Curious Correspondence


I felt that this email conversation was worth displaying.

-----Original Message----- From: "Young, Kevin" KY160003@exchange.DAYTONOH.NCR.com> To: pignut@altavista.net Date: Fri, 6 Aug 1999 07:57:32 -0400

I am looking for a Moon Dial. By this, I am not talking about the usual kind which look/act like a sundial.

I am talking about the old Moon Dials. The illegal ones. Which align moonbeams through their aperatures.
Their construction was outlawed in the last century.

Any ideas?

From: Ian Sanders [SMTP:ab456@ab.sac.ac.uk] Sent: Friday, August 06, 1999 9:54 AM To: Young, Kevin Subject: Re:

I am somewhat confused, but fascinated. There are many types of sun and moondial which do not resemble the ones normally seen in gardens.

The only types which I can think of which could fit your description would be the reflected ceiling dial, in which sun or moon light is reflected onto the ceiling of a room, off a mirror on a windowsill; or the perforated ring dial, a portable type of sun or moondial, consisting of a broad circular band with a hole in one side, through which sunlight or moonbeams could be projected onto a scale on the inside of the ring.

I was unaware that any moondials were made illegal in the last century. According to Robert Graves, the industrial revolution and the age of reason were (metaphorically speaking) inspired by the sun god Apollo, who controls science and technology, and led to a rejection of the Moon Goddess who controls art, poetry and magic. It does not surprise me, therefore that moondials would be outlawed at this time. Perhaps the next century will see conflicts as environmentalists (inspired by the Goddess) are forced to choose between solar energy and lunar energy (such as tidal power or maybe even something more esoteric).

Why were the moondials banned? Had the Birmingham Lunar Society, the masonic think tank of the Industrial revolution whose symbol was a single solar or lunar eye, been overthrown in a coup d'etat by a rival group more dedicated to the worship of Apollo?

The transition from a lunar to a solar calendar was not an easy one, and almost certainly led to religious conflict. Today, Christians use a calendar with 12 "months" which bear little resemblance to the phases of the moon, whereas moslems still attach more importance to the lunar calendar and place the crescent on their flags. Moondials could easily be considered heretical.

I'm digressing again, and the forthcoming eclipse is affecting my brain. Please tell me more, I think this could warrant a page on my site (properly credited of course).

Ian

From: "Young, Kevin" To: i.sanders@ab.sac.ac.uk Subject: RE: Date: Fri, 6 Aug 1999 08:53:19 -0400

I believe they were used in "metaphysical magic". "Spells" against others using the projected beams.

Druidic?

From: Ian Sanders [SMTP:ab456@ab.sac.ac.uk] Sent: Friday, August 06, 1999 10:25 AM To: Young, Kevin Subject: RE:

Possibly. Do you have any source references for any of this? I am reminded of the massive orbitting mirror which the Russians were planning to put into orbit a year or so ago, supposedly so as to reflect sunlight onto the earth during the long Siberian nights. Could it instead have been intended to reflect moonlight to hex any American "Star Wars" defense system?

Ian

> From: "Young, Kevin" > To: i.sanders@ab.sac.ac.uk > Subject: RE: > Date: Fri, 6 Aug 1999 09:24:47 -0400

I saw the Moon Dial on a PBS special years ago.

About the same height as a regular sundial, but more solid underneath, with various aperatures in the rock for the moonlight to go through. The head tilted on it for you to direct the reflected rays.

Can anyone shed any light on any of this? Has anyone seen the program Kevin refers to? Do you own or sell this type of illegal hexing moondial? Please leave a message in the guestbook and let me know.


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