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| Herb Garden Luthy Gardens, Peoria, IL |
I have a thing about sundials. I love them! I search them out when we are visiting public and private gardens. I decided it was time to share a few of my favorites.
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| Luthy Botanic Garden one of two made in 1905 |
This sundial is nestled into a wonderful herb garden at the Luthy Botanic Garden. It had great plants, a bee skiff, and a wonderful brass entry gateway with the word "HERBS" which is must say I would like to have a similar version of one day.
I find that many times Sundials get broken, the center item that casts the shadow (called a gnomon) can be snapped off. This one at the Chicago Botanic Garden suffered this fate.
I find that many times Sundials get broken, the center item that casts the shadow (called a gnomon) can be snapped off. This one at the Chicago Botanic Garden suffered this fate.
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| Chicago Botanic Garden |
Another at the Chicago Botanic has a single spire in the center. This is not a common style it is called a Equatorial Sundial, as it can be read in both summer and winter, but differently so it needs a center spike rather than an angled gnomon. However they are usually mounted at an angle to match latitude and this one is mounted horizontally, so it may have been relocated.
Before we go too far, I thought I would explain how they work.
The Gnomon is the item which casts the shadow to tell the time. The Style (surface) of the gnomon always points directly north. One has to figure out north whenever placing a sundial in the garden and then adjust it due to the latitude you live at to get an accurate time. This is more important with a Vertical Sundial so that it remains pointing North and set at an angle to the horizontal equal to the Latitude of the Sundial location. The Gnomon therefore must be set at an angle to the 'dial' of 900. minus Latitude.
Sundials are categorized by how they are mounted - horizontal, vertical, circular or cylindrical. Most garden sundials are horizontal, like those shown above. They are easy to position. You make them level and point them north. Vertical sundials are often found on the sides of buildings. To be placed on the building they must be on the south facing side Circular (called Armillary actually) use spokes or wheels to tell time rather than a gnomon. They are a bit more actuate than those with a gnomon, but take some time to install and they must be placed at a proper angle. Cylindrical are the most rare and are more common in Europe than in the U.S. I have yet to see one.
We saw a great Vertical Sundial in New Harmony, Indiana on one of the restored buildings in this former Utopian village from the 1820s.
I used to drive by this one when I lived in Indianapolis, Indiana. It is on the Publix Theater Building.
This sundial is Armillary. I actually found two of them on the same trip, but it was sunny when I found this one, so you can see the time which shines as a number. The in-between minutes are judged by the thin line on the surface of the sundial. This one is located in a formal garden at the Rotary Gardens in Janesville, Illinois.
Before we go too far, I thought I would explain how they work.
Sundials are categorized by how they are mounted - horizontal, vertical, circular or cylindrical. Most garden sundials are horizontal, like those shown above. They are easy to position. You make them level and point them north. Vertical sundials are often found on the sides of buildings. To be placed on the building they must be on the south facing side Circular (called Armillary actually) use spokes or wheels to tell time rather than a gnomon. They are a bit more actuate than those with a gnomon, but take some time to install and they must be placed at a proper angle. Cylindrical are the most rare and are more common in Europe than in the U.S. I have yet to see one.
We saw a great Vertical Sundial in New Harmony, Indiana on one of the restored buildings in this former Utopian village from the 1820s.
I used to drive by this one when I lived in Indianapolis, Indiana. It is on the Publix Theater Building.
This sundial is Armillary. I actually found two of them on the same trip, but it was sunny when I found this one, so you can see the time which shines as a number. The in-between minutes are judged by the thin line on the surface of the sundial. This one is located in a formal garden at the Rotary Gardens in Janesville, Illinois.
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| Rotary Garden Janesville, WI |
Most armillary sundials have an axis arrow (gnomon) and a series of circles being the equator, Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn, making it resemble a globe. The gnomon is angled to the latitude of the location the sundial resides. This one is located at the Master Gardeners display garden at Purdue University.
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| Purdue University, Fort Wayne, IN |
A new trend in Sundials at Botanic gardens is an interactive style called Analemmatic. These dials are larger sundials on the ground where the visitor stands to become the gnomon. You stand on a spot based on the season or month to make the time reading accurate.
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| Quad Cities Botanic Garden |
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| Klehm Gardens in Rockford, Illinois |
Sundials are often placed in public gardens as a memorial. I have found several in cemeteries as remembrance. This one was placed in Dellwood gardens in memory of George C. Fox Sr. a Lockport District Park Commissioner from 1945 to 1958. It was the quote I found most interesting: "Dedicated to Serving his Community Service is the Golden Coin of Life"
Here is the surface of the sundial. It has my favorite saying on it. The garden it stands in looked great even in the fall.
If you are interested in more information on mounting and using sundials or on the locations and history of memorial and antique sundials, check out the North American Sundial Society https://sundials.org They have a nice article about the maker of the 1905 sundial in Peoria.
Here is the surface of the sundial. It has my favorite saying on it. The garden it stands in looked great even in the fall.
If you are interested in more information on mounting and using sundials or on the locations and history of memorial and antique sundials, check out the North American Sundial Society https://sundials.org They have a nice article about the maker of the 1905 sundial in Peoria.
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