornwall wait for the big event

The big unknown, of course, had been the weather. The forecast cloudy skies for southwest England came true. Just before the moment of totality in Munich, Germany, there was a torrential downpour, soaking spectators and denying a clear view. There were however clear skies in northern France, Turkey, Iraq and Iran.

Watch the first contact as the Moon appears in front of the Sun

Many national governments had warned people that looking directly at the Sun is very dangerous because of the damage it can do to the eyes.