Regarding the recent theft of the Richard Whitehead dial at Dalemain House in the British Lake District, valued at £60,000, I photographed this dial in 2002 and in August of that year wrote to the House Administrator about its vulnerability. My letter contained the following words:
"You will be aware that yours is a valuable dial which could become a target for theft. All too many historic dials are stolen. Have you perhaps considered bringing it indoors and replacing it with a cheap modern dial outside? " Later I spoke to the Administrator about having a copy made. The price of a molded reproduction would then have been (from memory) around £500. This reproduction could have taken the place of the genuine article in the grounds. I spoke to the Administrator once more in 2004 and she said she was in contact with the owner but clearly nothing has come of it. The dial is of particular interest since it has a central compass rose served by a shadow pin (which was missing but easily replaced) and the compass rose was finely divided into intervals of one eighth of a point, giving pretty accurate azimuths of the sun. We should be aware, when grieving about the loss of a historic dial, that the need for security may sometimes sit pretty lightly on the shoulders of the owner. This dial need never have been stolen. Frank 55N 1W --------------------------------------------------- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
