Identification
ID in this catalogue | SL Louvre N 781 |
Type | L-shaped |
Current Location |
Musée du Louvre, Paris. Sully Wing, Ground Floor, Room 6, "Writing and Scribes", Vitrine 6 "Weights and Measures" (Louvre Atlas database) |
Catalogue Numbers | N 781 |
Provenance | Unknown |
Date | 1400-1350 BC (Louvre Atlas database) |
Dimensions | H 49.8 mm, W 31.8 mm, D 18.5 mm (Louvre Atlas database) |
Material | Wood (Louvre Atlas database) |
Markings and inscriptions | The reconstructed scale uses lines across the width of the scale in the 3:6:9:12:15 length ratios. The gnomon block contains a hole and vertical reference mark for a plumb bob on one side. "Amenhotep III offering Maat to the sun god; on the short side [opposite the plumb bob mark], the goddess Sothis "mistress of the year" (Louvre Atlas database) |
Notes | This is the gnomon part of an L-shaped sundial. It is on display with the missing parts reconstructed in modern material. The reconstruction also includes an ancient-looking plumb bob. The original relationship between the plumb bob and the gnomon is unknown. |
Literature |
Borchardt (1920) p. 32 ff. |
Images
Three images are available in the Louvre Museum's online catalogue here