“My father turns 80 this year and we are looking to commission a sundial in celebration. Is this possible? What’s the process? How long does it take?” When this email appeared in our inbox one day in March of course we wanted to follow it up. It sounded such a lovely suggestion from the family. Later when we learned a little more it looked like a perfect plan. Continue reading
solstice
Armillary sundial reads summer solstice by the shadow of a ball at noon
The armillary sphere dates back to ancient times when astronomers created their own vision of the earth and the heavens. The idea still works today and our own design creates a sundial with a special feature of two balls that mark the passage of the seasons by their shadows. One of the balls reads summer solstice. This is the high point of the year when the sun is highest in the sky. Continue reading
Accurate Solar Time Sundial Installed in a North London Garden
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
An armillary sundial in early morning
An armillary sundial has a wonderful form. It has mathematical rings creating beautiful shapes with circles and lines. The sundial in the photo has just begun to catch the early morning sun in the garden.
The sundial gnomon is the slanting rod in the centre of the rings, and the wide sweeping band is where you can read the time. These features are the same as other armillaries, but our design has special secrets. Continue reading
New design of armillary sphere takes shape in Edinburgh
A new design of armillary sphere has been taking shape in Edinburgh. It is inspired by an original sundial from Northern Italy which has an attractive and distinctive form. The expert blacksmiths at Ratho Byres Forge have done an excellent job in working from our design. Continue reading
Summer solstice and a silver sundial
Summer Solstice 2020 in Edinburgh was a day of beautiful sunshine. What could be a better time to show off our Dihelion dual sundial, which can read the solstice and the equinox seasons and the daytime hours. Shifting patterns of sunlight and shadow and petals of the sunflower show through so clearly. There is a lovely Continue reading
Restoration of the obelisk sundial at Drummond Castle gardens
The sundial obelisk at Drummond Castle in Perthshire has a long and distinguished history. It has its place in the architecture of the ancient castles and houses in Scotland. It is connected with the very earliest days of the British Sundial Society (BSS). And it is one of the most important free-standing sundials in the British Isles from the early 1600s still surviving.
In 2017 after almost four hundred years outdoors the sundial was showing serious signs of the stone deteriorating. The whole structure was feared to be unsound. Making it safe had become urgent. Continue reading