敦煌星图
敦煌文献S.3326《全天星图》和敦博076《紫微垣星图》，又分别被称为敦煌星图甲本、乙本。其中《全天星图》总长330厘米，卷首不存，现存前半部为《云气占》，后半部为《全天星图》，尾部绘一电神并有题记。《全天星图》的原作者被认为是唐初著名的天文星占家李淳风。
《全天星图》绘制于1300多年前，它包括13幅图和相应的说明文字，描绘了唐朝皇家观星台中肉眼所能见到的1348颗星星。它是世界上现存记录星数最多，也是最古老的一幅星图。它用一种相当“现代”的方式描绘了整个星空，前 12 幅用圆柱形投影法绘制十二时角图，最后一幅又用方位投影法绘制环北极星图。
敦煌星图在世界天文学史上占有十分重要的地位。英国著名的中国科技史学家李约瑟博士甚至说：“欧洲在文艺复兴以前可以和中国天图制图传统相提并论的东西，可以说很少，甚至简直就没有。”
Dunhuang Star Maps
Dunhuang Star Chart (S.3326) and The Purple Forbidden Enclosure (Dunbo 076) are referred to as Dunhuang Star Maps, with the former known as Version A and the latter Version B. Dunhuang Star Chart measures a total length of 330 centimeters, but the beginning is missing. The preserved front half contains Meteorological Divination, while the latter half presents Dunhuang Star Chart, with a depiction of a lightning deity and an inscription at the end. The original author of Dunhuang Star Chart is believed to be Li Chunfeng, a renowned astrologer from the early Tang Dynasty.
Dunhuang Star Chart, created over 1,300 years ago, consists of 13 illustrations accompanied by explanatory texts depicting 1,348 stars visible to the naked eye from the Tang-dynasty royal observatory. It holds the distinction of being the oldest, most comprehensive star chart in existence, recording the highest number of stars. The chart portrays the entire night sky in a remarkably "modern" manner, with the first 12 illustrations using cylindrical projection to create 12-celestial-hour-angle diagrams, while the final illustration employs azimuthal projection for a polar star diagram.
Dunhuang Star Maps occupy a significant position in the history of world astronomy. Dr. Joseph Needham, a renowned British historian of Chinese science and technology, stated that there were very few, if any, comparable traditions in Europe before the Renaissance that could be likened to China's tradition of astronomical cartography.
