A star chart is a graphic device or diagram which shows the night sky as seen from Earth. They are one of the oldest types of written or carved communication. There is a claim for a prehistoric carving as the first known star chart, but the evidence is not clear.[3]
Star charts occur in Babylonian and Ancient Egyptian wall decorations and writing.[4][5][6] In the ancient world, knowledge was needed for practical reasons and for religious reasons. Early star charts were used for all these purposes.[7] Even today, they are used for both astronomy and astrology. In the renaissance, with its interest in ideas, hundreds of books were printed with star charts and other diagrams.[8]
The key point for scientific charts is the use of data taken from observations, and listed in tables or databases. Historically, the first tables were in Ptolemy's Almagest (~AD 150). It has the last known star table from antiquity, with 1,028 stars.