Horizontal (Spot-on) Sundial - Horniman Gardens, London Road, Forest Hill, London, UK
N 51° 26.474 W 000° 03.721
30U E 704175 N 5702988
Within Horniman Gardens, at Forest Hill in south London, there is a trail of sundials. These are of a variety of types that demonstrate how the sun is used to indicate the time. There are 12 sundials in all but only 11 are easily accessible.
Waymark Code: WMM6MB
Location: London, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 07/31/2014
Views: 2
Close to the first sundial in the trail, the scaphe sundial, there is a map showing the location of the others. As a suggestion, and to easily locate the others, pop in to the museum reception and ask for a (free) map of the museum and grounds. Return to the map and transfer the locations - it makes finding them a lot easier!
The Horniman Museum website tells us about this sundial:
Horizontal Spot-on dial
Design and construction: Piers Nicholson, 2004
Plinth donated by Acanthus Cast Stone Products
Spot-on dials create a clear and precise shadow whose outside edge indicates Solar time.
The markings indicate time in 5-minute segments. The slit through the gnomon produces a line of light across the dial at solar noon which indicates the direction of True North.
These features ensure that the sundial can be positioned and therefore read within a minute or two of accuracy.
Reading the dial
The time indicated by the outer edge of the shadow indicates Solar Time.
Correcting the "reading" |
Map of the sundials |