STATUARY, TREILLAGE AND GARDEN FURNITURE. 



varies slightly according to the seasons, and not the mean time to which we are accus- 

 tomed. There is also this difference, that whereas we use Greenwich time throughout 



Great Britain, and Eastern Europe, each place East or West of Greenwich has, of course, 



its own meridian and its own time, which 



is registered by the dial. This difference is 



easily found by reckoning four minutes for 



every degree of longitude separating the site 



of the sundial from Greenwich. This gives 



us Greenwich solar time, and, to discover 



Greenwich mean time, which is what our 



watches show, it is necessary to consult a 



special calendar which shows the difference 



for each day in the year between the two 



systems, or the calendar may be so arranged 



as to translate local solar time directly 



into that shown by ordinary clocks and 



watches. In most of the better dials, this 



calendar is engraved on the plate itself, and, 



in vertical dials placed on the four sides 



of a block of stone, such as that in illustra- 

 tion No. 234 previously referred to, that 



which would face North may be omitted, 



substituting for it a plate engraved with 



the calendar and other interesting informa- 

 tion such as the latitude and longitude, the 



family escutcheon, the date, or a quaint 



sundial motto. 



The ordinary horizontal dial plate may 



also be given additional interest by the 



application of chaste and restrained ornament. The centre is, of course, occupied by 



the dial markings, but there remain the margins and corners, which may be treated with 



chased ornament or bas reliefs in the manner indicated on the sketch of the plate 



accompanying illustration No. 205. 



A mechanical sundial has recently been introduced, which, by projecting a spot of 



light on to a mark, shows Greenwich mean time most accurately to at least half a 



minute, but, like many other modern improvements, it has none of the charm and 



esthetic interest which clings around the old 

 form of dial. It may be used with ad- 

 vantage on the principal terrace opposite 

 and close to the garden entrance to the 

 house for practical purposes, but, in other 

 parts of the pleasaunce, the older form, 

 with its graceful gnomon and quaint motto 

 will usually be preferred. 



Both illustrations Nos. 205, 206 and 

 207 show designs for 

 sundial pedestals which 

 would suit most positions 

 where it is desired to 

 give emphasis to the 

 FIG. 205. DESIGN FOR A SUNDIAL. central point in a garden 



FIG. 204. ACROLITH IN THE FORMAL GARDEN. 

 BROCKENHURST. 



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