A Catalogue of Ancient Egyptian Sundials. (November 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Symons, Sarah; Khurana, Himanshi
• Is Part Of: Journal for the history of astronomy. Volume 47:Number 4(2016:Nov.)
• Page Start: 375
• Page End: 385
• Publication Date: 2016-11
• Subjects: Ancient Egyptian sundials -- astronomical instruments -- shadow clocks -- database -- Egyptology -- ancient Egyptian astronomy; Astronomy -- History -- Periodicals; 520.9005
• DOI: 10.1177/0021828616675962
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0021-8286

Abstract

Ancient Egypt furnishes us with examples of different types of sundial from the New Kingdom ( c. 1500b.c. ) onward. Some objects that have been described as sundials are better evidenced as time-keeping devices than others. Hypotheses about the development and even the method of using sundials remain controversial in a few cases. New finds also add to our understanding of the development of sundials in Egypt. Here, we describe an attempt to catalogue ancient Egyptian sundials and the results that are emerging from the investigation.