Accession No
0604
Brief Description
horizontal dial by Franz van den Eÿnde Puers, c.1800
Origin
Maker
Van den Eynde. Franz
Class
dials
Earliest Date
1800
Latest Date
1800
Inscription Date
Material
metal (brass); stone (marble, alabaster)
Dimensions
length 100mm; breadth 100mm; thickness 43mm
Special Collection
Robert Whipple collection
Provenance
Purchased in Brussels in 04/1930.
Inscription
‘Franz van den Eÿnde Puers’ (hour ring)
Description Notes
Brass hour ring divided IIII - XII, I - VIII, numbered by I, subdivided to 30 minutes. Fixed gnomon.
Four screws attach dial to base (tin or plastic?) and then to base of 2kinds of marble (green and red) and alabaster.
Dial probably original and later added to alabaster and marble base to act as paperweight.
Condition: fair.
References
Events
Description
The horizontal dial is the most common form of sundial. The portable version proved very popular with the upper classes during the 19th Century. During this period it could best be described as the wristwatch of its day.
The hour lines are engraved onto a horizontal surface, with a gnomon (pointer) in the centre. Seasonal variations (caused by the earth’s orbit being elliptical, not circular) have to be compensated for, as they can affect the raw reading by up to 18 minutes.
18/10/2002
Created by: Saffron Clackson and Boris Jardine on 18/10/2002
FM:43131
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