Utility and beauty
This large and impressive armillary sphere is both a working instrument and a prestigious piece of furniture. Once set up for the user's latitude it can solve problems of spherical astronomy, such as the time of sunrise on any day of the year. The sculptural qualities of the finely modelled base emphasise that, like many other mathematical instruments in the gallery, this was also meant as a decorative object of display.
Other narratives:
- Inventory no. 70229 - Epact entry
- Inventory no. 70229 - Former Display Label
- Donation to Bodleian
- Loan to University Observatory
- 400 years in Oxford
- Z.C. von Uffenbach's report on Bodleian curiosities