The sundials of Paris !!!

Posted in Europe, France, Paris

I am taken you back to Paris, yes a never ending story, The eternal city never stop amazing me of its beauty and things to see even if worked in it for almost 10 years while visiting zillion times living nearby in Versailles, Once again, found me older pictures in one cd rom that should be in my blog, These are wondertful architecture gems glad to have them here for you and me. Therefore, here is my take on the sundials of Paris !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I

History, customs and legends intertwine to introduce an unexpected and sometimes secret Paris, where shadows and lights harmonize in a labyrinthine puzzle. From the Îl de la Cité, to the doors of the city opening onto the woods or the hill of Montmartre, walk on the Arago meridian to touch the northern sight, touch the southern sight, visit museums, pray In churches, or cross the portals of mansions. Paris is indeed eternal, I am telling you all !

Paris would have more than a hundred solar dials ,the numbers differ but The Astronomical Society of France (SAF), which carries the number of Parisian dials identified them at 120, A bit of definition which I am no expert tell us that a sundial (cadran solaire) is a measurement instrument that indicates solar time by moving the shadow of a stylo on a surface, the dial table, on which a set of graduations is drawn (mainly time lines). The table is generally flat but can also be concave, convex, spherical, cylindrical, etc. The principle of the gnomon applies very simply to the sundial: the shadow of the stylo is projected on divisions created artificially on the flat surface, indicating the flow of hours. The shadow follows the sun’s race in the sky and gradually passes over each division. This is the reason why the science of solar dials is called gnomonic.

Some I have found some pictures to show in my blog, interesting as Paris always is and believe will be, These are:

On a building,at 4, rue de l’Abreuvoir, 18eme

Paris Cadran Rue de l'Abreuvoir, Montmartre, 18e

At the Hôtel Chenizot, 51, rue Saint-Louis-en-l’île 4éme , see a declining vertical meridian, in the interior courtyard

Paris Cadran hôtel de Chenizot, cour Rue St Louis en l'île, 4e

At the Hôtel des Vins, 68, rue Jean-Jacques-Rousseau 1er ,see a vertical dial, in the interior courtyard

Paris cadran Rue Jean Jacques Rousseau, 1e

On a building dating from 1908, at 18 Rue Perrée, 3éme, corner with rue Paul-Dubois, the building is decorated with a bas-relief of Jules Rispal running on the five floors, composed of a sundial, supervised by performances of the day and the night. The staircase of the building presents the shape of an octagonal tower.

Paris cadran Rue Perrée, 3e

The largest solar dial in the world has been found since June 20, 2009 in France, on the Castillon dam (Alpes-de-Haute-Provence). It covers approximately a surface of 13,000 square meters and indicates the solar time in summer from 6h to 18h thanks to the projected shadow of the overhanging cornice which crowns the dam, The “microdial”, a sundial designed in the United States was winners of the “Solar Cadrans competition for all 2022” in the “smallest dial” category.

The official La Commission des Cadrans Solaires : https://saf-astronomie.fr/cadrans-solaires/

The Paris tourist office on unexpected Paris closest to read about sundials, me think : https://parisjetaime.com/eng/discover-paris/paris-by-theme/unexpected-paris-i099

There you go folks, this is another memorable post on my eternal Paris! Yes, the most beautiful city in the world, is the least we can say, And while at it marvel of its wonderful architecture and history, Again, hope you enjoy the post on the sundials of Paris !!! as I

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!

Unknown's avatar

Published by pedmar10

I am a lover of travels to Europe , Americas , Africa and Asia as well ,who like to share my experiences of the last 53 years with the world, visiting so far 81 countries; living in 6, working in 5, and Citizen of 4, speaking fluently 4 languages. I can deal with sports especially football/soccer and love music, arts, wine collector/drinker, and go out to restaurants, and just visit the world. My background comes all the way from Candelaria and Pajara in Tenerife, Spain where my grandparents came from ;not knowing each other then, to Punta Brava, west of Havana, Cuba. There , my parents born in Cuba met and later on I was born there too. 100% guanche (annexed Tenerife to Spain on April 10 ,1496). I left Cuba as many have to Madrid, Spain where I lived for 4 years. Then, move to Perth Amboy ,New Jersey USA (living there 13 yrs) ; where I completed high school, became a US Citizen, learned to drive a car, and learned English. Afterward, went to the university in Florida, ERAU, and upon graduation decided to moved there to Ormond by the Sea, near Daytona Beach, finally moving North Miami, then Hialeah, then another moved to Silver Lakes division in Miramar, Broward county, Florida; in Florida I lived a total of 18 years. Finally , moved to France in 2003 ,Versailles call me for its royalty, and working in Paris was great. It was time to seek frontiers again and moved to Brech near Auray, Morbihan in Brittany , and later move to not too far Pluvigner. Total so far in France has been 20 years, and counting. Moving average a home every 5.5 years hopefully this will be my last. Cheers All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means or stored in a retrieval system of any nature, without the written permission of the copyright holder, me. No part of this work may be modified, without the written permission of the holder, me.No part of this work may be exposed to public view in any form or by any means, without identifying the holder as the author, and with the before mentioned permission.

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.