al-Ṣūfī’s Cepheus
On this illustration of Cepheus from al-Ṣūfī’s Book of the Fixed Stars the stars that Ptolemy listed in the Almagest are coloured red, with accompanying numbers in Arabic. Two stars either side of the King’s head-dress are coloured black; we now know them as Mu (left) and Delta Cephei. They were among the ‘unformed’ stars that Ptolemy described as lying outside the constellation proper. As well as those, al-Ṣūfī has added another five stars of his own, also coloured black, in and around Cepheus’s left leg, and four more near his right elbow creating a circle with two red Ptolemaic stars. For a zoomable version of the original click here or on the picture.
(Bodleian Library, Oxford, manuscript Marsh 144)
