Re: The Pantheon
Colin Davis wrote: there is a small article in this weeks New Scientist about The Parthenon in Rome that it may have functioned as a sundial. The mid-day sun falling in the portico. Thanks Colin. Very interesting. It is at: Is the Roman Pantheon a colossal sundial? New Scientist 28 January 2009 by Jo Marchant Magazine issue 2693. http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126934.800-is-the-roman- pantheon-a-colossal-sundial.html or http://tinyurl.com/auh9nb Maria Brandl --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
Re: Statue and sundial
A non-member of the List has asked me to forward this question: I have a picture of an 18th century print of a plaster and lathe arch which was constructed to celebrate an election victory on Worcester [UK], replete with symbolism and classical references. On one side of the pediment is a statue of a female figure leaning against a pedestal with a sundial on top. The statue is paired with one of Liberty (blindfolded and with scales of justice) on the other side. I wonder if the sundial statue might be of Clio. Do any of your sundial collegues know of similar classical statues with sundials, who the figure might be, or what is symbolised? Have a look at this site: http://clerk.house.gov/histrecs/halls/House_vir/car.htm It shows Clio with a clock face so the connection is there between History and a symbol of time. Maria Brandl Australia -
Re: Reading at a Distance
x-richJohn Carmichael wrote: excerptfontfamilyparamArial/paramsmallerHere is a simple but a very practical question that I'm sure many sundial designers have asked themselves. I've never heard anybody discuss this topic before. Since I've been designing more wall dials lately, this question often comes up:/smaller/fontfamily boldfontfamilyparamArial/paramsmallerHow big should a sundial's hour numerals be so that a person with normal vision can read them at a known distance?/smaller/fontfamily/bold fontfamilyparamArial/paramsmallerI am wondering if there might exist a table of letter readability based on distances and letter size. Wouldn't sign makers need to know this?/smaller/fontfamily /excerpt Yes. A good source of information would be ANY major art museum (a national gallery for example). Contact the exhibitions department which produces wall texts and labels. Maria Brandl Australia /x-rich
Henry Moore
found this: http://www.wsanford.com/~wsanford/exo/sundials/aphmbes.html Maria Brandl Mallacoota -37° 33', 149° 45' -
Old prints
I collect old prints and stumbled across these beautiful ones. I cannot assess how practical these diagrams are but some of you might also enjoy them, so I send these links: Sundials and transits: http://www.antiqueprints.com/products.php?cat=88pg=2 http://www.antiqueprints.com/products.php?cat=88pg=2 http://www.antiqueprints.com/proddetail.php?prod=e2220cat=88 http://www.antiqueprints.com/products.php?cat=88 I do not know of the engraver Toms nor the publication Nature Displayed, 1763 but must do some web-searches. Maria Brandl Mallacoota Australia -
Re: Athens Olympics Sundial
Mark Gingrich wrote: Does anyone know of a Web site showing the design of architect Santiago Calatrava's fountain that also functions as a sundial? This is to be installed in Athens for the upcoming summer Olympics. The following news brief makes only a passing mention of it: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=olyid=1800813 No, but while we are looking I found these on a Google search which may be of interest: Santiago Calatrava and sun dial http://www.galinsky.com/buildings/MontjuicTower/ http://www.turtlebay.org/press/bridge.html http://www.turtlebay.org/bridge/index.html http://www.turtlebay.org/bridge/statistics.html M.M. Brandl -
Re: Message archive
Steve Lelievre wrote: I don't know how to find old messages for this list. I used to look at an archive on Yahoo Groups (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sundial/messages/), but the last message there is from 2001/07/11. Connect to http://www.astroarchive.com/g/ Click on search on the left Type for instance camera obscura in the box search for Select Sundial in the box Select list Maria Brandl Mallacoota 37° 32' 60S 149° 45' 0E -
Re: High Noon
Richard: Noon itself derives originally from nine or the ninth hour after sunrise (probaby 3pm :-) and not when it is apparently highest in the sky. Richard Mallett asked: So how and when did it get shifted from 3 pm to midday ? Klaus Eichholz wrote: My answer is High noon is correlated with the temporal hour None used by the monks. But as the Benedict rules demanded to have no food before this time it changed more and more foward. The same thing happened with vesper. [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: ...My understanding is that it derives from the term haute nones, i.e. the time during the period of nones when the sun is at its highest. Since nones is the early pm period, this makes it the same as our noon. By contrast, the term bas nones would be the time when the sun is lowest during nones, but luckily we have no equivalent modern term Low Noon as that would really confuse us all! I will try a summary. The term nones is Latin and the way that the Romans divided up time is a subject in itself. Their way of reckoning was inherited by the Christians and is still part of the way religious name parts of their daily office or cycle of prayers. [As a child educated by nuns, I recall that the convent bell rang at noon when we then recited specific prayers. Of course the bells rang at twelve noon precisely or 'high noon' as opposed to early or later]. The matter of how the Roman/Christian church reckoning of time became what we use today is another subject but no mystery. I just do not know where to direct you to look, Richard. Try a web search. I am sure that when the reckoning of longitude came into the argument, high noon became crucial and on this group we can all relate to that. BTW I hope you have all had the opportunity to see the wonderful Charles Sturridge film Longitude based on Sobel's book. Maria Brandl Mallacoota 37° 32' 60S 149° 45' 0E -
