A Brass and Marble Sundial or Noon Day Gun, French 19th Century.
A Brass and Marble Sundial or Noon Day Gun, French 19th Century. With rectangular marble base mounted with shaped gnomon, brass disk numbered around the outer edge and stamped with compass points and engraved ‘Sunny Haurs’ at the base, a large burning lens (some chips) adjustable against a quadrant and brass signal cannon decorated with two sea horses on the barrel.
Footnotes:
Cannon dials were popular around the 18th Century. The burning glass would receive the suns rays at noon and ignite a fuse on the cannon and thus fire the gun giving a signal for midday. All in the vicinity would then be able to adjust their pocket watches to the correct time.
£1,450.00
