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The first time I saw our Grandfather clock, it was love at first sight ? even though it was only part of the backdrop to a photograph from the other side of the world. The photo was of my husband?s grandmother on her 80th birthday, in Denmark.

Some years later she died, and our Danish family offered us (their relatives in Australia) anything we wanted as memorabilia of a past era. My parents-in-law were at the stage of life when they had all they wanted or could fit in their home ? and so they passed the offer on to us. When we established for sure that the clock was indeed one of the items, we made our choice ? ?in a heartbeat? ? as they say.

Strong and careful packaging was required to ship our ?old darling? to us, all the way from Upover to Downunder. It seemed to take forever, but all good things DO come to those who wait ? and at last, all was revealed. And it had made the amazing immigration without any damage whatsoever ? ready to be wound up and work again. (I should add that we often had to hang it slightly ?off? centre to have it continue working ? but as it was trying to adjust to younger homes and a different climate ? AND considering it was not young anymore, we forgave it everything.

Our Grandfather clock is intricately carved Oak, polished over the years to a mellow, glowing golden brown. There is a ball atop a patterned half-moon shape on small ?turned? spindles, all on top of the first ledge. The whole middle section is the door, cunningly fitted with carved ?columns? each side, and a circular glass framing the face of the old clock, with numbers that can only be described as ?Algerian? font style, with ornate hands. The bottom section also has a ?window?, revealing the heavily carved old-gold pendulum, gently but steadily swinging its mesmerizing rhythm.

The ticking and single ?bong? on the half hour ? and appropriate number on the hours ? are a joy, with their deep and mellow resonance that seemingly makes the passing of the hours ? even the decades ? OK, and just the way Life should be moving along, somehow.

But the best and totally unexpected discovery was a brass plaque that had been too small to even know it was there, in the photo. Translated from the Danish, it says:

From the Townspeople of Nr. Broby

23/5/1909

Unbeknown to us until that moment, when my husband translated the words, and our parents told us the story ? this beautiful old clock had been designed and created as a wedding present for our grandparents ? to celebrate and commemorate the high esteem the people of their town felt for these two fine people. You see, our grandfather had not only been the Postmaster of the town for an untold number of years, but he was also the Bank Manager, simultaneously. Imagine that!

Source: http://www.augp.org/goods-and-chattels-our-grandfather-clock/

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