Zotti, G.2015-02-212015-02-2120081467-8659https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8659.2008.01193.xThe astrolabe, an analog computing device, used to be the iconic instrument of astronomers during the Middle Ages. It allowed a multitude of operations of practical astronomy which were otherwise cumbersome to perform in an epoch when mathematics had apparently almost been forgotten. Usually made from wood or sheet metal, a few hundred instruments, mostly from brass, survived until today and are valuable museum showpieces. This paper explains a procedural modelling approach for the construction of the classical kinds of astrolabes, which allows a wide variety of applications from plain explanatory illustrations to three-dimensional (3D) models, and even the production of working physical astrolabes usable for public or classroom demonstrations.10.1111/j.1467-8659.2008.01193.x2169-2177