December 2021
Page 1

Editorial

Describes reduced Covid restrictions allowing the Newbury meeting and AGM. Introduces major articles: John Sill’s unrecorded dialmaker analysis, Fachkreis Sonnenuhren anniversary, Fleet Street dial updates, gnomon solution, French Calendar proposal, book review, Thomas Ross puzzle, and Fiona Vincent's obituary.
The BSS and Members

December 2021
Page 2

John Sill of Ulverstone: An Unrecorded Cumbrian Dialmaker

Analyses a newly discovered, unrecorded 17th-century horizontal Cumbrian dial by John Sill, dated 1737. It describes the dial plate specifications, unusual thickness, features (such as oak leaf borders), and XRF materials analysis, identifying copper sources and the controversial use of a selenium-based artificial patina during a past restoration.
Dials: Horizontal, Historical Dials, Restoration projects, Sundial Design & Layout

John Davis

December 2021
Page 6

Fachkreis Sonnenuhren: Fiftieth Anniversary Congratulations

Congratulates the German Fachkreis Sonnenuhren on its 50th anniversary (1971–2021), noting it is the world's longest-established national sundial society. Mentions a commemorative book and conference, and early members like René Rohr, along with historical difficulties communicating with East German diallists.
Historical Dials, The BSS and Members

Frank King

December 2021
Page 7

The Fleet Street Heritage Sundial in Central London

Chronicles the creation of the large Fleet Street vertical declining sundial, culminating in its 2021 opening. Key issues included City of London planning rules (e.g., banning current newspaper mastheads), securing funding during the pandemic, overcoming surveying difficulties using point cloud technology, and the logistical challenges of gnomon fabrication and installation.
Construction Projects, Dials: Vertical, Sundial Design & Layout

Piers Nicholson

December 2021
Page 10

The Fleet Street Heritage Sundial: Gnomonic Delineation with Uncertainty

Details the gnomonic design of the large vertical declining Fleet Street dial using Python-based graphics and established trigonometric routines. The model enabled flexible design adjustments, accounting for physical realities like the wall's step and the final highly accurate laser survey data, ultimately producing the precise instruction graphics for the painter.
Construction Projects, Dials: Vertical, Mathematics of Dialling, Sundial Design & Layout

Kevin Karney

December 2021
Page 12

‘Sunclock’ at Bodelwyddan Castle, Rhyl, North Wales

Presents the analemmatic human sundial installed around 2012–13 on the north-west lawn of Bodelwyddan Castle, North Wales, made of reconstituted stone with GMT/BST rings. The castle site also hosts an older, 19th-century horizontal dial by Troughton, found and re-erected decades later.
Dials: Analemmatic, Historical Dials

Christine Northeast

December 2021
Page 13

Point Clouds: A Revolutionary New Way to Survey, Delineate and Visualise Sundials

Explores the use of laser scanners and point clouds as a revolutionary method for surveying and designing sundials, accurate to a few millimetres. The technique was used on the Fleet Street dial to determine precise coordinates, declination, and inclination, allowing designers to calculate hour lines and model shadows regardless of surface irregularities.
Construction Projects, Dialling Tools, Mathematics of Dialling, Sundial Design & Layout

Chris Lusby Taylor

December 2021
Page 16

Minutes of the 31st BSS Annual General Meeting, Newbury, 21 September 2021

Official record of the British Sundial Society Annual General Meeting held in Newbury on 25 September 2021. Details include the acceptance of 2020 accounts, the re-election of Graham Stapleton, and the election of Jackie Jones and Frank King as trustees, along with the reappointment of the 2021 accounts examiner.
The BSS and Members

December 2021
Page 17

Obituary—Fiona Vincent November 1949–September 2021

Commemorates Fiona Vincent (1949–2021), the Bulletin's regular proofreader, noting her career as Dundee City Astronomer where she designed two sundials. Highlights her foundational work in positional astronomy web notes, contributions to the BSS Datacard, and research into moondials and small solar-system objects.
Historical Dials, Sundial Design & Layout, The BSS and Members

John Davis

December 2021
Page 18

An Ingenious Gnomon at Princethorpe College

Describes the carving of a south-facing sundial at Princethorpe College, Rugby. The central design constraint was placing a decorative sun disk where the gnomon point usually rests. This was cleverly overcome by using a gnomon featuring a detachable point which was removed after securing the main gnomon.
Dials: Vertical, Sundial Design & Layout, Construction Projects

Ben Jones

December 2021
Page 19

Pliny Revisited

Discusses Pliny the Elder's account of early Roman sundials, extracted from Natural History, Book VII. It cites the first recorded sundial and the first public dial brought from Sicily in 264 BC. The article notes that this inaccurate Sicilian dial was used for nearly a century before being superseded by more accurate devices, including a water-clock.
Historical Dials

J. P. Lester

December 2021
Page 20

The French Republican Calendar in English: A Proposal by Fabio Savian

Outlines Fabio Savian’s proposal for an English edition of the French Republican Calendar, providing solar declination and EoT values. Explains the calendar’s structure (décades, 30-day months) and its philosophical anti-religious origins, evidenced by the calendar's iconography, including a discarded sundial and using names like 'Dog' for Christmas Day.
Equation of Time, Historical Dials

Frank King

December 2021
Page 25

Book Review

Review of John Davis's Monograph No. 14, The Portable Saxon Sundial at Canterbury Cathedral. The monograph comprehensively covers the unique, small silver-and-gold Saxon portable dial, including its materials analysis, historical links to figures like King Edgar, and the ongoing debate regarding the exact method required for suspending and reading the gnomon.
Book Reviews, Dials: Portable, Historical Dials

Julian Lush

December 2021
Page 26

In the Footsteps of Thomas Ross. Part 37: The Crossford Conundrum

Detailed investigation into the historical changes of a cube sundial at Crossford, Fife, by comparing sketches and photographs from 1892, 1991, and 2010. The study resolved delineation errors, wrong gnomon placements, and incorrect Roman numerals, concluding the errors resulted from a rushed, poor-quality restoration following vehicle damage in the mid-1990s.
Dials: Cube, Historical Dials, Restoration projects

Dennis Cowan

December 2021
Page 29

Postcard Potpourri 57: Halifax Parish Church

Examines an old postcard (circa 1910-1921) of the sundial at Halifax Parish Church (SRN 0287). The high-resolution image helps decipher inscriptions, notably the motto "True as the Dial to the Sun / Altho’ it is not shone upon." Compares the historical view with recent photographs, suggesting the dial requires urgent conservation work.
Historical Dials, Mottoes

Peter Ransom

December 2021
Page 30

A Celebration Sundial: Using CAD-CAM

Details the design and CAD-CAM manufacture of a complex hendecagonal hectemoros horizontal sundial for a Golden Wedding anniversary gift. The process used Python graphics (Nodebox) and water-jet cutting to create a bronze plate indicating GMT, sunrise, and sunset, featuring custom algorithms for precise font skewing.
DIY Sundial Projects, Dials: Horizontal, Mathematics of Dialling, Sundial Design & Layout

Kevin Karney

December 2021
Page 35

Newbury One-Day Meeting, 25 September 2021

Report summarizing presentations from the BSS Newbury Meeting on 25 September 2021. Topics included historical dials, specialized designs (reflective gnomons), new projects (Fleet Street, residential dials), and discoveries (analemmatic dials, Combe Martin noon line, mass dials).
Construction Projects, Dials: Mass Dials, Historical Dials, The BSS and Members