Readers in the UK may look out for a photograph of a Tompion sundial in advertisements for Louis Roederer champagne. One was in last Saturday's Times newspaper. It shows the dial quite clearly, with the king's monogram, the equation table, compass rose and time markings. I haven't been to Hampton Court recently, but I went to Kew and am virtually certain that the dial in the advertisement is the one now at Hampton Court and formerly at Kew. Time is shown to 10 minutes. From the photograph, and from the replica at Kew, I cannot confirm the one minute divisions Andrew James mentions. This is perhaps because the dial is very worn near the edge, and the replica reproduces this wear perfectly. However, I would expect the dial was originally readable to one minute as the equation table would have been redundant otherwise.
Regards Chris Lusby Taylor -----Original Message----- From: Andrew James [SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: 11 October 1998 08:48 To: '[EMAIL PROTECTED]' Cc: '[email protected]' Subject: RE: Tompion sundials There are at least three genuine Tompion sundials known. Two are at Hampton Court; one is a double horizontal dial which was damaged in the fire a few years ago, and the other is a large horizontal about 50 cm diameter - there is a 1950's replica of the latter in Kew Gardens, where the real dial stood for 150 years. The third (again horizontal, but smaller and simpler) which was presented by Tompion along with the famous month going equation clock to the Pump Room in Bath in about 1709 was lost for many years and discovered c. 1970-1980 by Meyrick Neilson, who gave it (I think) to the Pump Room; it is on a windowsill outside there now. Although that is much weathered it is very well engraved. The Hampton Court ones are fairly weathered but I believe the Kew replica is a very good copy and it is magnificent with an ornate gnomon and 1 minute division, equation of time table, etc. R.W. Symonds' "Thomas Tompion : his Life and Work" (1953?, reprinted Spring Books, 1969) illustrates two very fine portable sundials signed Tompion and (then at least) thought to be genuine, as well as the one then at Kew (showing the plinth and gnomon only as it is taken from the level of the dial) described as very fine work; there is a page or so about his making of sundials. [Chris Lusby Taylor] <snipped for brevity>
