renticeship and his good
behavior, and to desire to favor him in every way, in such a
manner that will assure our gratitude whenever an occasion
presents itself.

For this purpose, we issue, as we have declared we wish to
issue to you, BARTOLOMEO ANTONIO BERTOLLA, this certificate of
apprenticeship, attaching to it the seal of our Corporation.

Executed in the city of St. Poelten on 27 December 1722.[12]

His apprenticeship over, Bertolla returned to his native region where he
soon established a reputation for himself as one of the most skillful
clockmakers in the Tridentina and produced timepieces of fine quality in
some quantity. No records have survived concerning his personal life,
but it is believed that he married probably soon after his return. He
had no children of his own. To expand his business, he eventually took
into his shop two nephews, the sons of a brother and a sister, as
apprentices.

Bertolla's work brought him a sufficient number of clients, and he
produced elaborate clocks for his more wealthy patrons.

In 1752, it is recorded that he repaired the great clock in the
campanile of the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Cles,
the regional capital of the valley of the Non. The clock dated probably
from the 16th century, and it seems likely that Bertolla replaced the
original two-wheel train with a three-wheel movement, and that he added
the present anchor escapement.[13]

It is not possible to determine when Father Borghesi first made
Bertolla's acquaintance, but it may be assumed that they had become
friends in the late 1750's.

After he had come to know Bertolla, Father Borghesi apparently spent
many hours in the clockmaker's shop. He was fascinated by mechanics in
any form, and the complications of clockwork particularly intrigued him.
Bertolla was patient with the young priest, explaining the tools he had
and their uses, the clocks he produced or repaired, and the principles
which were involved. Father Borghesi listened willingly and as his
understanding of timepieces grew, his curiosity increased.

In spite of himself, the priest could not be satisfied with the ordinary
aspects of his friend's work and wanted to learn more. From a casual
pastime, the study of time became an obsession with him. There was but
one recourse: he went back to studying once again. This time it was not
theology, however, but the sciences. Every moment he could spare w