John Herschel discovered NGC 4048 = h1059 on 23 Mar 1827 and on a second sweep noted "vF; S; R psbM; almost stellar." His position is accurate.
400/500mm - 17.5" (5/11/02): faint, very small, elongated 3:2 E-W, 0.5'x0.35', even surface brightness. A mag 11.5 star lies 3.0' NW.
Notes by Steve Gottlieb