The galaxy was discovered on 3 October 1897 by the American astronomer Lewis A.

[6] It is estimated to be around 60 to 70 million light years (20 megaparsecs) away,[2] in the Fornax Cluster.

[3] The galaxy is one of the smaller in the Fornax cluster, with a diameter of only 35 000 light-years.

Very little star formation occurs in these galaxies; the lack of star formation in elliptical galaxies appears to start at the center and then slowly propagates outward.

[8] An image taken by the Hubble Space Telescope in 2015 shows a characteristically smooth profile, with no spiral arms.