Twinkle, twinkle ancient stars

A bronze ‘sky disc’, thought to be the world’s oldest map of the cosmos, is the star attraction of an exhibition about Stonehenge, finds Vicky Liddell

- Vicky Liddell

ONE of the earth’s most strange and beautiful objects is on display at the British Museum for the first time. Named after the East German town of Nebra, close to where it was unearthed, the Nebra sky disc is estimated to be 3,600 years old and is believed to be the world’s oldest surviving map of the cosmos.

Hewn from bronze that has developed a striking blue-green patina, the disc, nearly 12in in diameter, is emblazoned with inlaid gold symbols representing the sun or full moon, a crescent moon, the solstices and a cluster of stars. ‘Seen up close, the colours are amazing and it’s much bigger than I imagined—about the size of a dinner plate,’ enthuses Neil Wilkin, curator of ‘The World of Stonehenge’ exhibition. ‘The gold is as lustrous as the day it was buried, but the bronze would have been originally artificially darkened to an aubergine colour to represent the night sky.’