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'Dr Clock' aims to repair Ottoman-era clocks
'Dr Clock' aims to repair Ottoman-era clocks
A Turkish watchmaker who repairs antique clocks dating back to Ottoman times dreams of fixing and maintaining these clocks on the mosque grounds, visiting them on a clock-repair caravan tour. (Source: AA)
Mehmet Ali Karaçuha, 51, started his trade with timepieces at the young age of 17 in Istanbul’s historic Fatih district. He is also known as the “sole repairer” of antique wall clocks at historical mosques such as Selimiye in the northwestern province of Edirne and Suleymaniye in the Turkish metropolis of Istanbul, two masterworks by famed Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan.
"I have only one dream,” Karaçuha explained. "Doing a (clock repair) tour of Turkey by caravan," he said. "I want to repair and maintain all the clocks of the Ottoman era in the mosques without taking them out, and convey them to people, along with the history of the mosques,” he added.
At least until he joins a caravan, master craftsman Karaçuha practices his trade at the Saat Hastanesi (Clock/Watch Hospital) in Istanbul’s teeming Eminönü district. Karaçuha said that his biggest passion in the world is fixing timepieces. The very sound of a clock’s gears and ticking serves to soothe his mind, he said.
Saying that sadly few people now are taking up positions as apprentices, Karaçuha said: "Patience is the first thing in watchmaking.” His own master would make him concentrate on a single technical task for an entire day, he remembered, adding: "Our profession is excellent, but it requires a lot of patience and attention.”
"I used to watch him work,” he said, adding modestly: "I’m not a complete master yet.”
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