Photograph of Chinese planisphere, 1911

Photograph of Chinese planisphere

Photograph of a Chinese star chart or planisphere taken by the astronomer Mr Edward Ball Knobel (1841-1930) in 1911. In China, 28 asterisms are recognised along the line of the zodiac, the Sun's apparent path across the sky. The rest of the heavens are divided into quadrants known as the Black Tortoise (North), Red Bird (South), Green Dragon (East) and White Tiger (West). These differ from Western constellations in that the stars form patterns representing whole scenes rather than individual objects, animals or people. This star chart has all the stars visible from China and therefore can be used as a planisphere to show the sky at any time during the course of the year.