Cleveland Museum of Art

Butterfield Sundial

Date

1700s

Medium

silver

Culture

France, 18th century

Department

Decorative Art and Design

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Butterfield-type sundials are characterized by their adjustable gnomons, metal flaps that cast a shadow on the dial’s face to indicate the hour, and geographical indices. This sundial has a scale adjustable between latitudes of 40° to 60° north. The latitudes of 26 European towns are engraved on its back for quick reference. With an intricately engraved silver face, it would have functioned as a fashionable traveler’s accessory. Butterfield-style sundials were named after Micheal Butterfield, an English scientific and mathematical instrument maker who worked in Paris between 1674 and 1724.

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