Time

An 18th century horizontal garden sundial

A beautiful 18th century horizontal garden sundial

A historic horizontal bronze garden sundial, 1723

A fine 18th century horizontal sundial stands in the gardens of the House of Dun near Montrose. The dial is octagonal made in bronze set in a carved and moulded stone raised on a baluster pedestal and stone step. Elegant tracery scroll work supports the gnomon.

The dial engraving is detailed employing delicacy of variation in deep and light incisions and ornament. The chapter ring carries exact time divisions down to a single minute. Continue reading

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Wall sundial at Royal Square in St Helier, Jersey

Wall sundial at St Helier, Jersey

Wall sundial in Royal Square at St Helier, Jersey, Latitude 49.1839° N, Longitude 2.1057° W. The inscription reads: REGULATE YOUR CLOCKS BY THE SUN DIAL. CORRECTION MUST BE MADE FOR THE EQUATION OF TIME WHICH IS GIVEN IN ALL THE ALMANACKS.

This beautiful sundial is set into the wall of the old Picket House in Royal Square, St Helier, Jersey. Historical records show it was made by a talented Jerseyman called Elias Le Gros in the 1820s. In spite of being plastered over at one time by the military authorities and then restored again in 1875 after a public outcry over the dial’s obliteration, it is now in excellent condition, as our photo shows. Our host for lunch that day told us: “The dial is much admired but of course it isn’t accurate.” Poor old Elias Le Gros, now was the time to rescue his reputation! Continue reading

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Skein of geese art installation at RSPB Loch Lomond

Skein of geese art installation at RSPB Loch Lomond

Skein Dial, Hannah Imlach, 2023. Art installation and sundial at RSPB Loch Lomond, with the artwork constructed in Corten steel in the foreground and the towering mass of Ben Lomond in the distance. This is a remarkable piece that captures the ephemeral impression of geese in flight and shows the dates when they migrate by a sundial shadow. Photo: Hannah Imlach

In November 2022 visual artist Hannah Imlach approached us to talk about an art installation she had in mind for the RSPB Nature Reserve at Loch Lomond. The reserve is a prime site where Greenland White-fronted geese come and overwinter. Hannah’s concept for her artwork was a visual image of skeins of geese flying in the sky combined with a sundial showing the times when the geese arrive and leave. White-fronted geese migrate from Greenland in the autumn and return there in the springtime to breed. Continue reading

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Our new address and a sundial in the garden

New address and sundial in the garden

A sundial already standing in the garden at our new address for Macmillan Hunter Sundials

Macmillan Hunter Sundials has been in business for twelve years. Until March this year we were at 3 Peel Terrace in Edinburgh, and now we have moved. Our new address is only a mile away at 37 Alnwickhill Road. This property has excellent accommodation and ample working space. When we first came, we did not expect to find a sundial already standing in the garden, and this was a pleasant surprise. On inspection it even proves to have been installed on the correct north-south line to read the time.

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The Sandford Fleming sundial memorial nears completion

The Sandford Fleming sundial memorial nears completion

The Sandford Fleming sundial memorial nears completion now the paving is laid. The memorial is on Kirkcaldy waterfront at the end of the High Street.

The Sandford Fleming sundial memorial nears its final phase of completion. The bonded resin paving surface has now been laid. Its creamy colour sets off the brown Corten weathering steel of the sundial extremely well, and it frames the oval shape, which represents Sandford Fleming’s main idea of a system of time that embraces the whole of the world. The sundial is furnished with brief text panels for explanation, and a new information board is on its way.

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Sundial memorial to Sir Sandford Fleming in Kirkcaldy

Sundial memorial to Sir Sandford Fleming

This is the analemmatic type of sundial that lies flat on the ground and the person casts the shadow to show the time.

The coastal trading and industrial town of Kirkcaldy in Fife, Scotland, was famous up to the 1960s for its linoleum. In an earlier age, Adam Smith the 18th century economist and author of The Wealth of Nations was born in the town. Sandford Fleming was born in Kirkcaldy on 7 January 1827. He pioneered the changes to standard time and time zones for the whole world. Continue reading

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Restoration of a small brass garden sundial from the 1930s

Brass sundial from the 1930s restored with a new gnomonThis small brass garden sundial had lost its gnomon. It is dearly loved by its owner who has known it since childhood, and she wanted to have it restored. As often happens at different times the family moved home and the sundial moved too. Continue reading

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Armillary sundial shadow one month on from winter solstice

Armillary sundial shadow one month on from winter solstice

The shadow of the ball on the sundial follows the sun all year round. The sun is low in the sky in winter, and it reaches its lowest point at the Winter Solstice on 21st December. This photo is one month later on 20th January. The sun is already higher in the sky, and the ball’s shadow has moved down.

Sundials catch a shadow from the sun. It is such a simple idea. The shadow on the sundial shows the sun’s position in the sky and the sundial reads it out as time, usually the time of day and often the time of year as well. Our armillary sundial is a special one with two balls that give the time of the year measured by the height of their shadow at noon. One ball casts a shadow in the winter months and the other one in summer. Continue reading

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Accurate Solar Time Sundial Installed in a North London Garden

Accurate Solar Time sundial installed and set up at the exact time of local Noon

The sundial is in our client’s garden in North London. The sundial faces due south. We set it up at Noon on 28 November, using accurate corrections for the Equation of Time and local Longitude. The photo shows Solar Time at 12.30pm.

The world of solar time has fascinating ideas to explore. Our accurate sundial is almost a compendium of what a sundial can do. The client’s wish was something special for their newly created garden, and our design of a vertical sundial display appealed to them. Continue reading

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The impossible Dihelion sundial photo

The impossible Dihelion sundial photo

We shot this impossible photo blind because there is no room to stand between the sundial and the house wall.

Dihelion is our well-known dual sundial design, which reads solar time and solar declination. It is impossible to take this photo in the normal way because the sundial is too close to the house, and there is nowhere to stand. So the photo was taken by holding the camera against the house and shooting blind. At a first attempt, the picture has turned out well. Continue reading

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