The bronze and silver sundial at Pleterje Carthusian monastery is a unique timepiece. It tells the correct time when the sun shines into the Great Court of the Charterhouse. The muted tones of the metal from which the sundial is constructed fits perfectly into the contemplative atmosphere of the monastery, a place where only male visitors may enter. Pleterje Charterhouse was founded by Herman II, Count of Celje, in 1403, and took three years to build. The monastery was later given to the Jesuits (1593), before passing into state ownership (1772) and then finally into private hands (1839). The Pleterje estate was reacquired by the Carthusian Order in 1899 and construction of the new charterhouse was completed in 1904. Many of the fixtures and the library came from abandoned charterhouses in France. These included a sundial from the monastery at Sélignac, which even today keeps time accurately. The sundial stands on a stone plinth which is decorated with four carved medallions and plant motifs. An inscription on the sundial tells us that it was crafted by a priest, Antonian Berthiaud who served in Péronnas, a commune in the Ain department within the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of France, from 1873 to 1881.

                                                                                                                                                                                            Janez Bogataj