Accession No
2342
Brief Description
horizontal dial, possibly by David Beringer, c.1800
Origin
Germany
Maker
B
Class
dials
Earliest Date
1800
Latest Date
1800
Inscription Date
Material
metal (brass, steel); wood (ebonised wood); glass
Dimensions
length 68 mm; breadth 67 mm; thickness 20 mm
Special Collection
Provenance
Bequeathed by R.S. Newall.
Inscription
‘B’
‘5 ...’ (faint on base; 1-2-2000)
Description Notes
Ebonised wooden base on 4 brass feet. Brass dial plate pierced for a compass bowl set into base. Hour scale divided 4 - 12, 1 - 8, numbered by 1, divided to 15 minutes. Folding gnomon for 48˚ N. 8-point (16-point (?); 1-2-2000) hand-coloured paper rose with 32 points marked. Stamped ‘48’ on the underside of the base.
Condition: good/fair; complete.
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:43300
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