Big 4.5" Round Folding Sundial Compass in a Wood Box ( Brass or Bronze )
This circular sundial has an in-built compass, and stands on three legs
Diameter of compass is 11.5 cm.
A
sundial is a clock that uses the position of the Sun to indicate the
time. Typically a rod casts a shadow upon a plane or surface. On this
surface are found markings that indicate the time by the position of the
shadow. The sundial was first invented in the 15th century. They were
very common throughout the 17th & 18th centuries because all
mechanical clocks required a sundial to check that it was keeping
correct time. Anyone who possessed a watch was very likely to also own a
pocket sundial. Since every town & locality had its own time,
people required a sundial or clock to tell the time. By the 1850's this
had all changed because the railways needed to keep the same time
throughout a journey. So they adopted Greenwich as the standard time.
After which the sundial ceases to be of any practical importance and
remains merely as a decorative object.