Planispheric Astrolabe

Replicas and Restorations of Early Instruments by Richard A. Paselk

Richard Paselk, Curator

The Planispheric Astrolabe

R. Paselk, 1986

Copper and Brass sheet

Front

Back

Astrolabes are probably the the sini qua non of ancient instruments. They have been collected for centuries, and forgeries have been made for centuries, though genuine, working, astrolabes were made in Islamic countries up through the nineteenth century. This astrolabe combines an observational instrument, with a star and solar celestial map and celestial data that allow it to be used as a sophisticated analog computer for finding the time, or predicting the positions of objects. For background information on astrolabes a number of books are available. Some which I have used extensively are listed among the references for this site.