The Human Sundial at Reveley Lodge Garden

This special sundial is called an analemmatic sundial or sunclock. It has been given to the garden by Frances Hurndall, in memory of her mother.

Most sundials show the time on a round dial with numbers all round it and an arm (called a GNOMON) that makes a shadow. On this human sundial there are two curves of numbered stones. The curves are oval shaped and have Roman numerals on them. You will see that there are no numbers between 9 o’clock in the evening and 6 o’clock in the morning. This is because the sun does not shine between these times in this part of the world.

On our sundial you have to make the shadow to tell the time and this is how you do it.

Stand in the middle of the stone which tells us this month. Stretch your arm straight above your head like the big hand on a clock. Look at where the shadow falls, this is the time now.