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Description: | A Post Medieval copper alloy sundial with moving fitting, 17th century. The rectangular-sectioned dial consists of two rings: a circular band 11.9mm wide with an encircling central groove, and a thin, sliding ring that sits inside the groove. The sliding ring is made from sheet-metal and is slightly concave to make a neat fit with the groove in the wide ring of the dial. Each end of the sliding, sheet-metal ring has been folded back on itself a small distance, and these two opposing curves have been fastened together in a square-shaped clasp, approximately 3.8mm square. This clasp serves both as a fixed pinhole and as a handle to rotate the sliding ring. In this way, the pinhole of the dial, through which light is directed, can be easily aligned with the correct stage on the scales marked on the dial. A large attachment loop of an almost identical alloy has been pierced through at two parallel vertical points on the dial. Attached to this loop is a wire ring with a dark grey-black surface patina.The outer surface of the dial has the months of the year incised in a graduated scale, indicated by their initial letter. On either side of the scale are two pairs of incised parallel lines that slope outwards towards the central sliding ring to create a decorative frame for the scale. January to June are indicated left to right on the upper half of the dial, above the central groove if the attachment loop is at the right. These letters are stamped I F M A M I. By inverting the dial, so that the attachment loop is at the left, the months of July to December can be read from left to right on the upper half. These are I A S O N D. The earlier months are now upside-down on the lower half of the dial. When the dial is orientated this way, the markings on the inner surface are legible from left to right and the right way up.This inner surface is essentially the clock face. It is arranged in three horizontal lines - one for each season and each marked with a letter: S for summer, H for Harvest and W for Winter. The hours are marked with incised lines that are cleverly angled to reflect the angle that the sunlight will be directed into the dial, sloping to increasing or decreasing extents away from 12. The half hour is indicated by punched dots. The inner surface of the dial is therefore marked:S 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 S H . . . . . . . . H W 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 12 WVisible on the interior surface of the dial, to the left of the marked clock face if it is orientated the right way up, are the two terminals of the attachment loop that have been pierced through. The interior is hardly worn and the punched figures are in very fine condition. The exterior surface of the dial is slightly more worn but is still very fine. Both surfaces have maintained a bright yellow-gold colour, although the exterior has some slight patches of darker discolouration.Dimensions: width: 11.9mm; thickness: 1.82mm; diameter: 38.81mm; weight: 18.15g.
Original Image | Publisher: | http://finds.org.uk | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Identifier: | http://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/r... | Go to resource |
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