[Ursa major constellation] in Uranometria

Attribution:

Johann Bayer

Date:

1655

Description:

Maps don’t just depict land and water, as this atlas demonstrates. This was the first star atlas to cover the entire sky, and introduced the system of naming stars using Greek and Latin letters, which is still in use today. The charts in the atlas were naturally of interest to astronomers but they would also be useful for navigating at night.

Bib. Reference:

Augsburg: Christophorus Mangus

Bancroft call number:

f QB65 .B39 U7 1603

Digital image courtesy of:

David Rumsey Map Collection