Conference Edition The Recorder May 2009

Issue 7

An Occasional Newsletter for BSS Recorders — Grange-over-Sands Edition

Our venue this year, the Cum- bria Grand Hotel, stands at the A Lincolnshire Find southern tip of the English Lake In early May 2008, whilst wan- Determining the latitude, for art of dialling, i.e. the con- District. Windermere, pictured dering through a field in Lin- which the sundial was con- struction of sundials, was at above in a view from Troutbeck, colnshire with a metal detec- structed, by means of the hour its zenith, instrument-makers is just six miles away. tor, Tom Redmayne came -line angles, was not possible, were producing fine brass across a curious piece of lead due to the damage to the dial- sundials, often signed by the in the ploughsoil of the field. plate and the distortion of maker and quite often dated Taking this home with him, he carefully cleaned it, revealing crudely engraved numerals Topics in this Issue and radiating lines that resem- bled a part of a sundial. In-  A Lincolnshire Find deed, this is exactly what he had discovered. Fortunately, a  Ex Google ... few months later, whilst sev- eral members of the metal-  A Tale of Three Tails detector group, to which Tom belonged, were looking in the  The Welsh Language ... same area, another part of the sundial was found by his  Is there honey? friend David Chadwick, who generously donated the frag-  Favourite Devon Dials ment to Tom. More fortunate still was the fact that this piece bore the inscribed date ‗1688.‘ Shortly after this, a further piece of the dial was found, making three frag- ments in all; but still with parts of the ‗jigsaw‘ missing. Examination of the fragments confirmed them to be the re- Photo courtesy the DPC, Greenwich Here our chairman, Chris mains of a horizontal dial, cut these lines. However, from with the year of manufacture. Daniel, discusses a rare find . as a 133mm (5¼ in) square the circumstances of the find, Thus, this Lincolnshire sundial Few such non-professional dials dial-plate from a thin sheet of there is little reason to doubt is rare in the fact that it is have survived, and they enlarge lead and crudely delineated that the instrument was manu- made of lead rather than with hour-lines from the centre our understanding of domestic factured locally. Likewise, brass and that the date is of the dial, with Roman numer- life in the seventeenth century. from the stylistic evidence, the crudely inscribed in such a als denoting the hours from date of the sundial is not in fulsome manner. This sug- 4am to 8pm. The half-hours question. This is clearly in- gests that the sundial was are also indicated by ‗pin-hole‘ scribed in the southern sector commissioned to commemo- like indentations. The numer- of the dial-plate as ―May the rate a particular occasion, als lie within an hour-ring 30th‖ with the year ―1688‖ probably a death, by someone bounded by two circles, the engraved within a rectangular who was not well placed to outer circle having a radius of box. Below this inscription afford a fine brass instrument. about 65mm. Evidence of iron there is the single letter ―M,‖ Nevertheless, this individual oxide staining along the area which might have been incised was evidently sufficiently well of what would have been the in error or which might have educated to be able to deline- 12 o‘clock hour-line indicates been an intentional mono- ate the dial, or he knew some- that the gnomon was almost gram. one who was able do this. certainly made of iron, proba- bly being triangular in shape. In the 17th century, when the Page 2 The Recorder

Ex Google semper aliquid novi

Not everyone is what might be called a computer ‗buff‘ but it has to be said that despite the many pitfalls waiting to strike a Google cars may not be novice computer user, there welcome in country villages, are many advantages for the but no one can object to their modern diallist. Access to the capturing images of dials like BSS website glossary has these. Patrick Powers surely to be one and being browses the internet to good able to search your own CD- effect! ROM copy of the 2005 Regis- John Knox‘s ter must be another. But now, House in Edin- following the inauguration of burgh SRN 2069 The Seven Dials col- The dial at 3 Mul- Google Street View a new one (http:// umn in London, SRN berry Walk London, has emerged. tinyurl.com/ 0004, SRN 3778 At the time of its UK announce- dxpenr) (http://tinyurl.com/dc (http://tinyurl.com /djtlh3) ment in March 2009 the major wxev) streets of some twenty five UK cities had been photographed down the main streets of a and it is fun to see what dials by Google and the images photographed town or city can be located and some- added to their excellent map- and take a look at the build- times even to move closer in ping system. ings as they are passed. to see a little of their detail. Some of our best dial heri- Although the system is by no tage is on buildings that means complete it does allow have been photographed a user of Google Maps to move

