This early model has a turned sycamore case with push-fit lid, the underside with paper maker''s label ''Porter''s Magnetic Sun Dial on the Floating Compass Card''.The dial-plate with brass gnomon sits on a compass card, signed ''S. Porter Fecit Feby 16 1824 Entered at Stationer''s Hall'' All suspended in liquid under a convex glass dome.Just 5.5cm diameter.Notes:Samuel Porter was a prominent English instrument maker active in the early 19th century. His dials are often signed ''S. Porter Fecit'' and frequently carry the date February 16, 1824. ''Entered at Stationers Hall'' indicates that the design or its accompanying instructional text was registered with the Stationers'' Company in London. Before modern copyright laws, ''entering'' a work at Stationers'' Hall provided a form of intellectual property protection.Later models may also include the inscription ''Patronized by the King,'' suggesting Porter received royal endorsement during the reign of George ...