Celestial Navigation Star Globe - Aluminium - USSR

A vintage Soviet-made star globe (model designation ЗГ), a hand-held celestial navigation instrument used by ship's navigators for astronomical position-fixing, in the tradition of instruments used alongside a sextant before the arrival of satellite navigation.

The lacquered globe carries the full night sky — constellations and named stars (Cygnus, Pegasus, Andromeda, Perseus, Cassiopeia, Aquila, Lyra, Draco, Ursa Major, Ursa Minor, Canis Major, Argo, Hydra, Corvus, Crux and others), a printed magnitude legend, and precession data referenced to Epoch 1990.0. It is mounted in a graduated aluminium meridian ring with an adjustable altitude-circle crossbar, allowing a navigator to identify visible stars, read off their approximate coordinates, choose the best stars for a fix, and calculate azimuths and sunrise/sunset times.

The instrument is housed in its original hinged wooden carrying case with metal latch fittings. The maker's data plate on the case reads: year of manufacture 1980, serial number № 80062, weight 4.4 kg, and "СДЕЛАНО В СССР" (Made in USSR). A separate plate is stamped with the model code ЗГ. Inside the lid is the original printed packing list ("Опись укладки").

This is an uncommon, functional piece of Cold War-era Soviet maritime equipment — genuinely used rather than decorative, and complete with its purpose-built case and inventory documentation.