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Leigh Turner

Ambassador to Austria and UK Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Vienna

Part of UK in Austria

1st February 2018 Vienna, Austria

#ViennaMemories #5: the wall clock

Where did the clock come from? How old is it?

I would like to know.

My Vienna wall-clock, bought broken at the Naschmarkt flea market in Vienna in 1985, was the inspiration for my #ViennaMemories blogs. I treasure it because:

  • It is old. I do not know its date, but surmise the 1950s. I would welcome expert views;
  • It looks Austrian, with pleasing hints of Jugendstil design – although again, I am not sure;
  • Like other things bought in the Naschmarkt, I invested much time and effort back in 1985 to get the clock working. Originally, it had an electric mechanism with a frayed and brittle cable.  I took it to a clock factory in Vienna who told me that the mechanism could not be repaired. But they installed a quartz mechanism for 50 schillings which has been working ever since;
  • The clock frame is delicate. Every time I move house (since 1985, Vienna-London-Moscow-London-Bonn-Berlin-Sevenoaks-Kyiv-Istanbul-Vienna) I worry that the delicate glass cover will be smashed. Likewise when, twice a year, I take it down to adjust to winter and summer time. Long may it survive.
  • It is useful and an aesthetic gem.

Plus, every time I look at it, the clock reminds me of my long association with Austria’s beautiful capital.  On one calculation, since I acquired it, the hands of the clock have shown every possible time around 24,000 times.

Tempus fugit, indeed.

1 comment on “#ViennaMemories #5: the wall clock

  1. Thanks for information, Wall clocks may sound boring as decorative pieces but if selected with care they can add more meaning and character to the decor of your house. ⏰⏰

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About Leigh Turner

I hope you find this blog interesting and, where appropriate, entertaining. My role in Vienna covers the relationship between Austria and the UK as well as the diverse work of…

I hope you find this blog interesting and, where appropriate, entertaining. My role in Vienna covers the relationship between Austria and the UK as well as the diverse work of the UN and other organisations; stories here will reflect that.

About me: I arrived in Vienna in August 2016 for my second posting in this wonderful city, having first served here in the mid-1980s. My previous job was as HM Consul-General and Director-General for Trade and Investment for Turkey, Central Asia and South Caucasus based in Istanbul.

Further back: I grew up in Nigeria, Exeter, Lesotho, Swaziland and Manchester before attending Cambridge University 1976-79. I worked in several government departments before joining the Foreign Office in 1983.

Keen to go to Africa and South America, I’ve had postings in Vienna (twice), Moscow, Bonn, Berlin, Kyiv and Istanbul, plus jobs in London ranging from the EU Budget to the British Overseas Territories.

2002-6 I was lucky enough to spend four years in Berlin running the house, looking after the children (born 1992 and 1994) and doing some writing and journalism.

To return to Vienna as ambassador is a privilege and a pleasure. I hope this blog reflects that.