Pseudo-Astrolabe with Inscriptions in Arabic
Pseudo-Astrolabe with Inscriptions in Arabic
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- Description
- The astrolabe is an astronomical calculating device used from ancient times into the nineteenth century. Measuring the height of a star using the alidade on the back of the instrument, and knowing the latitude, one could find the time of night and the position of other stars. The openwork piece on the front, called the rete, is a star map of the northern sky. Pointers on the rete correspond to stars; the outermost circle is the Tropic of Capricorn, and the circle that is off-center represents the zodiac, the apparent annual motion of the sun. Engraved plates that fit below the rete have scales of altitude and azimuth (arc of the horizon) for specific latitudes. This brass astrolabe has a body with throne, handle, four plates, a rete, an alidade, a pin and a wedge. The scales are not functional and there is no altitude scale for use with the alidade.
- Reference:
- For a detailed description of this object, see Sharon Gibbs with George Saliba, Planispheric Astrolabes from the National Museum of American History, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1984, p. 189. The object is referred to in the catalog as CCA No. 4004.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Object Name
- astrolabe
- Physical Description
- metal (overall material)
- Measurements
- overall: 22.8 cm x 14.3 cm x 4.1 cm; 8 31/32 in x 5 5/8 in x 1 5/8 in
- ID Number
- 1979.0852.01
- accession number
- 1979.0852
- catalog number
- 1979.0852.01
- Credit Line
- Gift of Nicholas Grossman
- See more items in
- Medicine and Science: Mathematics
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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