This faint little galaxy is lost within a sea of bright, impressive star cities. Fourteen Messier galaxies can be found within a 5-degree radius of NGC 4212. As a result, this 11.1 magnitude spiral is often overlooked. However, it's worth the side trip. My sketch at left presents an 82X view in my 10-inch Newtonian. NGC 4212 is just south of center near a 12th magnitude GSC star. The Sc-type galaxy covers a 2'x1' area and is elongated northeast-to-southwest. The brightest of the 13 field stars is 9.4 magnitude HD 106495, visible 23' north of the galaxy just inside the field boundary.