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Which early Islamic objects preserve evidence about Arabic star names?
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Astronomical map
Star trails over banksia trees, in Gippsland, Vic., Austl. The south celestial pole, located in the constellation Octans, is at the centre of the trails.
Early Islamic objects that preserve evidence of Arabic star names include the following:
- Astrolabes: These scientific instruments, which came into wide use in the Islamic world by the early Middle Ages, feature a rotating top plate called a rete. The open metalwork of the rete functions as a star map, and these instruments, when paired with associated manuscript lists, provide essential documentation for Arabic star names.12
- Astronomical Manuscripts: The oldest illuminated Islamic astronomical manuscript is a 1009–10 CE copy of the work on fixed stars by the astronomer al-Ṣūfī. This manuscript depicts individual constellations and includes stars, serving as a key record for these names.1
- Frescoed Domes: A unique hemispherical celestial map is preserved in the dome of a bathhouse at the Arab palace of Quṣayr ʿAmra in Jordan, dating to approximately 715 CE. This fresco provides a significant link between classical constellation representations and later Islamic forms, showing fragments of 37 constellations and approximately 400 stars.1