MAX-PLANCK-INSTITUT FÜR WISSENSCHAFTSGESCHICHTE Max Planck Institute for the History of Science

Event

Jun 12, 2026
Reconstructing the Ancient Chinese Sky: Constellations, Star Maps, and Celestial Records

For thousands of years, people in China observed the night sky and recorded celestial phenomena. They independently developed a constellation system comparable in scale and complexity to the Babylonian-Greek tradition. This system embodied ancient Chinese thought and culture and served as the basic coordinate structure for astronomy. It provided the reference points through which celestial phenomena were recorded, and it remains essential for modern astronomers using ancient astronomical records. Yet Chinese constellations changed over time. The way of depicting constellations in many historical periods was therefore very different from what is known from later sources. For this reason, reconstructing ancient Chinese constellations is essential for understanding historical texts, images, and astronomical records.

The workshop will begin with a brief introduction to the different functions of ancient Chinese constellations, including seasonal timekeeping through celestial observation, field-allocation astrology, and imperial astrology. It will then introduce several hands-on methods for reconstructing ancient constellations, especially through the use of star catalogs, star maps, and records of celestial events. Participants will learn about the ancient Chinese coordinate and dating systems, the format of astronomical records, as well as how to use tools to convert these data into modern coordinates and Common Era dates. After completing these conversions, participants will plot the coordinates against the stellar background of the relevant period in order to reconstruct ancient asterisms using the images from the VoH Image Database. By comparing coordinates and star maps from different periods, participants will be able to explore and discuss the historical transformation of ancient Chinese asterisms. Participants should download the latest version of Stellarium (https://stellarium.org/release/2026/04/05/stellarium-26.1.html) in advance, as the course will include hands-on exercises in tracing historical celestial phenomena and reconstructing ancient asterisms with this software. 

the chart is black displays a circle in the middle

Cheonsang Yeolcha Bunyajido, a Korean celestial chart of Chinese origin; a printed version based on the re-engraved edition from the reign of King Sukjong (r. 1674–1720), with an earlier prototype possibly dating back to the seventh century. ©Kyujanggak Archives of Seoul National University

Organizer(s)
Related Project(s)
Address
MPIWG, Boltzmannstraße 22, 14195 Berlin, Germany
Room
Room 265
Contact and Registration

This event is open to the public. Please register your participation here.

Download the latest version of Stellarium here
2026-06-12T10:30:00SAVE IN I-CAL 2026-06-12 10:30:00 2026-06-12 12:00:00 Reconstructing the Ancient Chinese Sky: Constellations, Star Maps, and Celestial Records For thousands of years, people in China observed the night sky and recorded celestial phenomena. They independently developed a constellation system comparable in scale and complexity to the Babylonian-Greek tradition. This system embodied ancient Chinese thought and culture and served as the basic coordinate structure for astronomy. It provided the reference points through which celestial phenomena were recorded, and it remains essential for modern astronomers using ancient astronomical records. Yet Chinese constellations changed over time. The way of depicting constellations in many historical periods was therefore very different from what is known from later sources. For this reason, reconstructing ancient Chinese constellations is essential for understanding historical texts, images, and astronomical records. The workshop will begin with a brief introduction to the different functions of ancient Chinese constellations, including seasonal timekeeping through celestial observation, field-allocation astrology, and imperial astrology. It will then introduce several hands-on methods for reconstructing ancient constellations, especially through the use of star catalogs, star maps, and records of celestial events. Participants will learn about the ancient Chinese coordinate and dating systems, the format of astronomical records, as well as how to use tools to convert these data into modern coordinates and Common Era dates. After completing these conversions, participants will plot the coordinates against the stellar background of the relevant period in order to reconstruct ancient asterisms using the images from the VoH Image Database. By comparing coordinates and star maps from different periods, participants will be able to explore and discuss the historical transformation of ancient Chinese asterisms. Participants should download the latest version of Stellarium (https://stellarium.org/release/2026/04/05/stellarium-26.1.html) in advance, as the course will include hands-on exercises in tracing historical celestial phenomena and reconstructing ancient asterisms with this software.  i Cheonsang Yeolcha Bunyajido, a Korean celestial chart of Chinese origin; a printed version based on the re-engraved edition from the reign of King Sukjong (r. 1674–1720), with an earlier prototype possibly dating back to the seventh century. ©Kyujanggak Archives of Seoul National University MPIWG, Boltzmannstraße 22, 14195 Berlin, Germany Room 265 Aida Alavi Aida Alavi Europe/Berlin public