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Declination Lines of Sundials

Portable Sundials

Interesting Sundials of the World

PORTABLE SUN sundials - Page 6

The discs are turned until a hole in the top one assumes the appearance of the moon on any particular night; an indicator hand then points to the age of the moon on a second sundial which is also fitted with an indicator hand to give the correction to be applied to the reading of the sundial to obtain the time of night. On the top of the cover is an equatorial sundial within which is a polar sundial, the whole resembling the stitching on a base-ball. Can anything more be desired. The instruments described above are old and the work of craftsmen. Few of us could hope to duplicate them. If you wish to make a portable sundial, why not try a simple one. Here we have five paper sundial plates pasted on a wood cube a north, east, south, west and horizontal with brass gnomons. The cube is attached to a hinged wood upright. A compass in the base aids in setting the sundial. These sundials were very popular in the 17th and 18th centuries. They are self-setting, by turning the cube until two sundials read the same time. The east sundial has a quadrant marked in degrees, with a plumb line attached to it at its center. This quadrant together with the hinged support and plumb line make it possible to set the sundial in any latitude. Such a sundial can be placed in the window and give much pleasure. Unfortunately, collecting old portable sundials is a hobby beyond the reach of most of us, for it entails much travel, particularly in Europe and Asia, where they are more numerous than in any other part of the globe. Those who have a desire to collect these small sundials may solve their problem as did F. Richard Bolster of Connecticut, who made his own collection. Mr. Bolster has done more than just make portable sundials for fun, although he certainly did have his fun.

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