Many of the brighter galaxies in this cluster, including the giant elliptical galaxy Messier 87 and brightest member Messier 49, were discovered in the late 1770s and early 1780s. They were included in Charles Messier's catalogue of non-cometary fuzzy objects. Described by Messier as nebulae without stars, their true nature was not recognized until the 1920s. Many of the member galaxies of the cluster are visible with a small telescope. Its brightest member is the elliptical galaxy Messier 49.