That’s great news Pedro, but the Adler Planetarium website says that the book 
is not in stock. 


Cheers, John

John Pickard
[email protected] 



From: Pedro Raposo 
Sent: Friday, August 16, 2019 7:13 AM
To: [email protected] 
Subject: New book: Sundials of the Adler Planetarium, by Sara J. Schechner


I am pleased to announce the publication of Time of Our Lives: Sundials of the 
Adler Planetarium, by Sara J. Schechner. Please find below a description of the 
book. Orders can be placed through the Adler Planetarium's online store (link). 


Best,
________________________

Pedro M. P. Raposo, DPhil

Curator and Director of Collections
The Adler Planetarium
http://www.adlerplanetarium.org/collections

  

Time of Our Lives: Sundials of the Adler Planetarium                            
                              

by Sara J. Schechner, PhD, David P. Wheatland Curator of the Collection of 
Historical Scientific Instruments, Harvard University 

Published by the Adler Planetarium 




The Adler Planetarium of Chicago has the best and most comprehensive collection 
of sundials and time-finding instruments in North America.  Now many of these 
objects can be yours to explore.  This volume encompasses a dazzling array of 
sundials, 268 in all, that date from the 15th to 20th centuries.

What makes this catalogue special is that it is written to engage 
non-specialists approaching sundials for the first time.  Although the 
organizational logic is astronomical and mathematical, the primary Interpretive 
essays set the sundials into cultural and social context.

The catalogue divides sundials into classes according to the element of the 
Sun’s apparent motion that they track (e.g. hour-angle, altitude, azimuth, or a 
combination) and the orientation of the surfaces on which the hour lines are 
mathematically drawn. Within each chapter, the instruments are organized 
chronologically and by workshop, thereby giving readers insight into that 
type’s development over time and differences among makers.  Technical object 
descriptions are supplemented by tables of divisions, gazetteers, saints’ days, 
weather forecasts, and in the case of polyhedral dials, the dial types, 
orientations, and hour systems drawn on every face.  The tables offer a 
snapshot of the precision to which the maker aimed and the sundial’s 
complexity.  Color photographs of each sundial show its overall appearance and 
details.

Chapter introductions go beyond mathematical descriptions of how each type 
works.  Drawing upon research findings presented here for the first time, the 
essays offer insights into early production techniques, fads and fashions, 
social hierarchy among users, the impact of church and civil authorities, and 
the history of the sundial classes.  

Throughout the ages, people’s sense of time has been influenced by their 
culture, politics, religion, labor, society, and geography.  This catalogue 
offers concrete evidence, for every sundial in it embodies the time-related 
needs and values of its maker and users.  

The catalogue includes a taxonomy of compass needles, glossary, bibliography, 
and index.  It is hardcover, 488 pages, 9.75” x 11”.



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