Historical Celestial Atlases on the World Wide Web
Introduction
Depiction of the classical
constellations described in the astronomical poem of Aratus of Soloi and
its various Latin editions (miniature from codex Barberinianus latinus
76, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, 15th-cent.)
Man has always been fascinated with the solemn and mysterious
parade of the celestial luminaries across the night sky. As the earliest-known
texts of various ancient cultures attest, the stars were commonly grouped into
constellation figures which were believed to represent divine persons, sacred
animals and other objects of religious importance.
Of course, each of the major cultures stemming from the Near
East, the Far East and the New World developed an indigenous system of
constellation figures and associated legends which were recorded in written
texts or depicted on maps or on globes.
Of these various constellation systems, the
Sumerian/Babylonian system of constellation figures would prove to be the most
influential as it was their system that through successive adoptions,
modifications and additions by Greek/Roman, Islamic and European astronomers
evolved into the mathematically defined system of 88 constellations that is
currently employed in the international astronomical community.
Traditionally, astronomers plot the positions of the stars and
the constellation figures in two ways:
Internal view: the constellation
figures are depicted on an imaginary celestial sphere as seen from an
observer placed in the centre. This is the method commonly adopted in
celestial atlases and is most suited for astronomical observations.
External view: the constellation
figures are depicted on an imaginary celestial sphere as viewed from the
outside. This is the method commonly adopted in celestial globes and is more
suited for artistic or tutorial purposes.
Up to the middle of the 19th century, celestial atlases and
globes were considered to be both works of precision and art and in many cases
they resulted from the collaboration of skilled astronomers and artisans.
Celestial Atlases and Globes on the Web
Atlas
Coelestis: Comprehensive website by Felice Stoppa with digital
editions of various celestial atlases and maps from the middle of the 15th
century to the early 20th century.
Tycho Brahe (1546 – 1601): The Astronomiæ instauratæ mechanica
(1602) is not a celestial atlas but the digital version of the copy in the
Smithsonian Institution
Libraries includes the plates depicting the astronomical instruments
used by Tycho Brahe for his celestial observations on which many later
celestial globes and atlases were based. With an introduction by Ronald
Brashear.
John Flamsteed (1646 – 1719):
Atlas céleste de Flamstéed (Jean Fortin, Paris, 1776). Although the
title page of this French edition gives the year of printing as 1776, the
inclusion of the constellation Taurus Poniatovii (Poniatowski’s Bull)
on plate 10 indicates that this copy was published in 1778 or later.
Franz Niklaus König (1765 – 1832): The diaphanous Atlas Céleste
(1826) [30 plates; nrs. 28 & 29 are missing] (Municipal and University
Library of Berne) [In English, French & German].
Virtual Exhibitions and
Websites on Celestial Cartography
Divine Sky: The Artistry of Astronomical Maps: Web exhibition by the
University of Michigan Shapiro Science Library. Includes plates from Andreas
Cellarius’s Harmonia Macrocosmica (1708 edition), John Flamsteed’s
Atlas Coelestis (1729) and Elijah H. Burritt’s Atlas Designed to
Illustrate the Geography of the Heavens
(1850 edition).
Images, Artwork and Historical Objects at the U.S. Naval Observatory:
Offers high resolution images from several celestial atlases such as the
1482 edition of the Poeticon astronomicon of Hyginus, the
Uranometria of Johannes Bayer (editions of 1603 and 1661), Jean Fortin’s
Atlas céleste de Flamstéed (3rd. ed., 1795) and Alexander Jamieson’s
Celestial Atlas (1822).
Useful Books on the History of Constellations
and Star Names
Philipp von Zesen [= Caesius], Coelum Astronomico-Poeticum, sive Mythologicum Stellarum Fixarum: Hoc est,
Signorum cœlestium, sive Constellationum omnium ad certás imagines redactarum, inque Cœlo fictitio sive Organo
Globi Astronomici continui, mythologico nomine & picturà, ab Antiquis repræsentatarum succincta descriptio
(Amsterdam: Joan Blaeu, 1662) [Google
Books
ink].
John Hill, Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form
of a Dictionary (London: T. Gardner, 1754) [ECCO link].
Ludwig Ideler, Untersuchungen über den Ursprung und die Bedeutung der Sternnamen: Ein Beytrag zur Geschichte des
gestirnten Himmels (Berlin: Johann Friedrich Weiss, 1809) [Internet
Archive
link] – reprinted in 1994 by the Institute for the History of
Arabic-Islamic Science at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University at Frankfurt am Main (= Publications of the Institute
for the History of Arabic-Islamic Science, Islamic Geography, nr. 200) – important early study on the origin of
star names and constellations.
Karl Friedrich von Klöden, Der Sternenhimmel: Eine vollständige populäre Sternenkunde mit besonderer Beziehung auf
die grosse Sternwandkarte des Landes-Industrie-Comptoirs (Weimar: Druck und Verlag des Landes-Industrie-Comptoirs,
1848) [Google
Books link].
