Welcome to Timespace: Gosport's Portal Through Time!
The Millennium Time Space in Gosport is a multifaceted public installation that serves as a timepiece, artwork, and historical landmark. Here’s a breakdown of its key features and symbolism:
Spiritual and Physical Link:
The installation aligns physically with Holy Trinity Church and Portsmouth Harbour, symbolising the connection between spiritual origin (birth of Christ) and scientific exploration (Einstein’s theory of relativity).
Paving Lines:
The perimeter is adorned with a mosaic depicting Gosport’s maritime heritage and key historical figures/events.
This thoughtful design bridges past and future, faith and science, analog and digital—celebrating the year 2000 with a timeless message.
The Founders Day Plaque
The Founders Day Plaque at the Time Space site adds an important layer of historical depth to the installation. Here’s how it connects to Gosport’s heritage:
Together with the sundial, mosaic, and space-time symbolism, this plaque emphasises Time Space not just as a modern millennial project, but also as a continuum of Gosport’s evolving identity, stretching back over 800 years.
Spiritual and Physical Link:
The installation aligns physically with Holy Trinity Church and Portsmouth Harbour, symbolising the connection between spiritual origin (birth of Christ) and scientific exploration (Einstein’s theory of relativity).
Paving Lines:
- One line leads to the Holy Trinity Church, representing the birth of Christ and the start of modern time.
- Another leads to the harbour, drawing from Einstein’s space-time cone diagram, indicating the passage and relativity of time
- A mask acts as a gnomon (the part of the sundial that casts a shadow). The shadow it casts tells sun time, with the small circle of light indicating both the time and date based on the Sun’s position.
- True North Alignment:
The installation is carefully aligned with true north. Plaques along this line help determine the date when the Sun crosses the meridian. - Sun Time vs. Clock Time:
Sun time (based on the sundial) can vary from standard clock time by up to ±16 minutes, depending on Earth’s axial tilt and orbit.
- A digital clock in the Millennium Gateway.
- A light clock on the paving using Roman numerals.
- Acoustic chimes sound at every quarter-hour.
- Lights indicate the passage of time:
- Red = hours
- Green = five-minute intervals
- White = five-second intervals
The perimeter is adorned with a mosaic depicting Gosport’s maritime heritage and key historical figures/events.
This thoughtful design bridges past and future, faith and science, analog and digital—celebrating the year 2000 with a timeless message.
The Founders Day Plaque
The Founders Day Plaque at the Time Space site adds an important layer of historical depth to the installation. Here’s how it connects to Gosport’s heritage:
- Date Commemorated:
25th August 1204 — the official founding of Gosport by Godfrey de Luce, then Bishop of Winchester. - 800th Anniversary:
On 25th August 2004, to mark 800 years since that founding, a time capsule was buried at the site. This was done with the involvement of pupils from Newtown Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, symbolizing a bridge between Gosport’s past and its future generations. - Ceremonial Vow:
The significance of this act was formally vowed by the Mayor of Gosport, Councillor Mrs. Diane Sell, on Thursday 27th October 2009, further grounding the event in civic tradition.
Together with the sundial, mosaic, and space-time symbolism, this plaque emphasises Time Space not just as a modern millennial project, but also as a continuum of Gosport’s evolving identity, stretching back over 800 years.
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Gosport Marine Festival Heritage Trail is part of Hampshire Cultural Trust’s ‘Gosport Heritage Generator’ which is funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Gosport Borough Council.
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