Thai Binh: Van Thuoc from Vietnam has a penchant for collecting historical church clocks and has searched for them all across Europe since the past two decades. After buying them, Pham Van Thuoc brings them back home in Vietnam and restores them.
HOW MANY CLOCKS DOES PHAM OWN?
So far, Pham Van Thuoc has collected 20 clocks. Most of them are more than a hundred years old and one is so big, it weighs a tonne. His clocks are housed in a warehouse in the northern Thai Binh province, Reuters reports.
As per Pham, his collection of clocks is one of the largest in the world. Not only does he enjoy looking for the clocks, but also likes figuring out how they work and how to fix them.
“I have an Italian made-clock which is the oldest one and dates back to the year 1750. Probably the thing I like most about it is that despite being made years ago, it has stayed true to its purpose which is to count the time, and it does that extremely accurately,” Pham told Reuters.
PHAM SHARES INTERESTING STORIES
Speaking to Reuters about his experience of collecting ancient clocks, Pham said he once spent two years befriending a European owner before convincing him to part with a particular clock. He added that he has yet to see two identical historical clocks even when the clocks were made in the same year by the same manufacturer.
ACCOLADES AND RECOGNITION
Thuoc has been recognised by the Vietnam Records Association for the largest collection of public clocks in the country.
The clocks remind him, Pham told Reuters, of “how valuable time is, and that I should treasure every minute and every second.”
https://www.indiatoday.in/trending-news/story/vietnamese-man-collects-and-restores-european-church-clocks-to-preserve-history-1748732-2020-12-11