Richard Hinckley Allen, Star-Names and their Meanings (New York: G.E. Stechert, 1899)
[Internet
Archive link] – this book, available since 1963 in a Dover reprint as Star Names: Their Lore and Meanings,
is often referred to as the best overall survey of the history of constellations and star names. Note however, that Allen’s
treatment of Mesopotamian and Egyptian star names is now greatly outdated and that there are many errors in his treatment of
Chinese, Indian and Arabic star names.
Basil J.W. Brown, Astronomical Atlases, Maps & Charts: An Historical & General Guide (London: Search
Publishing Company, 1932 [reprinted in 1968 by Dawsons of Pall Mall, London]) – now somewhat outdated history of
celestial atlases and maps.
Deborah Jean Warner, The Sky Explored: Celestial Cartography 1500-1800 (New York/Amsterdam: Alan R. Liss/Theatrum
Orbis Terrarum, 1979) – authoritative treatment of celestial atlases published between 1500 and 1800.
George Sergeant Snyder, Maps of the Heavens (London: André Deutsch, 1984) – coffee-table book with many large
reproductions of celestial maps.
Celestial Images: Astronomical Charts from 1500 to 1900 (Boston: Boston University Art Gallery, 1985).
Paul Kunitzsch & Tim Smart, Short Guide to Modern Star Names and their Derivation (Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz,
1986) – authoritative treatment of the origins of the modern names of the stars. Kunitzsch wrote many more scholarly books and
articles on the origin of Islamic and medieval European star names.
Helmut Werner & Felix Schmeidler, Synopsis der Nomenklatur der Fixsterne/Synopsis of the Nomenclature of the Fixed
Stars (Stuttgart: Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft, 1986) – provides detailed lists of star designations in various
historical star atlases and stellar catalogues.
Giuseppe Maria Sesti, Le dimore del cielo: Archeologia e mito delle costellazioni (Palermo: Novecento, 1987) – also
published as The Glorious Constellations: History and Mythology (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1991) and Die Geheimnisse
des Himmels: Geschichte und Mythos der Sternbilder (Köln: DuMont Buchverlag, 1991).
Ian Ridpath, Star Tales (Cambridge: Lutterworth Press, 1988)
[web link] – nicely illustrated popular account of the
origin of the Western constellations.
Julius D.W. Schaaf, The New Patterns in the Sky: Myths and Legends of the Stars (Blacksburg:
McDonald & Woodward Publishing Co., 1988) [web
link] – popular account on the origin of the constellations in various cultures.
Carole Stott, Celestial Charts: Antique Maps of the Heavens (London: Studio Editions, 1991) – coffee-table
book with many large reproductions of celestial maps.
Peter Whitfield, The Mapping of the Heavens (London/San Francisco: British Library/Pomegranate Artbooks, 1995) –
popular history of constellations and celestial atlases and globes.
André Le Boeuffle, Astronymie: Les noms des étoiles (Paris: Burillier, 1996).
Theony Condos, Star Myths of the Greeks and Romans: A Sourcebook containing ‘The Constellations’ of
Pseudo-Eratosthenes and the ‘Poetic Astronomy’ of Hyginus (Grand Rapids: Phanes
Press, 1997) – English translation of the Greek/Roman
star myths in the Catasterismoi attributed to Eratosthenes and De astronomica of Hyginus.
Marc Lachièze-Rey & Jean-Pierre Luminet, Figures du ciel: De l’harmonie des sphères à la conquête
spatiale (Paris: Bibliothèque Nationale de France, 1998) – exposition catalogue, also published in English as
Celestial Treasury: From the Music of the Spheres to the Conquest of Space (Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 2001).
Pascal Charvet & Arnaud Zucker, Le Ciel – Mythes et histoire des constellations: Les Catastérismes
d’Ératosthène (Paris: NiL Éditions, 1998).
Roland Laffitte, Héritages Arabes: Des noms arabes pour les étoiles (Paris: Librairie Orientaliste Paul
Geuthner, 2001) – on the Arabic origins of many star names.
Morton Wagman, Lost Stars: Lost, Missing, and Troublesome Stars from the Catalogues of Johannes Bayer,
Nicholas-Louis de Lacaille, John Flamsteed, and Sundry Others (Granville: McDonald & Woodward Publishing
Co., 2003) [web link].
Celestial Images: Antiquarian Astronomical Charts and Maps from the
Mendillo Collection (Boston: Boston University Art Gallery, 2005).
Felice Stoppa, Atlas Coelestis: Il cielo stellato nella scienza e nell’ arte (Milan: Salviati Editore, 2006)
– beautifully illustrated popular history of constellations and celestial atlases.
Paul Kunitzsch & Tim Smart, A Dictionary of Modern Star Names: A Short Guide to 254 Star Names
and their Derivations (Cambridge [Mass]: Sky Publishing, 2006)
[web link] – updated reprint of the 1986 edition.
Nick Kanas, Star Maps: History, Artistry, and Cartography (New York: Springer, 2007)
[web link].
