The nature of the peculiar object VV 794

Photographic and spectroscopic observations of the object VV 794 (MCG 6-24-6, 'The Spider') with the 6-m telescope show that the northerly, brightest feature of this exceptionally complicated system consists of a group of compact H II regions, but the H-alpha and H-beta lines in this feature extend outside the H II zones. While there appears to be no evidence for two interacting galaxies, the object also bears very little resemblance to ordinary SB galaxies.