Equatorial dials

Headquarters of the Dutch Touring Club ANWB, The Hague

This large armillary sphere is set in the gardens of the ANWB headquarters in The Hague, close to the road. It has withstood the ravages of time well, presumably because of its heavy construction. On the other hand, all those hoops may give spurious shadows...

The sundial was a gift of the Dutch people to the ANWB at its 50th anniversary in 1933, according to the text in bronze lettering on the equatorial ring.
The dial was initially set in front of the organization's headquarters in Amsterdam. When they moved to The Hague shortly after, the dial stayed in Amsterdam for years. Vandalized in the early 70's, it was restored and moved to The Hague. It is here being admired by the Dutch Sundial Society during its 2000 summer field trip.

The time scale is worth some study. The top scale reads Central European Time, from 4 to 20 hr, the bottom scale reads Amsterdam time. The latter was the official time from 1909 to 1940. Amsterdam is located 5° East, so its time lags 40 minutes behind CET. Both time scales are divided per half hour and subdivided per 5 min. With each half-hour of CET goes a scale for the equation of time. This consists of 24 points, which thus give the correction per half month. The months are labeled alongside the 13 o'clock scale.
The time scale also takes the varying day length into account: only the summer months make it to the end, causing a tapering of the hour strip.

The dial had to be readjusted after its move from Amsterdam to The Hague (15' to the South, 35' to the West). It has been restored most recently at the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the ANWB. The time scale was calculated once again, milled into the strip and painted.

Location: 52.1° N, 4.3° E
Design: Ir. A. Boeken
Inauguration: December 1934, moved 1972, restored 1983