William Herschel discovered NGC 6356 = H I-48 = h3683 on 18 Jun 1784 (sweep 230) and recorded "a large, bright, round, easily resolvable nebula, bM and the brightness diminishing gradually. It is a miniature of the last [M9, which itself a miniature of M53] and I suppose if I had looked enough I might have perceived some of the stars that compose it." From the Cape of Good Hope, JH recorded "globular, vB; R; vgvmbM; 90" resolved into stars barely resolvable with left eye. A beautiful softly shaded object."

300/350mm - 13.1" (7/5/83): bright core surrounded by a round, even glow. No resolution evident in poor seeing.

400/500mm - 17.5" (7/10/99): this fairly bright globular is ~3.5' in diameter and sharply concentrated with a prominent 1.5' core. The core appears slightly elongated N-S, although the halo is circular or slightly elongated WSW-ENE. At 220x the globular appears lively and mottled but there is no obvious resolution. At 280x and especially 380x, the edge of the halo is very ragged and the surface extensively mottled. Around the periphery some threshold stars pop in and out of view, particularly on the south side.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb