Chinese star maps

China has a long history of observing stars and recording them. There are many star maps created during thousands of years. This page is intended to list or show the best available version of each star map (星圖).

star maps

Name	Time created	Contents	links
Mural in a Neolithic Grave in Honan (河南濮陽西水坡新石器時代古墓)	c. 4000 B.C.	clam shells arranged in the shape of Big Dipper in the North (北斗) and below the foot, Tiger in the West and Azure Dragon in the East.
Zhan Guo grave box (戰國初年湖北隨縣曾侯乙墓漆箱)	c. 5th Century B.C.	Indicated location of Big Dipper and 28 Constellations by characters	[1]
Star Catalog《天文星占》 by Gan De (甘德)	475-221 B.C.	-
Star catalog 《天文》 a.k.a.《石氏星经》 by Shih Shen (石申)	c. 350 B.C.	name of 800 stars, location of 121 stars	[2] [3]
Celestrial Globe (渾象) by Gan Shochung 耿壽昌	70-50 B.C.	lost
Equtorial Plantarium Device 赤道式渾儀 by Lo Sha Hong 落下閎	c. 1st Century 西漢武帝時	lost
Five Star Preditions Device 安徽阜陽五星候占儀	168 B.C.	Also an Equtorial Device	-
Han Comet Diagram 湖南長沙馬王堆漢墓帛書《彗星圖》	193 B.C.	Different 29 different types of comets, also record and prediction of postions of Jupiter, Saturn, and Venus during 246-177 B.C.	[4]
Han Grave Mural Star Chart 洛阳西汉墓壁画《星象图》	c. 1st Century	Sun, Moon and ten other star charts	[5]
Tong Han Celestrial Globe and star maps 浑天仪,《渾天儀圖注,浑天仪图注》,《靈憲,灵宪》 by Zhang Hen 张衡	117 AD	-
Whole Sky Star Maps 全天星圖 by Chen Zhuo 陳卓	c. 3rd Century AD 西晉初	A Unified Constellation System. Star maps containing 1464 stars in 284 Constellations, written astrology text
Bei Wei Iron Planetarium Device 鐵渾儀 by Hu Lan 斛蘭	436-440 AD 北魏	level being used in this kind of device	-
Nan Dynasty Whole Sky Planetarium 渾天象 by Cian Lezhi 錢樂之,錢樂?	443 AD 南朝劉宋元嘉年間	used red, black and white to differentiate stars from different star maps 甘,石,巫三家星	-
Bei-Wei Grave Dome Star Map 河南洛陽北魏墓頂星圖	526 AD 北魏孝昌二年	about 300 stars, including the Big Dipper, some stars are linked by straight lines to form constellation. The Milky Way is also shown.	[6]
Water-powered Plantarium 水力渾天儀 by Gen Xuin 耿詢	c. 7th Century 隋初	-	-
Lingtai Miyuan 《靈台秘苑》by Yu Zicai 庾季才,庾秀才? and Zho Win 周玟,周墳?	604 AD 隋	incorporated star maps from different sources	-
The Dunhuang (敦煌) star map	705-710 AD	1,585 stars grouped into 257 clusters or "asterisms"	[7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]
Tang Dynasty Celestrial Measurement Device 唐代渾儀 by Yixing Priest 一行和尚 (张遂)	683年－727年	based on Han Dynasty Celestrial Globe, recalibrated locations of 150 stars, determined that stars are moving	[15]
Tang Dynasty Astrology Book 《开元占经》	c. 8th Century
Tang Dynasty Bronze Mirror 唐代二十八宿銅鏡	c. 9th Century	depicted the 28 constellations	[16]
Big Dipper 山東嘉祥武梁寺石刻北斗星	-	showing stars in Big Dipper	[17]
Tong Dynasty Whole Sky Ecliptic Apparatus 渾天黃道儀 by Li Chunfong 李淳風	c. 8th Century	including Eliptic and Moon orbit	-
