To perform measurements of star coordinates, Samarkand's astronomers had to use instruments other than the meridian arc. Unfortunately not a single instrument was preserved. It is known that the sky globe of Ulugh Beg is preserved in a private collection in the UK. Moreover, no description exists of the tools or observational methods implemented, we can therefore only speculate. We need more information from historical manuscripts of that time to get a more realistic understanding of what the observatory looked like and operated.

Armillary sphere of the Ulugh Beg observatory (reconstruction)

Mirzo Ulug Begh’s globe preserved in the private collection in Great Britain

A fragment (marble plate) of the Ulugh Beg observatory’s quadrant

An original 17th century astrolabe made by Mohamed Zamon ibn Sharafuddin