‘Enduring Present’

This antique Victorian-era musical box was given to me by my father - on my sixth birthday!. 

A Victorian himself (just!), he intended it to be a birthday present that would last a lifetime:- and so it has!

Housed in a rosewood box and very heavy, I still have a clear recollection of my parents unintentionally waking me up as they carried it into my bedroom together and wondering what it might be before I went back to sleep.

I remember I used to play it a lot and was always fascinated by how it worked (the spring is on the left and the governor, or air brake, on the right) and how it managed, by moving a lever, to play a total of twelve tunes!

Many years later, it stopped working - I'm not sure if all it needs is to be taken apart and given a good clean or if something more fundamental has gone wrong. (I suspect that the broken tooth may have been caused by enquiring little fingers long ago).

Now, after all these years, I realise that I would very much like to get it working again.