Golden JubileeMaritime Sundial (2006)

The Golden Jubilee Maritime Sundial stands in Preston House Gardens, Torquay Road, Paignton, a substantial sculptured memorial commissioned by Torbay Civic Society to mark a significant royal anniversary.

The sundial was presented by Torbay Civic Society and Torbay Council to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, marking fifty years since her accession to the throne on 2nd February 1952 and, in maritime tradition, referencing the Jubilee River Pageant and celebrations held on 2nd June 2002.

Its design takes the form of a tall angled gnomon, banded in a nautical rope-and-chain motif and topped with a sphere, rising from a circular base set into the gardens. The memorial was among the projects the Society undertook in the decades following the merger of the Friends of the Pavilion group in 1971, which brought a wide programme of civic commissions, restorations and commemorative works to the three towns of Torbay.

Torbay Civic Society was established in 1976 to promote public interest in civic design, to stimulate public consciousness and appreciation of the beauty, history and character of Torbay and its surroundings, and to encourage the preservation, development and improvement of features which enhance the attractiveness of the three towns. The commissioning of the Maritime Sundial forms part of that long record of civic commemoration, alongside the Society's programme of blue plaques, tree planting, public seating and memorials across Torquay, Paignton and Brixham.