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| Keywords: Jacob Fröhlich - Beaker with a Sundial - Walters 58220.jpg This lidded beaker or cup is actually a timepiece More precisely it is an elaborate and rare type of sundial that is quite accurate Time is measured by the shadow of the tip of the gnomon the vertical rod inside the cup indicating the hours along the spiraling lines engraved around the side wall This tells two versions of the time according to different systems Arabic numbers mark lines indicating German hours which are like ours 24 of the same length making up one day Roman numerals mark the planet hours within one day the period of daylight is divided into 12 hours which change in length with the seasons At the time this timepiece was made the older planet-hour system was rapidly being replaced given a new emphasis on the mechanization of the clock with its hours of equal length The system of vertical lines and points marked by the signs of the zodicac- such as the crab for Cancer- indicates the date As well as telling the time there is a scale between the two types of numbers that established the height of the sun Finally a chamber under the base once housed a compass making this a multipurpose scientific instrument With its engraved decoration and reverse painted glass insets- with the days of the week represented by the seven planetary gods based on woodcuts by the German master Virgil Solis- this is a splendid example of Nuremberg goldsmith work Indeed the city's coat of arms featuring the Habsburg double-headed eagle is on the cap to the chamber under the base at left The beaker was probably made as an official present from the city The initial recipient may have been Francis of Padua identified in the inscription on the underside of the cover as a physician working in the Italian city of Forli but who is otherwise unknown ca 1560 Renaissance amelierung gilt on brass reverse-painted glass and colored resins cm 16 3 accession number 58 220 774 Raoul Heilbronner Paris by purchase Henry Walters Baltimore 1908 by purchase Walters Art Museum Henry Walters Acquired by Henry Walters 1908 World of Wonder The Walters Art Gallery Baltimore 1971-1972 place of origin south Nuremberg Germany Walters Art Museum license Renaissance clocks Portable sundials Renaissance applied arts in the Walters Art Museum Media contributed by the Walters Art Museum needs category review Media contributed by the Walters Art Museum needs artist review | ||||
