Equinoctial sundial with crescent gnomon

Johann Martin (1642–1721), signed
Augsburg, ca 1700
Signed ‘Johann Martin in Augspurg’
Gilt-brass; silver, partly pierced and engraved
Height ca 6 cm, width ca 6 cm

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A folding plumb bob support and, across from it, an adjustable semicircular arc for the times of day in the morning and afternoon as well as a scale for latitudes 30–90° and a gnomon, which can be adjusted to the month, are set on a square dial-plate with levelling screws. The dial-plate is engraved with the names of thirty-seven cities and a table of latitudes. This is also where the signature of the artisan who made this piece is engraved: ‘Johann Martin in Augspurg’. A native of Frankfurt am Main, Johann Martin (1642–1721) moved to Augsburg, where he became a master clockmaker in 1669. Apart from mechanical timepieces, Martin also made sundials and did a flourishing trade in partnership with his younger stepbrother, Johann Willebrandt. That he definitely targeted a distinguished clientele is shown by this equinoctial crescent sundial with its sophisticated engraved and pierced decoration on fire-gilt brass and silver. A special feature is the ‘perpetual calendar’ (‘Imerwerender Calender’) with two discs as dials for the ‘months, days and signs of the zodiac’ (‘Monat des Jahrs und Sonen Lauff’), which Martin added to the reverse of the dial-plate to extend the functional scope of this magnificent sundial with a further horological ‘complication’.