NGC 1260 is a spiral or lenticular galaxy located 250 million light years away from earth in the constellation Perseus. It was discovered by astronomer Guillaume Bigourdan on 19 October 1884. NGC 1260 is a member of the Perseus Cluster and forms a tight pair with the galaxy PGC 12230. This galaxy is dominated by a population of many old stars. In 2006, it was home to the second brightest supernova in the observable universe, supernova SN 2006gy. This supernova was the most energetic and brightest supernova on record so far.