An unusually rich galactic star cluster located in a splendid Milky Way field between the stars Rho and Sigma Cass, discovered by Caroline Herschel in the 18th century.  To the observer with binoculars, it is a hazy patch of unresolvable star dust; in a good 3-inch glass a rich sprinkling of star points begins to appear across its surface, and the view grows steadily more impressive with every increase in the size and quality of the telescope. Sir John Herschel described it as a most superb cluster which fills the field and is full of stars, gradually brighter in the middle but without a nuclear condensation. T.W.Webb refers to it as a "large faint cloud of minute stars" and Smyth speaks of the surrounding area as "a vast region of inexpressible splendor". The whole group covers an area nearly half a degree in diameter, and the stars range from the 11th to the 18th magnitudes. At least 1000 stars are probably actual members of this cluster, and the distance of the group, according to recent studies by H.Arp (1962) is close to 6000 light years. The true diameter is about 50 light years, and the total light of all the stars may be something like 3000 times the light of the Sun.