Epact Scientific Instruments of Medieval and Renaissance Europe

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Scaphe Dial
Signed by Stefano Buonsignori
Dated 1584; Florence
Wood; 130 mm in diameter

This sundial is made up of a round disc, in which four cup-shaped cavities have been made. A cup-dial, or scaphe dial, provided with its gnomon, is in each cavity. A small compass is placed at the centre, to allow the instrument to be oriented correctly so as to allow the time to be read from the hour lines.

The painted, gilded and embellished instrument, provided with a lid, is the work of Stefano Buonsignori, cosmographer to Francesco I de' Medici.

Istituto e Museo di Storia della Scienza, Firenze
Inventory no. 2485

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