John Herschel discovered NGC 121 = h2325 on 20 Sep 1835 and logged as "pretty bright; a little extended; very gradually brighter in the middle; 40" dia." His position is accurate. It was described as a "Bright globular cluster, near 47 Tucanae" in the 1935 Harvard Observatory Bulletin 899 based on Bruce plates at Arequipa, Peru.

300/350mm - 12" (6/29/02 - Bargo, Australia): this is one known classical globular in the SMC. At 186x is appeared fairly faint, small, 1.5'x1' diameter, contains a small brighter core. There was no hint of resolution. Located 35' NNE of 47 Tucanae.

400/500mm - 18" (7/6/02 - Magellan Observatory, Australia): at 228x appeared fairly bright, roundish, 1.3' diameter with a brighter core, no evident resolution. A mag 12 star lies just 1' W of center, a bit beyond the halo. NGC 121 is in the same low power field with 47 Tucanae and 35' SW of mag 6.1 Theta Tuc. This globular is the oldest and most luminous in the SMC, though it is still 2-3 Gyr younger than the oldest galactic globulars.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb