This astrolabe is a splendid example of the workmanship of the Antwerp instrument maker Michiel Coignet (1544-1623) who made several astronomical and nautical instruments.
Three other astrolabes from Coignet's hand are presently preserved in the Castello Sforzesco in Milan (undated), the Kunstgewerbemuseum in Berlin (dated 1572), and the Museo Naval in Madrid (dated 1598). His father Gillis Coignet (died circa 1562), was a goldsmith, who also made astrolabes.