Before I-Phones, Digital Watches, Atomic Clocks, and Cell Phones, people kept track of time by the position of the sun and the stars. Our Celestial Timepieces are sometimes called Shepherds Watches, and they really can approximate the time on clear days and nights.
Now, we're not advocating you discard your wristwatch or mobile phone, but, nonetheless, these timepieces can be a lot more fun and attention grabbing...and they look really cool, too!
Each wearable Celestial Timepiece comes on a black silk cord and can be worn as a pendant. It can also be added to a keyring and carried in pocket or purse. Our sundials and stardials are functional and come with instruction on how to approximate the time.
Unlike the shadow cast method employed by traditional sundials, our Aquitaine Celtic Pewter Sundial captures a ray of light to determine the time.
In 1152, Eleanor of Aquitaine gave a sundial like this to King Henry II of England so that Henry would know when to return from the hunt for their "appointments."
On sunny days, just suspend the dial by its black silk cord and point the tiny hole toward the sun. Watch as a thin ray of light shines through to illuminate a number on the inside of the dial.
About 1 1/2" across. Comes with a black silk cord.
Saturn Glass Marble Pewter Sundial PendantSaturn was the most distant planet known to the ancients, and we now know it as one of the most beautiful sights in the solar system with its spectacular ring system. Our Saturn Pewter Sundial, with its marble center and flat ring, is evocative of the planet Saturn, and thus the name.
With the sundial placed on a flat surface and the 'S' tilted in a southerly direction, the time can be approximated from the faint shadow generated by the marble onto the dial.
The Saturn Sundial is made with a variety of marble colors--all of them nice. Let us know if you have a color preference, and we'll try to get as close as possible.
Stardials are perhaps to most accurate of celestial time dials. First used by 15th century navigators, Stardials work well because they sight the North Star, which is directly aligned with the Earth's axis.
After setting the middle wheel to the current month, the North Star is signted through the center hole. The top of the dial's arm is then moved to align with the uppermost stars of the Big Dipper, and the time is read on the inner dial.
About 1" across; 1 3/4" tall. Comes with a black silk cord.
Sundials were in widespread use in the New World, especially in the Mesoamerican city-states of the Aztec and the Maya. The importance of the calendar to all of the pre-Colombian civilizations cannot be exaggerated. These sundials are not true replicas, however. Most sundials in the New World were fixed and thus were not portable or wearable like ours. However, the design motifs engraved on our New World line of wearable sundial jewelry are all authentic.
Our Aztec sundial pendant is a bit smaller than our other selections and is a great choice for someone looking for a more petite pendant. It measures 1" across and comes with an adjustable black silk cord and complete instructions for use.