Prajvalonisa Vjrabhairava Padvinasa-sri-dharani Scroll found in Japan 熾盛光佛頂大威德銷災吉祥陀羅尼經卷首扉畫	972 AD 北宋開寶五年	Chinese 28 Constellations and Western Zodiac	-
Star Chart 五代吳越文穆王前元瓘墓石刻星象圖	941-960	-	[18]
Song Dynasty Bronze Planetarium Device 北宋至道銅渾儀 by Han Xianfu韓顯符	1006 AD 宋道元年十二月	-	-
Song Dynasty Planetarium Device 北宋簡化渾儀 by Shen Kua沈括 and Huangfu Yu 皇甫愈	1089 AD 熙寧七年	Simplied version of Tang Dynasty Device	-
Five Star Charts 《新儀象法要》 by Su Song 蘇頌	1094	1464 stars grouped into 283 asterisms	[19]
Song Dynasty Water-powered Plantarium 宋代水运仪象台 by Su Song 蘇頌 and Han Konglian 韩公廉	c. 11th Century	-	[20][21]
Liao Dynasty Tomb Dome Star Map 遼宣化墓頂星圖	1116 AD	shown both the Chinese 28 Constellation encircled by Babylonian Zodiac	[22]
Star Map in a woman's grave (江西德安南宋周氏墓星相图)	1127-1279	Milky Way and 57 other stars.	[23]
Hun Tian Yi Tong Xing Xiang Quan Tu, Suzhou Star Chart 《蘇州石刻天文圖》 by Huang Shang (黃裳)	developed in 1193, etched to stone in 1247	1434 Stars grouped into 280 Asterisms in Northern Sky map	[24] [25] [26]
Yuan Dynasty Planetarium Device 元代簡儀 by Kuo Shojin 郭守敬	1276-1279	Further simplied version of Song Dynasty Device	[27]
Star Chart by Mao Kun (茅坤)	c. 1422	Polaris compared with Southern Cross and Alpha Centauri	[28]
Chanshu Star Chart 《明常熟石刻天文圖》	1506	Based on Suzhou Star Chart, Northern Sky observed at 36.8 degrees North Lattitude, 1466 stars grouped into 284 asterism	-
Ming Ancient Star Chart 明代北京隆福寺《古星圖》	c. 1500	-	[29]
Ming Dynasty Star Map 《渾蓋通憲圖說》by Matteo Ricci 利玛窦 [30], recorded by Li Zhizao 李之藻	c. 1550	-	[31]
Ming Dynasty General Star Map 《赤道南北兩總星圖》 by Xu Kuangci(徐光啟)	c. 1600	-	[32]
Ming Dynasty Planetarium Machine (渾象)	c. 17th Century	Ecliptic, Equator, and dividers of 28 constellation	[33]
Japanese star chart by Harumi Yasui written in Chinese	1699	A Japanese star chart of 1699 showing lunar stations	[34] [35]
Star Chart 清蒙文石刻《欽天監繪製天文圖》 in Mongolia	1727-1732	1550 stars grouped into 270 starisms.	[36]
Rock Star Chart 清代天文石	c. 18th Century	A Star Chart and general Astronomy Text	[37]
The Celestrial Globe 清康熙天體儀 by Ferdnand Verbiest 南懷仁	1673	1876 stars grouped into 282 asterisms	[38]
Tsing Dynasty Star Catalog 《儀象考成》星表	1744	-	-
Jingban Tianwen Quantu by Ma Junliang (马俊良)	1780-90 AD	mapping nations to the sky	[39]
North Sky Map 清嘉庆年间《黄道中西合图》by Xu Choujun 徐朝俊	1807	More than 1000 stars and the 28 consellation	[40]
Stars South of Equator, Stars North of Equator 清光緒《赤道南恆星圖,赤道北恆星圖》	c. 19th Century	Similar to Ming Dynasty General Star Map	[41]
Tsing Dynasty Star Catalog 《儀象考成續編》星表	1844	3240 stars	-
Star Chart in a Dao Temple 玉皇山道觀星圖	1940	-	-
The Chinese Sky during the Han Constellating Stars and Society Sun Xiaochun and Jacob Kistemaker	1997	An attempt to recreate night sky seen by Chinese 2000 years ago	[42]
Star map	Recent	An attempt by a Japanese to reconstruct the night sky for a historical event around 235 AD 秋風五丈原	[43]

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