Epact Scientific Instruments of Medieval and Renaissance Europe

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Sundial
Unsigned
16th century; German
Gilt brass; 155 mm in length

There was much ingenuity in the design of sundials around the 16th century and this idea is both original and extremely rare; it is the only known example of a sundial in the form of a spoon.

The hour lines are engraved inside the spoon, where there is also a hole for a pin gnomon (missing). In use (as a sundial) the spoon would have to have been aligned north-south and there is a space for a tiny magnetic compass at the end of the handle, though the compass itself is missing.

The spoon is gilt and finely decorated.

Museum of the History of Science, Oxford
Inventory number 50374

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