British Sundial Society Founder Christopher Daniel Passes

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Published: 25 May 2022

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NASS is saddened to report the passing of one of the UK’s pre-eminent sundial designer, Christopher St. J H Daniel who died on May 17, 2022. His works are to be found all over the UK, ranging from private commissions to major public works and to restorations and reconstruction of old and damaged sundials.

After a 13-year career at sea, Christopher Daniel joined the staff of the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich in 1964, working in the Department of Navigation & Astronomy. From 1967 onwards, his early curatorial responsibilities encouraged him to make a particular study of sundials and dialing literature. Christopher designed the now well- known "dolphin" equinoctial mean-time sundial at Greenwich, celebrating the Queen’s Silver Jubilee in 1977.  In 1989 he and three others founded the British Sundial Society.  From 1990, Christopher served as its Chairman, and more recently as President.  His expertise and artistry in sundial design will be missed.

Netherland Sundial Society Founder Passes

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Published: 04 December 2021

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Frans Maes of the Netherland Sundial Society writes: "We deeply regret to inform you that Hans de Rijk, founding member in 1978 and honorary member of the Netherlands' Sundial Society, passed away on November 23, at the age of 95. He served in the Board of the Society for many years and wrote some 150 articles in its Bulletin. Among these were important contributions, such as a latitude independent sundial, and the family of equator projection dials. A more playful result of his creativity were 'postcard dials', which he used to design while waiting for his Chinese take-away dinner."

"Hans was a popularizer of mathematics and astronomy and wrote many books about these subjects, under the pseudonym Bruno Ernst. His motto was: "Nescius omnium curiosus sum", I don't know anything but I am anxious to know everything. His eagerness to learn was equalled by his striving and ability to teach. He has been a teacher of mathematics and physics, founded the mathematics magazine 'Pythagoras' and the physics magazine 'Archimedes', aimed at secondary school students. He founded the first public astronomical observatory in the Netherlands. He also founded the organization 'Ars et mathesis', where art and mathematics meet, and its magazine with the same name. He became friends with the famous Dutch artist Maurits Cornelis Escher and wrote several books about Escher's work. Later on, he wrote extensively about impossible figures."

"Planetoid 11245 bears his name.".

"We lose a generous, inspiring, modest and productive diallist and friend."

The Netherland Sundial Society web pages is available in English at: https://www.dezonnewijzerkring.nl/pages/en/welcome.php?lang=EN 

Sundial Garden Sprouts in Vancouver

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Published: 09 December 2017

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He may be wheelchair bound, but that doesn't diminish Tom Laidlaw's enthusiasim for sundials.  In front of his house on Carolina Lane is the Vancouver Heights neighborhood landmark - a sundial garden.  And what has he planted?

There is a bright circular equatorial sundial that shows the time from 4am to 8pm (and even an offset for daylight saving time).  On the grass is an analemmatic sundial sundial marking time from 6am to 6pm for anyone who wants to stand to the plywood walkway.  On a table near the house are a series of globe, equatorial and horizontal sundials as well as other sundial types that he will gladly explain.  For example, Tom has turned a skate board into a polar dial by adding a "T" gnomon in the middle.  And then there is a model of the Jefferson dial where you swing the gnomon around a globe to cast only a thin line shadow

Katie Gillespie, of the Columbian, reports "The 80-year-old retired electrician has always been a 'do-it-yourself kind of guy,' he said. For a while, it was skateboards he fancied, and bookshelves, and a Benjamin Franklin chair that transforms from a chair into a stepladder. He’s self-taught, he said, researching new projects online, then diving in.... 'It’s fun to watch him talk to people about it,' said Debra Brouhard, Laidlaw’s daughter and neighbor."

His latest obsession is sundials.  As a member of the North American Sundial Society, Tom now designs a multitude of sundials.  Visitors see his yard dotted with all types of sundials.  They come in all sizes: big and small.  His analemmatic sundial on the lawn always draws attention. Nearby, a plumb bob dangles from a beam. allowing Tom to tell time solar noon. when the shadow draws a line on the lawn pointing due north.

Gillespie found that, "Laidlaw’s passion for sundials began in 2009, when his grandson, Doug Brouhard, stuck a stick in the ground while they were camping. Doug Brouhard was about 12 at the time, and the dial didn’t quite work, Laidlaw said. It was the right idea, though, and a new hobby was born. 'I still have the stick that started it all,' Doug Brouhard said."

Read more of Katie Gillespie's article and see more photos of Tom Laidlaw and his sundials at http://www.columbian.com/news/2017/aug/30/sundial-garden-shines-in-vancouver-heights/

BSS Sundialist and Webmaster Passes

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Published: 22 December 2016

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Richard Mallet, former British Sundial Society Trustee, Council Member and former BSS Webmaster passed away on Nov 7th, 2016 with funeral held on Dec 12th, 2016. He lived in Eaton Bray, UK and had many interest in physics, mathematics, and sundialing.  Those of us maintaining websites know of the difficulty in perserving order, yet always allowing for expansion of new material. "After a near disaster with the [British] Sundial Society's then  heavily modified and entirely non-compliant website, Richard stepped in at no charge to the Society to rewrite it using the then new Expression Web software from Microsoft.  This proved very successful and was of course fully W3C compliant."

Over the next year, the North American Sundial Society website will migrate from an older version of  the Joomla Content Management System to the fully maintainable Joomla 3.x version.  The majority of content and organization will remain intact, but new innovations are expected.

Read more about Richard Mallet's life at: http://www.ppowers.com/mallett.htm

Seattle - Sundial Capital of North America

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Published: 17 May 2013

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Italian Gnomonist Giacomo Agnelli Dies

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Published: 05 November 2011

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Dear Friends,

A great loss has hit our gnomonic community in Italy. Our friend Giacomo Agnelli died about a week ago.  Giacomo was one of the great gnomonists of the past. He had written dozens of articles in engineering and horology, also dealing with mechatronics [mechanical] sundials. He had worked at the European space project, and had frequent ...articles for our magazines [on] gnomonics. He had participated in all meetings of horology in Italy and was known for his satirical cartoons and gnomonic caricatures ...

Marjorie Kelly Webster, Collector of Sundials and Scientific Instrument Passes at 95

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Published: 16 June 2011

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Along with her husband, Mrs. Webster spent much of her life and fortune combing auction catalogs and antiquarian shops to create a collection of early scientific instruments so renowned, it is considered in the same company as the Museum of the History of Science at Oxford University and the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, England, according to Bolt, Adler planetarium vice president for collections.  The Websters are primarily responsible for the world-class collection of scientific instruments at the Adler.

NASS is supporting the Adler to catalog their sundial collection enhanced over the years by Marjorie Kelly and her husband.

Biography of Gino Schiavone

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Published: 11 July 2010

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Gino Schiavone: After studying Liberal Arts at Loyola University and Fine Arts at Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles I began a career of what I called “making wonderful things.” Some thirty years ago I happened upon some books about sundials at a library. This happy accident changed my life. These books introduced me to the wide range of sundials and methods for their design. I was enthralled and inspired; I was in love. I decided to make fine sundials and embarked on a new course of study.

Read more: Biography of Gino Schiavone