Cardiff's famous Pierhead clock will be moving to a new home.
Planning permission has been granted to move the clock from its location on St Mary Street in the city centre to the grounds of Cardiff Castle, just half a mile away.
The clock, encased in protective glass, has stood on St Mary Street for 10 years and was built in 1896 for the Bute Docks Building in Cardiff Bay.
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Cardiff Council acquired the clock in 2005 after it was left unused in the workshop of American collector Alan Heldman for almost 30 years.
A planning application to move the clock was submitted by architecture firm Scott Brownrigg states in December last year. The application proposed to relocate the clock to the Ward Wall tower in Cardiff Castle, which is a secure site outside of the hours that it is open to the public.
The planning application stated that the clock, in its current location, is "at risk" and "consistently sustains damage" from people, birds, and the weather. It requires repairs estimated at around £8,500 after suffering water ingress and damage, while its information panel has also been removed following an accident involving a vehicle.
"The proposed location of the clock within Cardiff Castle provides continued public access to this important historical asset while safeguarding its future against misuse," the design and access statement reads.
A delegated report for the planning application states that the current location of the clock poses a threat to the historical artifact as its maintenance fund has run out and it "consistently sits at threat of being vandalised."
The clock's inner workings will also be restored and refurbished as part of the relocation within the foundations of the pre-existing Norman walls.
The 130-year-old mechanism which originally powered the landmark clock was designed by Lord Grimthorpe and is almost identical to that of London’s Big Ben. Built by William Potts & Sons of Leeds, it was installed with the clock at the Pierhead building in 1897.
But the original mechanism was ripped out by British Rail in 1973 and replaced with an electronic drive motor. It was then sold at an auction in London and bought by a "Mr Pearce of London," who then sold it to clock enthusiast Mr Heldman in Birmingham, Alabama.
Mr Heldman had hoped to restore the clock, but family problems prevented him from starting work on it, leaving the ancient mechanism languishing, forgotten in the workshop next to his house.
Plans were put in place for the clock to return to Cardiff when he read an article about the city's missing clock in a journal.
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