Saw to be in hand (6)

I believe the answer is:

beheld

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'saw' is the definition.
(beholding is a kind of seeing)

'be in hand' is the wordplay.
'in hand' becomes 'held' (I can't explain this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'be'+'held'='BEHELD'

'to' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for beheld that I've seen before include "Seen" , "Saw or observed in olden times" , "Laid eyes on" , "watched" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.

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