I recently met someone at a gathering of mutual friends, and we discussed sundials. He mentioned that he had an old dial in his garden, dated 1597 (the year of the first performance of The Merry Wives of Windsor). This was definitely a lead to take up.
PROVENANCE: The dial was bought in the 1950s in (probably) an antique shop in (possibly) Amersham. It was put on the pillar of an old birdbath, and remains in the same garden.
The dial is small, 4.25″ square. The photograph of the whole dial is just about clear enough to zero in on some of the details. I am hoping that the available clues will lead to ID of Tho. the maker and / or of Morris; and to the conclusion that the date is accurate [I do have in mind the generic chunky ‘genuine c17’ dials on eBay that in fact date from a rather more recent era].
I’d be pleased to have any information, advice, reaction, interpretation, wonderment or perplexity in relation to this dial. My email is sundials@gaudiumsubsole.org; or add a comment.
On the perimeter: Tho W S fecit (?) 1597
Nearer the centre: Morris and a word or name that starts or ends with W and S depending how one looks at it.
GSS Category: Horizontal Dial; Dial Date; C16 Horizontal Sundial
GAUDIUM SUB SOLE . SUNDIALS . MEDIEVAL TO MODERN 
Hi Keith,
I didn’t respond sooner as I have nothing helpful to say, but I was most interested to see this one. I wonder if you have heard from John Davis on it (I don’t know if he follows Gaudium). He is much better than me on authenticating dials like this. It does look genuine to me and appropriate for the date.
All the best,
John
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John, I’ll contact you about this dial – interesting, and yes, John is involved. K
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