Vertical Sundial, Brighton Park

Image: © Ian Dodds Taken: 8 May 2021

It seems a shame that this sundial hasn't been restored to some kind of working order, particularly with all the welcome improvements to public spaces that have been going on over the last few years. Considering that the hours from 4am to 2pm are shown on this face, which faces Southwest, it would need to be reoriented to start with, which would probably be quite an undertaking. And even then, it may be that there are too many tall buildings close by to make it a worthwhile project. The sundial was originally located at The Tower, a very old building near the seafront in Portobello. It dates from the 1700s, though alterations were made, including the addition of the thistle on top, the following century. The three black rectangular marks must be where the metal piece that created the necessary shadow was attached originally. I was surprised to see that there was a separate sundial on each of the four sides of the structure. I was always under the impression that in the Northern Hemisphere the sun always stuck to the Southern half of the sky. However, it seems this is only the case in winter. The only days of the year that the sun rises exactly in the East and sets exactly in the West are the two equinoxes. In the summer months the sun rises towards the NorthEast, and sets towards the NorthWest. Conversely, in the winter months the sun rises towards the SouthEast and sets towards the SouthWest.

Images are licensed for reuse under creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0