FRANCIS BARKER DIAL with LIBERTY ART NOUVEAU PEDESTAL

This is a gnomon-less sundial that I dug out of a pigsty at my home. I was about 10. The sty had layers of compacted earth and garden material that almost reached the top, the legacy of the previous owners. I had always wondered whether there might be hidden treasure, and eventually my curiosity got the better of me.

I gradually dug down until, suddenly, my spade hit something with a loud clonk. It took a while but eventually I was able to prise out… a prize. It has lived on as a garden ornament / flower pedestal for many years, with 4 changes of address. Eventually it has settled in Dorset.

Later – by then a BSS member – I sought advice about my dial. In due course Sue Manston included the dial in an detailed article by Jo Elsworth in the BSS Bulletin 118. Volume 33(ii) – June 2021

The author Jo Elsworth notes that similar dials have been described as ‘Antique’ and Art Deco. For the reasons she gives, the classification as Art Nouveau is the most approriate,

Also in the garden: a modern armillary sphere, watched over by Father Time

GSS Category: Horizontal Dial; Barker Sundial Plate; Liberty Sundial Pedestal; Art Nouveau Sundial.

All photos: Keith Salvesen; BSS article – Sue Manston, with thanks