The centrepiece is a cast iron turret clock with a 2.5-metre face that in the early 1900s was the eye-catching attraction of the Bristol Cathedral tower.
Removed during a renovation, the clock was shipped by a dealer to Australia and Ken bought it in 1974 at a St Kilda auction.
After he retired in 1980, Ken made clock collecting his new career and with Judy travelled as far as Russia and London to buy and view clocks.
While Ken saw cars as disposable, fixing clocks became his new challenge because they could tick over for hundreds of years – with each owner and repairer contributing to the clock’s story.
He has fixed clocks from little mantel models to the Tasmanian Government House tower clock.
With a keen interest in the mechanical workings of clocks, and not just their aesthetics, Ken became a prominent and respected member of the international clock community.
An auction highlight is a rare George II musical organ clock made in England about 1735 by Charles Clay with a catalogue estimate of $40,000-$50,000.
An unusual timepiece is the 1875 French clock set into a replica of the American Civil War ship USS Monitor, complete with rotating gun turret, lifeboat and faux waves.
The collection also features rare timepieces from Australian clockmakers Fritz Ziegeler and Charles Falck, both of whom are featured in books Ken published on the subject.
These rare timepieces feature three clocks by Falck, including an Australian hanging clock and two golden eagle swinging wall clocks, and Ziegeler’s tower clock and gravity tower clock.
Other attractions include a late 19th century Huon pine framed wall clock