The gnomon is the part of a sundial which casts the sun's shadow onto the dial plate, which is inscribed with the hourlines. In most sundials, the gnomon consists of a rod, or the side of a triangle, running parallel to the Earth's axis and pointing to the celestial pole.
A vertical sundial , as the name implies, has its dial mounted vertically, usually on the wall of a building. in distinction to a horizontal dial which has its dial plate placed horizontally, either on the ground or on a pedestal.
  Geographical location Dial Type
Obelisk		 Latitude/Longitude
56°20'N 3°52'W
Drummond Castle Gardens, Crieff
 Photo By
P. E. Walker 		British Grid Reference
NN 844 178

Drummond Castle is situated near the town of Crieff , in Perthshire, Scotland. The castle was built originally by Sir John Drummond in 1491 and the grounds, famous for its magnificent formal Italianate parterre garden, were laid out by another John Drummond, 2nd Earl of Perth, in the 1630s. The centrepiece of the parterre is an amazing sundial, in the form of an obelisk, a type of sundial found uniquely in Scotland.

 

 

The sundial was carved by John Mylne of Perth, Master Mason to King Charles I. An obelisk dial, such as this, often has a square shaft with four panels,each with sunken dials. Next is an octagonal boss with the upper and lower edges sloped off to form a total of 24 individual dials. Finally on top, seven more tapering carved stones, each with eight panels incorporating more dials. There are as many as seventy obelisk dials in Scotland but this apparently is the oldest to be dated with certainty.

 

 

Here we see several of the twenty four dials surrounding the boss., Some of them have their hour lines clearly visible.

 

At the base of the sundial is carved the coat of arms of the Earl of Perth, the Drummond family, together with that of his wife, Lady Jean Kerr . They were married in 1613. The Drummond family motto is "GANG WARILY"
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