This fascinating approach to sundials offers a rigorous appraisal of the science of sundials, including mathematical treatment and pertinent astronomical background. It also provides a nontechnical treatment simple enough that several of the dials can be built by children. 106 illustrations.

Table of Contents for Sundials: Their Theory and Construction

1. Historical Sketch
2. Kinds of Time
The Sun's Apparent Motion.
Differences in Longitiude.
Local Apparent Time.
Local Mean Time.
The Equation of Time.
Converting from Apparent to Mean Time.
Standard Time.
Longitude Corrections.
Conversions from Standard Time to Local Apparent Time.
Time When the Sun Souths.
Daylight Saving Time.
3. The Noon Mark
Finding the Meridian.
The Analemma.
Finding the Analemma by Computation.
4. The Equatorial Sundial
Showing Standard Time.
5. The Horizontal Sundial
General Appearance of the Horizontal Dial.
The Latitude.
Laying Out the Hour Lines Graphically.
Laying Out the Hour Lines in a Unit Square.
Laying Out the Hour Lines with Tabulated Angles.
Laying Out the Hour Lines by Computation.
Longitude Correction for Horizontal Dials.
Adjustment to New Latitudes.
Limiting Hour Lines.
6. Vertical Direct South Dials
7. The Vertical Direct North Dial
8. Vertical Direct East and West Dials
Direct East and West Dials by Calculation.
9. The Polar Dial
Graphic Construction.
Construction by Calculation.
10. Vertical Declining Dials
Graphical Method.
The Computational Method.
What Hour Lines to Include.
Vertical North Decliners.
Limiting Hours on North Decliners.
Measuring a Wall's Declination.
An Alternative Method of Finding a Wall's Declination.
Dials with Large Declination.
11. Direct Reclining or Inclining Dials
Direct South or North Recliners or Incliners.
Direct East or West Recliners and Incliners.
12. Dials Which Both Decline and Recline
13. The Analemmatic Dial
Laying Out the Hour Points.
Finding the Hour Points from Central Angles.
General Observations.
14. Reflected Ceiling Dials
Drawing Hour Lines by Observation.
Drawing the Dial by Computation.
15. Dial Furniture
Dial Mottoes.
The Equation of Time.
Showing the Time in Other Cities.
The Nodus and the Perpendicular Style.
The Sun's Azimuth.
The Sun's Altitude.
Lines of Declination.
The Use of Tables.
Graphic Approach.
Vertical Direct South Dials.
Polar Dials and Vertical Direct East or West D
Lines of Declination: Vertical Declining Dials.
The Length of Day.
Signs of the Zodiac.
16. Portable Dials
The Shepherds's Dial.
Graphic Approach.
Arithmetic Approach.
Tablet Dials.
Cubic Dials.
Portable Cross Dials.
Pocket Equatorial Dials.
The Universal Ring Dial.
Perforated Ring Dials.
The Sun Watch.
The Capuchin Dial.
A Very Early Portable Dial.
Time-Telling at Night.
Time by Moonlight.
The Nocturnal.
17. The Armillary Sphere
Methods of Measurement.
Laying out the Rings.
The Sun's Declination.
18. Memorial Dials
Headstone with a Sloping Surface.
The Cross Dial.
Star of David Dials.
19. Practical Hints on Dialling
Laying out an Ellipse.
Setting the Dial in Place.
Finding Latitude and Longitude.
Appendix
Table A.1 The Equation of Time.
Table A.2 Declinations of the Sun.
Table A.3 The Zodiac.
Table A.4 Conversion of Arc to Time.
Table A.5 Conversion of Time to Arc.
"Table A.6 Latitudes, Longitudes and Standard Time Zones."
Table A.7 Earliest Sunrise and Latest Sunset.
Table A.8 Sunset Times at Various Latitudes and Seasons.
Table A.9 Data for Laying Out Dials in a Unit Square.
Table A.10 Hour Angles for Horizontal and Vertical Direct South Dials.
Table A.11 Factor Table for Reflected Ceiling Dials.
Table A.12 Factor Table for Finding Distances of Hour Lines from the Equinoctial on Reflected Ceiling Dials.
Bibliography
Index

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