Re: High Noon
Mac Oglesby wrote: Now and then I run across the phrase High Noon. Can someone please tell me what that means? I didn't find it in John Davis' excellent glossary. I can find no straightforward response. But try these. Writers say: http://www.writersblock.ca/spring99/a-origin.htm High noon has long been associated with a crisis or confrontation. The classic western film of that name is not the origin, however. The term has been used this way in English literature since the 14th century. I have found online references to high noon referring specifically to Midsummer's Day or St John's Day (24th June) when the sun is apparently at the highest point for some days. (Druids, Masons). The dictionary also says high has come to mean important as in high priest. Noon itself derives originally from nine or the ninth hour after sunrise (probaby 3pm :-) and not when it is apparently highest in the sky. Well... you asked, Mac! Maria Brandl Mallacoota 37° 32' 60S 149° 45' 0E -
Re: Time Museum Auction
On 14 June Tom Kreyche wrote: There is an article in the NY Times today (Page B38 in my edition) about Seth Atwood and the (now defunct) Time Museum. According to the article, Mr. Atwood is now going back to Sotheby's. He is selling an additional 218 pieces from his collection on Wednesday, in an auction titled 'Masterpieces From the Time Museum, Part II.' For those of us who do not have access to a hard copy of NYT, here is the article. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/06/14/arts/design/14ANTI.html Note that you may need to register (it is free) to read the article. I have been registered with NYT for five years and have never been disadvantaged or bothered. Maria Brandl Mallacoota 37° 32' 60S 149° 45' 0E -
Re: gnome and gnomon
Krzysztof Kotynia wrote: My wife and I saw a delightful French movie, Amelie. A Gnome was in the movie. Does anyone know if the word is related to the word gnomon? Maybe it is. I have just been to my reference library to consult my countryman Eric Partridge on this matter. In his Origins: a Short Etymological Dictionary of the English Language [1966 edition] his first entry for the word gnome is the 16th century Latin reference by Paracelsus (a German-speaking scholar born in Switzerland) and explains that his gnomus is perhaps from the Greek gnome meaning intelligent and adds that gnomes were reputedly intelligent. He continues. The syllable gnom- occurs also in Greek gnomon, a knower, hence a SUNDIAL's index (knower of time) and carpenter's square. Altogether he gives 8 uses of gnome and I have reproduced the relevant two, although all the others include the meaning know. Hope this helps. Sounds convincing to me. (I have always thought of gnomes as first wily/wise. The diminutive size of a gnome is shared with a dwarf but a gnome is also knowing.) Maria Brandl Mallacoota Australia -
Re: Slopes and inclinations
Anselmo Pérez Serrada wrote: Now that you're talking about drainage inclinations, I'd like to pose a lexical question: Which is the difference between 'inclination' and 'slope'? As far as I can see, I gather that in English both are interchangeable terms that denote so the angle between some plane with the vertical line as also the angle made with the (horizontal) ground. You can only notice the difference through the context. In Spanish (and I suppose in other Latin languages) there is a difference, not always observed, between 'inclinacion' (=inclination?) and 'pendiente' (=slope?): the first one is the angle between the plane and the vertical line and the second one is its complementary. That's why we talk about 'La torre inclinada de Pisa' (the leaning tower of Pisa) but not 'La torre pendiente de Pisa'. ... Anselmo, you have taught us all something. In English, too, we would never say the inclining tower of Pisa :-) Like much language use in English we don't know why, but you have given us an explanation. Maria Brandl 149deg E 34degS (roughly :-) -
Re: a quotation for 21st c. gnomonicists
Woody Sullivan wrote: We can forgive a man for making a useful thing as long as he does not admire it. The only excuse for making a useless thing is that one admires it intensely. -- Oscar Wilde Wilde wrote many useless (and clever and wonderful) words - but then they are art. Seriously, this is the difference between art and craft, isn't it? One is functional and the other useless. So, don't worry about the useless or non-functioning sundial - regard it as art and admire it! Maria: 34degS149E (approx)
Re: Virus warning