The Noel Ta’Bois Collection — A Tale of Three Tails

The late Noel C Ta‘Bois pre- that Noel must have spent all ceded our Chairman Chris his spare time looking for dials Tony Wood, our Mass Dial Daniel as the monthly con- in the early 1980s, all in glori- Registrar, has been sorting tributor to the Sundial Page in ous sunshine! through a mountain of slides. Clocks magazine. Amongst this latest collection His articles were based on were two of particular interest - extensive recording of both perhaps providing a link with sundials and mass dials Noel‘s Clocks successor – two around the country. Surpris- dolphins and a cat! ingly, there are a very large number of mass dial pictures The dolphins are the well amongst the photographs. known ones at Greenwich and Consequently, as Mass Dial here is a photo of them in ac- Registrar, over 1000 35 mm tion, providing the little gap colour slides came my way. between their tails to tell the Fortunately they were all care- time. It all works beautifully. fully boxed and indexed and The other dial is tantalizingly the Mass Dial slides are now labelled ‗*******‘ and fea- being transferred to CD. tures a black cat whose tail The slides of scientific dials forms the gnomon. The dial is are now with John Foad and by Brookbrae and is a simple SRN 2157, Greenwich will enhance the Fixed Dial attractive design. Why Brook- brae chose a black ground for The Brookbrae Cat Dial Register with many pictures mark also appearing on the some of their dials is a ques- where we now have none. ledge above the window – so tion no doubt future archaeolo- it all looks intentional. Then, out of the blue, came a gists will puzzle over. When we further packet of Noel‘s slides, look at the location shot we All another mystery perhaps; this time from Pat Briggs, a see the cat high up on the wall fortunately now in the hands fellow Meccano enthusiast. and also a most unusual noon of John Foad, our Sundial This was a mixture of sundials mark formed by a flagpole and Registrar! and mass dials and confirmed window mullion, the noon Conference Edition Page 3

The Welsh Language on Sundials

Recording the Welsh language on sundials is not A third one in the BSS register is also in Gwyn- a major task as there are few known dials with edd (SRN 2205) and dates from 1816. See the Welsh inscriptions. register for the Welsh motto, (no translation yet!). There is a newscutting on this from a Welsh paper of 1921, inserted in a 1927 manuscript in the Another dial with a Welsh inscription is men- National Library of Wales (Harris-Williams 1927). tioned in Gatty. However, when it was seen by A correspondent expresses surprise at the appar- Harris-Williams in 1922 it was broken and the ent rarity of Welsh mottoes on dials. He asks stone was inside the church at Whitford in Flint- ―Were our forebears in Wales so imbued with the shire. Happily, it is still there, waiting to be pho- classic spirit that they would have nothing but tographed for the BSS register. His drawing Greek or Latin on their sundials, or is the Welsh shows it to have been a direct south vertical dial language not suitable for gentle moralisings on showing the latitude, and he quotes the follow- the flight of time?‖ ing motto: The present GWEL DDYN MEWN GWIW LAN DDEUNYDD recorder has MAE FFO HEB DARIO MAE‘R DYDD seen many dials (―Behold oh man, the day in Wales with It flieth without tarrying‖). Latin or English mottoes but Sadly, the last one has recently been stolen from none in Greek, its pedestal in a North Wales churchyard near Colwyn Bay. The dial was officially listed in and few in Welsh. Search- 1997, although the inscription was by then illegi- ing the BSS ble. It was dated 1731 and its rare Welsh motto Dr Irene Brightmer muses on register has was recorded by Harris-Williams: the paucity of Welsh produced three, MAE‘R HAUL AC AMSER AR EU HYNT inscriptions. Surely more wait and reports YN MYNED RHAGDDYNT CEUNYDD to be found? elsewhere bring GWNA DDYN DY ORCHWYL HEB YMDROI the grand total SRN 2736 MAE RHAIN YN RHOI I TI RYBYDD to five. NI BYDDI YN DY OES FEL AWR A DDERFYDD The best one is the fine vertical painted dial on St HIR YN RHODIO‘R LLAWR Cybi‘s Church, Holyhead (SRN 2736) which has (―Sun and time on their course recently been restored (illustrated above). Mrs Between them move for ever Gatty (1900) included the motto in her collection Man, see to your task without delay and had been informed it was written by a sixth For those two give you warning That you will not be long on earth century Welsh bard: Like an hour you will end‖). YR HOEDL ER HYD EI HAROS ADDERFYDD YN NYDD AC YN NOS Are there really so few sundial mottoes in (―Man‘s life, though be prolonged it may, Welsh? And are they only to be found in North Draws to its close by night by day‖) Wales? It is doubtful. There is a Welsh inscription around the edge of Members are the pedestal of the dial in the quadrangle of Ban- urged to look hard and gor University (SRN 4351, illustrated alongside): record any HED AMSER new finds to MEDDI NA! the BSS Reg- ERYS AMSER istrar. DYN A ―Time goes You say – no! Time stays Man goes.‖ Harris-Williams saw it in 1923 and described a ―bronze crescent sundial,‖ but this has clearly been replaced. Interestingly, the replacement SRN 4351 octagonal dialplate, while not incorporating a motto, does include some Welsh language. The graph for the EOT has ―add‖ and ―subtract‖ in English and Welsh (―adio‖ and ―tynnu‖) and the initials of the months are also in English and Welsh. Page 4 The Recorder

