Oldest Printed Star Charts

Abstract

That “Albrecht Durer's woodcuts of the constellations (1515) were the first printed star charts” (Kevin B. Marvel, CD-ROM Review, Science 's Compass, 20 Aug., p. [1216][1]) may well be true for the European cultural sphere, but charts published in China in a woodcut edition around 1094 by the polymath Su Sung predate Durer's by more than 400 years and are generally considered the oldest printed star charts in the world. Su Sung's charts, like Durer's, depict stars arranged into constellations as they appear to a terrestrial observer. Although no examples of the original edition of Su Sung's work [entitled Xin yixiang fayao (New method for an armillary sphere and celestial globe)] are known to have survived, the transmission of the text is well documented ([1][2]), and star charts in later editions, such as those illustrated by Needham ([2][3]), are considered close copies of the originals. 1. [↵][4]1. J. Needham, 2. W. Ling, 3. D. de Solla Price , Heavenly Clockwork (Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge, 1986), ed. 2. p. 10, 14. 2. [↵][5]1. J. Needham , Science and Civilisation in China (Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge, 1959), vol. 3, p. 277. [OpenUrl][6] [1]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.285.5431.1216 [2]: #ref-1 [3]: #ref-2 [4]: #xref-ref-1-1 View reference 1 in text [5]: #xref-ref-2-1 View reference 2 in text [6]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DScience%2Band%2BCivilisation%2Bin%2BChina%26rft.volume%253D3%26rft.spage%253D277%26rft.atitle%253DSCIENCE%2BAND%2BCIVILISATION%2BIN%2BCHINA%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx