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156
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Dial by Hevelius before Hevelius, dated 1616.
See original version (French)
156
-
Dial by Hevelius before Hevelius, dated 1616.
See original version (French)
Estimate €1,500 - €1,800
Voluntary lot
Description
Dial by Hevelius before Hevelius, dated 1616.
Brass; 6x5.8 cm and 7.3 cm with bezel.
This rare height dial, known as the Hevelius type after the example made by Joannes Hevelius in 1638 (kept at the Muzeum Pomorski and destroyed in 1945), predates the Hevelius model by more than twenty years.
We know of only one example that predates the present sundial. Kept in the Boerhaave Museum (reference V03096), it is unsigned but dated 1615 and bears a strong resemblance, both in design and decoration, to our 1616 example, which is also unsigned.
The brass dial for a single latitude, "POLUS 52 G. 35. M.", is constructed in the form of a disc with an ear-shaped appendage with a raised edge in which the hour scale is engraved.
A movable arm or alidade, the pivot of which is at the centre of the circle, is fitted with a small pinnule, and enables the gnomon to be adjusted to the date of the calendar engraved on either side of the dial.
In the centre of the side bearing the hour scale, a sun is engraved as decoration. The movable arm bears a hallmark of Belgian or Antwerp origin (many of the other known examples bear the Amsterdam crown or are signed by Dutch makers, including Sneewins).
A very rare sundial, this one predating the Hevelius model and bearing a Belgian, Flemish or Antwerp origin.
This type of sundial was built until the early 18th century. This is a particularly early model, being one of the earliest known.
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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