- Home
- /
- Sundial Encyclopaedia
- /
- December 2022
December 2022
The articles link to the specific page in a PDF optimised for speed. If you want the whole issue, you can download it here, but the files from earlier years can be quite large.
December 2022
Page 1
Page 1
Discussion of the death of HM the Queen, the Newbury Meeting talks, commemorative sundials, and introduces Werner Riegler's lead article on adapting tide prediction machines to calculate the Equation of Time.
Equation of Time, The BSS and Members
December 2022
Page 2
Page 2
Discusses how mechanical tide prediction machines, used from the 1870s to the 1960s, can be adapted to mechanically generate the Equation of Time. This programmable mechanism can be applied to heliochronometers or mechanical clocks, allowing for adjustment based on slow changes in the EoT.
Mathematics of Dialling, Equation of Time, Dials: Heliochronometer
December 2022
Page 8
Page 8
Report on the BSS Newbury meeting held shortly after the Queen's death, covering various talks including the French Republican calendar, Kings Langley Human Sundial, The Wonder Box Sundial, and several sundial restoration and creation projects.
Dials: Portable, Historical Dials, Restoration projects, The BSS and Members
December 2022
Page 13
Page 13
Minutes covering the reception of 2021 accounts, the re-election of Bill Visick and election of Ben Jones as charity trustees, and the reappointment of Counterculture LLP as examiners. Also noted discussion on declining membership and conference formats.
The BSS and Members
December 2022
Page 14
Page 14
Follow-up to a previous article, suggesting the dial seen by Uffenbach in 1710 was likely the remains of Gunter’s great stone horizontal sundial (originally 1622) rather than the fragile, short-lived pyramidal dial by Francis Hall.
Dials: Horizontal, Dials: Multi Faced, Historical Dials
December 2022
Page 16
Page 16
Research into the 18th-century Welsh dial maker, Meredith Hughes, a land surveyor and scientist. Describes his five known dials, including two complex ones incorporating the Equation of Time and geographical features, possibly outsourced for engraving.
Dials: Horizontal, Dials: Unusual, Equation of Time, Historical Dials
December 2022
Page 22
Page 22
Follow-up article suggesting the previously discussed small Belgian altitude dial is a rare Hevelius dial, possibly a unique wooden example using the time of sunrise as a proxy for solar declination. Analysis shows deliberate geometric simplification in its layout.
Dials: Portable, Dials: Unusual, Historical Dials, Sundial Design & Layout
December 2022
Page 24
Page 24
A photograph of a misaligned sundial located in the garden of the Klaeuwshofje, a courtyard of almshouses in Delft, Netherlands, founded in 1605.
Historical Dials, Dials: Armillary Sphere
December 2022
Page 25
Page 25
Explores 18th-century printed tables intended for travellers to estimate time using solar altitude and a divided walking stick. The calculations were based on Julian calendar dates and approximated the latitude of Coventry, prioritising simplicity over accuracy.
Dialling Tools, Dials: Portable, Historical Dials
December 2022
Page 28
Page 28
Discusses a postcard featuring the smoke from Le Petit Canon in the Palais Royal, Paris. This noon cannon, produced by M. Rousseau, was placed on the Meridian Line of Paris in 1796 to help people check their watches.
Historical Dials, Dials: Noon Lines
December 2022
Page 28
Page 28
Describes a Python program used to calculate weekly or daily Equation of Time values and insert them into a digital calendar. This provides an accessible reference for checking sundial accuracy and noting when the EoT is zero.
DIY Sundial Projects, Equation of Time
December 2022
Page 30
Page 30
Examines a rare lead disc found by a metal detectorist, which is 78mm in diameter. The design, featuring equi-angular spots, suggests it may be a portable unequal-hour mass dial designed for a rod gnomon.
Dials: Mass Dials, Dials: Portable, Dials: Unusual, Historical Dials
December 2022
Page 30
Page 30
Suggests interpretations for the terms "Areis" and "Stylis" mentioned by Uffenbach regarding the Whitehall dial. Areis might refer to the dial ground or open space, and Stylis to the gnomons.
Historical Dials
December 2022
Page 31
Page 31
Investigates three Scandinavian dials: the reworked Tingvoll Church Mass Dial (Norway, ca. 1200/1660-70), the ivory Falsterbo sundial (Sweden, ca. 1500), and the soapstone Vardøhus Sundial (Norway, 16th/17th C), discussing octaval and unequal hours.
Dials: Vertical, Dials: Portable, Historical Dials, Dials: Mass Dials
December 2022
Page 35
Page 35
Account of a three-week sundial safari in Hobart, Tasmania. Examines several dials including the Transit of Venus commemorative dial and a complex mechanism at UTAS. Ends with discovery of the 'Sundial Sea Shell'.
Dials: Horizontal, Dials: Unusual, Historical Dials, The BSS and Members
December 2022
Page 39
Page 39
Review of Maciej Lose's free eBook, "Vertical Stereographic Sundial," which extends the concept of the double horizontal dial to various vertical and declining dials using geometric construction rather than algebraic methods.
Book Reviews, Dials: Vertical, Mathematics of Dialling, Sundial Design & Layout
December 2022
Page 40
Page 40
Commentary on the Belgian Portable Altitude Dial, suggesting that using the time of sunrise as a proxy for declination is an interesting, layperson-friendly feature.
Dials: Vertical, Dials: Portable, Dials: Unusual
December 2022
Page 40
Page 40
Brief description of a small portable dial made by Charlemagne Viet (fl. 1673-95) in Blois, France. It features two polar dials and a folding arc to set the latitude for 16 listed cities.
Dials: Polar, Dials: Portable, Historical Dials