Accession No

6844

Brief Description

eagle-form horizontal dial, purportedly by Jacob Senebier, Swiss, but actually a 19th century fake

Origin

Switzerland?

Maker

Jacob Senebier?

Class

dials

Earliest Date

1850

Latest Date

1900

Inscription Date

Material

metal (brass, black brass)

Dimensions

165mm (width), 180mm (depth), 65mm (height)

Special Collection

Provenance

Purchased from Tesseract July 2025. Purchased from a French dealer by a private individual c. 2015.

Inscription

Jacob Senebier [front of plate]

Description Notes

Eagle-form horizontal dial, purportedly by Jacob Senebier, Swiss, but actually a 19th century fake.

Circular brass horizontal dial with intricate decorative elements around the outside. The horizontal dial itself is marked around the rim with the hours of the clock in Roman numerals, running from VI to XII and I to VI. The dial is signed with the supposed maker's name, and features a gnomon which is mounted so that it can be folded down flat against the plate. There is a lunar volvelle set onto the dial, which can spin to reveal the four phases of the moon, and is marked with a twice-12 hour scale reading against 29-1/2 calendar scale. The dial is mounted at the centre of intricate decorative brasswork, depicting a crowned, twin-headed eagle, holding a sword in one hand and a sceptre in the other. The reverse of the plate is blank.

References

Events