Object: Sundial
The “shadow stick” is the earliest form of a sundial which was placed pointing up perpendicular to the earth and where it cast its shadow was marked. Egypt and Mesopotamia had shadow measuring devices as early as 1500 B.C. The Egyptians built obelisks or stone towers which helped people tell time as the shadow of the obelisk moved throughout the day. The earliest description of a sundial comes from Berossus, a Babylonian priest and author in 300 B.C. Vitruvius writes in book 9 of his Ten Books on Architecture in about 25 B.C. a list of inventors and their various sundials in which he mentions Berossus “Berosus the Chaldaean is said to have invented the semicircular one carved out of a squared block and undercut to follow the earth's tilt.” The first sundial was erected in Rome in the year 290 B.C. Later, one historian explains that the Romans desired to have sundials put in “every possible corner of their villas and grounds”. Cicero makes a reference to his desire to have a sundial placed at his villa in a letter written in 48 B.C. to Tiro. The earliest sundials in England of Saxon origins and may point to early Norseman dividing time into eight tides.
Ascension #: 2012.0003
The Randolphs may have had a sundial in their terraced gardens similar to this one to keep up with the fashionable garden décor of the times. The bronze sundial’s face has Roman numerals to mark the morning and evening solar hours and Thomas Hart London 1765 inscribed on it. Inside the Roman numerals that make up the outside ring are numerous scrolling leaf designs and Fleur de Leis along with a poem that reads in all caps:
Serene I stand amongst the flowers,
And only count life’s sunny hours,
For me dark days do not exist,
I am a brazen-faced old optimist.
Closing in on the center of the face is a small flower with feather-like leaves on either side around circle. On the inside of this circle are the cardinal directions and between each letter is a cloud. In the center of the face is the gnomon (Greek for 'pointer' or 'indicator', and also 'one who knows'), which casts the shadow, with numerous chased floral designs and a degree mark. It is a horizontal sundial, which has the gnomon lined up with the tilt of the earth’s axis. Horizontal sundials are typically the ones found on pedestals in gardens. The gnomon makes an angle equal to the latitude of the location for which it was designed. The angle of the gnomon is equal to the latitude of the original location for which the sundial was intended in this case possibly London, England.
This sundial was presented in 1975 to Wilton by Lester Gayle, Jr. in memory of his wife who was a Dame for many years. For more than thirty five years it had been casting the sun’s shadow on the house’s river side out in the elements because of the assumption that this timepiece was a 20th century reproduction of the original. It was not until the prevailing winds of Hurricane Irene brought a oak tree down toppling the sundial from its stone pedestal to the ground leaving it bent and discolored due to contact with leaves and other organic material that a surprising discovery was made. Upon investigation of the damaged sundial and to what extent it would need to be repaired, it was found that what had been basking in the sun for so many years was in fact not a 20th century reproduction, but an 18th century original done in 1765 by Thomas Hart of London. Only two recorded sundials were made by Thomas Hart of London. As one source notes, the rhyme was a 20th century addition as it suggests the word ‘optimist’ does not seem likely to have been used before this upon looking at the Oxford English Dictionary. The sundial has since been repaired to its former glory.
One historian notes how timeless the sundial is, “Sundials continued to be erected long after clocks came into use, and in the 17th century many fine specimens were erected. Clocks did not in any way diminish their popularity, and if the truth be known doubtless only helped to cause a greater number to be erected, since not only could they be relied upon to keep accurate time, but also to serve for the setting of a clock when it stopped.” The custom of having bronze sundials mounted on stone pedestals on display in private gardens began as early as the late 17th century. So as the Randolphs strolled through their garden on a sunny spring afternoon they could possibly have passed by a sundial such as this which helped them keep time as the hours of the day waned.
Come out during the 79th Historic Garden Week and experience being serene among the flowers and part of life’s sunny hours as you tour the gardens of many of Virginia’s historic landmarks. See www.vagardenweek.org for more details.
Bibliography
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