Monday, March 23, 2009

Ancient Builders' Tricks: Date-Specific Solar Illumination

By which I mean designing and constructing a building so that sunlight entering a window on a specific date can illuminate an object of the builder's choice.

Here's a pic for an example, a crucifix that is illuminated by the Sun on the spring Equinox:





I don't know if it is done with modern churches, but formerly churches were oriented, built along lines established by compass so that sunlight could enter the church at appropriate times. Orienting to a particular day is a more complicated feat, but has been done by the ancient Egyptians at Abu Simbel, and in Spain at the Cathedral of Toledo, to name just two examples.

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