IsisCB Explore

Article ID: CBB198963506

A Textual Research about the Deviation of the Scribed Scale Lines on the Horizontal Sundial Attached to the Abridged Armilla Built during the Ming Dynasty and the Correction for the Longitude Difference (2014)

Liu, Yan (Author)
Zhang, Yang (Author)

Ziran Kexueshi Yanjiu (Studies in the History of Natural Sciences)
Volume: 33
Issue: 3
Pages: 285-297

URI: http://caod.oriprobe.com/articles/43821771/A_Textual_Research_about_the_Deviation_of_the_Scri.htm

Outside Links

WorldCat

Google Scholar

JSTOR

Academia.edu

Longitude and latitude Time measuring instruments Instruments, astronomical Time measurement Sundials Ming dynasty (China, 1368-1644) Beijing (China) Nanjing (China) China

There is a horizontal sundial built according to Western astronomy as an attachment of the Abridged Armilla now preserved by the Purple Mountain Observatory. The Abridged Armilla is a famous ancient Chinese astronomical instrument built during the Ming Dynasty. As for the past history of this horizontal sundial,most scholars over the last 100 years believed that it was added during the Qing Dynasty. There remains a major unresolved question about the scribed scale lines on the surface of this horizontal sundial. Between the scale lines for the high noon and the meridian there is an angle of deviation. The high noon line is deviated eastwards from the meridian line for about 2 degrees. The doubt is why there is such a deviation angle?With a comprehensive textual research on this doubt,the authors conclude that the deviation angle of about 2 degrees corresponds to the difference between the geographical longitudes of Nanjing and Beijing cities,and it must be designed by the maker intentionally. The authors note that during the whole Ming Dynasty,the official China standard time was Nanjing local time( named as"Time of Ying-tian") rather than Beijing local time( named as "Time of Shun-tian"). In order to directly and conveniently readout Nanjing local time through the scribed scale lines on this sundial in the city of Beijing,the longitude difference of the two cities must be taken into consideration when building the sundial. Such a longitude difference is just in accordance with the deviation angle of about 2 degrees as expressed by the scribed scale lines on above-mentioned sundial.During the last stage of the Ming Dynasty,the Chinese astronomers had already known something about geographical longitude and set up the concept of time difference between locations of different geographical longitudes. So it is reasonable to conclude that this sundial must have been built in Beijing during the last stage of the Ming Dynasty rather than during the Qing Dynasty.

...More

Citation URI

https://data.isiscb.org/isis/citation/CBB198963506/

Citations Indexes

Similar Citations

Chapter Anthony Turner; (2019)
A Mingling of Traditions: Aspects of Dialling in Islam (/isis/citation/CBB205481356/)

Article Sergei J. Maslikov; (2021)
The Greek portable sundial from Memphis rediscovered (/isis/citation/CBB969777967/)

Article Bir, Atilla; Günergun, Feza; (2008)
Ahmed Muhtar Pasa'nin tasarladigi tasinabilir günessaati ve kullanimini açiklayan “El basitesi risalesi” (/isis/citation/CBB001220709/)

Book Stefano Barbolini; Giovanni Garofalo; (2016)
Lo Gnomone di Santa Maria del Fiore a Firenze / The Gnomon of the Duomo of Florence (/isis/citation/CBB864404159/)

Chapter Chareix, Fabien; (2002)
Vaincre la houle: les horloges marines de Christiaan Huygens (/isis/citation/CBB000470750/)

Article Julien Gressot; Romain Jeanneret; (2022)
Determining the right time, or the establishment of a culture of astronomical precision at Neuchâtel Observatory in the mid-19th century (/isis/citation/CBB589620307/)

Article Richard de Grijs; (2022)
Historical Chinese efforts to determine longitude at sea (/isis/citation/CBB403328137/)

Article Chu, Pingyi; (1999)
Sanjiao hanshu yu Mingmo de Zhongxi lifa zhi zheng: Kexue de wuzhi wenhua shitan (/isis/citation/CBB000203106/)

Article Shi, Yunli; Wang, Miao; (2003)
Xing Yunlu's Determination of the Length of the Tropical Year Revisited (/isis/citation/CBB000500382/)

Book Richard J. A. Talbert; (2017)
Roman Portable Sundials: The Empire in your Hand (/isis/citation/CBB919547327/)

Article C. Philipp E. Nothaft; (2020)
The Liber Theoreumacie (1214) and the Early History of the Quadrans Vetus (/isis/citation/CBB165773348/)

Article Archinard, Margarida; (2007)
Une Classification des Cadrans Solaires (/isis/citation/CBB000773026/)

Article Savoie, Denis; (2008)
L'aspect gnomonique de l'œuvre de Fouchy: La méridienne de temps moyen (/isis/citation/CBB000954397/)

Article Mills, Allan; (2007)
Robert Hooke's “Universal Joint” and Its Application to Sundials and the Sundial-Clock (/isis/citation/CBB000760060/)

Article Wawrik, Franz; (2009/2010)
Zwei außergewöhnliche Globen im Oberösterreichischen Landesmuseum (/isis/citation/CBB001024589/)

Article Atilla Bir; Şinasi Acar; Mustafa Kaçar; (2015)
A Mathematical Analysis of the Theory of Horizontal Sundials in the Ottoman Period: The Case of Risalah of Ruhama (/isis/citation/CBB436990599/)

Article Arnaldi, Mario; (2011)
An Ancient Rule for Making Portable Altitude Sundials from an “Unedited” Medieval Text of the Tenth Century (/isis/citation/CBB001023562/)

Article Denis Savoie; (2019)
Philippe de La Hire : un astronome novateur dans la gnomonique et les astrolabes (/isis/citation/CBB257609144/)

Book Eagleton, Catherine; (2010)
Monks, Manuscripts and Sundials: The Navicula in Medieval England (/isis/citation/CBB001020520/)

Article Wright, M. T.; (2000)
Greek and Roman portable sundials: An ancient essay in approximation (/isis/citation/CBB000111316/)

Comments

{{ comment.created_by.username }} on {{ comment.created_on | date:'medium' }}