Is there Honey Still for Tea?

Bartholomew‘s Church in Ben- the honey crop. We have thall, Shropshire (SRN 3248). many other dials in the Regis- On a hot September day, the Beneath the carved quotation ter on churches dedicated to cool dark interior of the little across the top, hardly visible in St Bartholomew, but none of church of St Thomas at Harty on this picture, a hole in the slate them, I think, show any con- the Isle of Sheppey, is also alive reveals a realistic human eye nection with this tradition. with the sound of bees and the in coloured mosaic tiles. Does smell of their honey. But that, anyone know the significance However, another dial hous- and its mass dial, is a story for of this? The original dial ing bees can be found, this another time. dates from 1893, but a new time at St Mary‘s Church in plate was made in 1961. The Witnesham, Suffolk (SRN maker must have learned 3328). Arthur Mee, writing in more about what lies behind, 1941 in his King’s England but church records are silent series, said of this church: ―The embattled tower, with on the matter. an 18th century sundial, Below the dial, and separate flows with honey in summer. SRN 3248, Benthall from it, we find the reason for From time immemorial bees the motto. A small stone is have hived behind its sundial, Biblical quotations abound on carved in the form of the gro- and we were told that in the dials, but one which I had not tesque snarling head of Sam- time of the harvest of the seen before was that favourite son‘s lion. Between its open bees, when the flowers are of all lovers of golden syrup, jaws, bees fly in and out, nest- flooded with nectar, the over- ‗Out of the Strong Came Forth ing in the wall behind. There is charged combs overflow on Weakness‘ (from Samson‘s a long association of bees with the benches in the tower‖. riddle at his marriage feast, St Bartholomew, and his feast day, August 24th, coincides Judges xiv 14). It can be SRN 3328, Witnesham found on the slate dial at St with the time of gathering of

And finally - Favourite Devon Dials — John Lester’s Choice

1. St. Michael & All Angels, Marwood. (1762). Some would call it Jno Berry‘s master- piece. Declination lines showing hours of daylight, 11 noon place names, sun‘s azi- muth. SRN 0081 2. St. Peter, Tawstock. (1757). Even better. All that Marwood has plus boundaries of 6 astrological houses. Wonderful valley setting. Berry could monopolise this list! SRN 0087 3. Holy Trinity, Milton Damerel. (1808). A forthright dial typical of its era. For once the rector has managed to get his name above those of the churchwardens. Deep clear engraving. SRN 0096 4. St. Mary, Buckland Filleigh. (1727). Beautiful parkland setting. Roman numerals use ‗anticlockwise convention‘ but the most memorable feature is the churchwarden‘s name – Humphrey Chugge. SRN 2997 SRN 0087—Tawstock 5. St. James, Bondleigh. (1706). Wonderfully ornate despite the engraver having to dou- ble up the left hand inner border because he hasn‘t got the dial plate central on the slate. SRN 0099 6. Eastacombe Farm, Clawton. (1737).Small but interesting. Three separate hour scales – for Clawton, Jerusalem & ―Barbado‖. Twelve place names. SRN 6062 7. SS Peter & Paul, Ermington. (1766). Beautifully engraved even though the engraver has elided two words of the motto and still had to abbreviate the last one. SRN 0371 8. St.Mary, Diptford. (1694). A pediment of three discs surmounts this dial, a design peculiar to South Devon and Cornwall. It is mounted askew on the porch. SRN 0104 9. St. Andrew, Harberton. (1855). Mrs Crowley thought this dial ‗complicated and uninteresting‘ and didn‘t draw it. A surprising omission – it even has transversals. SRN 0376 10. Ottery St. Mary. (2001). In the hospital grounds, a fine reclining dial by Ben Jones. Its plate is tilted so that it can be read from the nearby pathway. SRN 5654