Discovered in 18th-century Italy — and entertaining historians ever since — the pork clock sundial works once again thanks to 3D printing.

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Thankfully we ‘re not talking about a literal pork sundial, which — cured or not — would probably be way past its best. Instead, this particular hock of a clock is a silver-coated bronze sundial in the shape of a leg of ham.

The sundial was discovered in the 18th-century by workers excavating the ash covered ruins of the town of Herculaneum. Volcano Mount Vesuvius had buried the town, along with nearby Pompeii when it erupted in A.D. 79.

Small and portable — unusual for what we think of as a sundial — historians at the J. Paul Getty Museum have since placed this pork clock as being born out of Epicurean philosophy — a philosophy of “living for the day”. It is theorized its compact nature would also make it a status symbol, much like the high-end Swiss watches of today.

Printing The Pork Clock

Between discovery and today, the sundial lost its gnomon (the bit that sticks out to cast a shadow). This is where Christopher Parslow, Professor of Classical Studies and Roman Archaeology at Wesleyan University steps in.

Interested in the clock and resolved to restore its timekeeping abilites, Parslow visited the National Archaeological Museum of Naples, Italy. When not on tour, the pork clock is located here.

He took several photographs that allowed him to compile an accurate 3D model. This model is used to fabricate replicas of the pork clock on a 3D printer at Wesleyan’s Digital Studio Lab.

With his own model of the sundial to experiment with, he could determine the meaning of the distorted grid of lines that feature on the ham.

He theorizes that it may be possible to determine the time more accurately than the hour alone. However, “the scale of the whole thing is so small, and it is so difficult to hold steady, that such accuracy is likely the theoretical ideal rather than the reality”. Subsequent revisions of his model, he hopes, will allow for this accuracy.

In New York between now and 23 April? If so, you can see the pork clock for yourself. It is currently a part of the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World’s Time and Cosmos exhibition.

Source: National Geographic