Mike Shaw wrote: I have just received this e-mail, and I also found I had this Virus. Sounds as though its worth checking your systems. Just follow the instructions. I own a Mac so my computer is fortunately immune. However, for those of you with pcs I have pasted below an extract from a newsletter I receive. DON'T delete that .exe file from your system. Mike, the people who make up these hoaxes are despicable. Look at the site on hoaxes. You might then like to e-mail the people who received your original message. Maria Brandl Tasmania Extract from my newsletter: ANOTHER HOAX VIRUS ALERT There's another hoax virus alert doing the e-mail rounds. You might get an e-mail message warning you about the sulfnbk.exe virus. This hoax first started around April 2000, and it's cropped up again. This hoax message gives you detailed instructions on how to find and delete a virus file called sulfnbk.exe on your computer. The file DOES exist on many computers; however, it's a standard file that's part of Microsoft Windows. When you receive any virus warnings, I strongly recommend that you check out this Web site before taking any other action: http://www.vmyths.com If by chance you did follow the instructions in the hoax message, this Web page from Microsoft tells you how to restore it: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q301316
Re: Virus: A joke or alert
Steve Irick wrote: Ladies and Gentlemen: I would like to thank those who sound a virus alert even though it may turn out to be a hoax and especially with the sincerity to include a fix. We will collectively sigh a relief when deleted or laugh together if its a joke, but in every case appreciative. Yes, I agree. Helping one another affirms our sense of community - which is the very thing that friendly-faced hoaxes undermine. We need community even when we make mistakes. Look how many more of us now know about that virus because Mike sent the original message. Maria Brandl Tasmania
Re: Query about solstices
Hi: Roger wrote Determining that the sun had stopped its descent and had started to return with its life giving light, heat and energy was a critical event in most cultures. It is unfortunate that this has been lost in our modern cultures although solstice festivals still exist. How many realize that the lights, stars, trees, greenery, etc are all cultural residues of solstice celebrations. . We have gotten away from the real and significant event, start of the new solar year and now focus on festivals that have co-opted the theme. The constants in all these festivals are light, renewal, salvation, rebirth, whether it is Christmas, New Years, Epiphany, Saturnalia, Sol Invictus, St Lucia, Chanukah, Mother Earth etc. All celebrate the return of the sun. The current dates for these festivals reflect the difficulty in accurately determining the date and the calendar in vogue when the date was set. Saturnalia was a 10 day festival, Chanukah 7 and Christmas 12. Let's enjoy the whole solstice season and celebrate the return of the sun. Happy Solstice Roger Bailey Walking Shadow Designs Here is a site to help you remind others of the solstice. For me of course it is the summer solstice I celebrate. One card in particular on this site is good for both. http://postcards.rootsweb.com/ws1.htm I am sure many of you could add more clever cards but here is a beginning. Maria Tasmania below 40 degrees S
Sundial link
Hi: This introductory site is on the (national) Australian Broadcasting Commission site and may interest you to link to other sites. http://www.abc.net.au/arts/design/stories/materials/metal/sn_hm.htm Maria Brandl Tasmania
Re: Daylight saving has just begun...
Peter Mayer wrote: In parts of Australia it is claimed that daylight savings tends to bleach curtains (all that extra UV?) and confuses dairy cows! I have no comment on the bleached drapes but re those poor dairy cows, yes, they are confused by daylight savings. Why? Because farmers milk them an hour earlier. My brother is setting up King Island Long Life Milk and is dreading the complaints from thousands of dairy cows whose milk supply is already fluctuating as a response to the altered hours of milking :-) This is a true story. Re Fernando's comment about how DST plays havoc with health, I do know that having to rise that hour earlier in the dark and spend a longer time in chill air each morning was a very different start to staying in bed and rising when it was warmer. I guess more sensitive systems than mine could react badly. But those curtains??? H Maria Brandl Tasmania
Re: Motto in Corsica
Jean-Paul Cornec wrote: Hello, That is latin indeed, but the normal spelling should be : Ora ne TE fallat hora And the translation is : Pray, in order the hour does not deceive you (in french : prie , pour que l'heure ne te trompe) Found in the french book by Boursier (out of print) : Huit cent devises de cadrans solaires (Eight hundred sundials mottoes) Best regards Jean-Paul Cornec LANNION FRANCE 48°44'20 N 3°27'32 W Cadrans Solaires de Bretagne : http://perso.wanadoo.fr/jean-paul.cornec/index.html May I suggest that a possible rendering of this would be: Pray, lest the hour deceive you. It means exactly the same as Jean-Paul's translation but the word lest although somewhat archaic these days, is elegant in this situation, don't you think? Words on a dial should be at a minimum I am thinking. Maria Mallacoota, Victoria, Australia 35°17'S 150°E [more or less - I am better at words than numbers :-)]
