La rose tremiere

This is the second in my series of objects for my desert island, i.e. those things that have personal value for aesthetic or nostalgic reasons. I am surrounded by clocks all day so I do not have many at home. Those I have I keep, not because they are of great horological significance, but because I find them particularly pleasing or because of a personal association. This clock was bought at a flea market in Charente Maritime shortly after I had had a pneumothorax many years ago. Having been prescribed bed rest and inactivity for the duration of the camping holiday, I decided to strip the clock down and clean and restore it on our camping tables, much to the amusement or bewilderment of fellow campers. The only trip out I managed other than to the hospital was to the village of Talmont. The village is famous for its hollyhocks and it is, of course, the title of the sculpture on the clock; the flowers the girl is holding is une rose tremiere, a hollyhock.