M 



ZODIAC. 



ZODIAC. 



1000 



arranged in the form of a key : Cassiopeia has her hands, raised above 

 bar head as if bewailing the fate of her daughter Andromeda, who is 

 placed below her. The arms of the latter are extended and chained (to 

 a rock) ; and under her head is Pegasus. Aries is below the girdle of 

 Andromeda, and, as well as the claws of Scor|>io and the girdle of 

 Orion, it is in the equator: the triangle (SeAi-wri*) is above Aries. 

 The constellation Pisces is below the triangle ; and Perseus stands 

 ith his hand near the chair of Cassiopeia. Below his left knee are 

 the Pleiades, and the names of the seven daughters of Atlas are given 

 to the stars of the cluster. Aratus observes that there are but tin 

 stare in the cluster ; but Hipparchus, in bis commentary on the poem, 

 states that against a dark sky seven may be seen. The bow of Sagit- 

 tarius tends towards the tail of Scorpio. The Lyre, and the eagle 

 which carries it, is between Perseus and the head of the bird (6pns). 

 (This is the constellation Cygnus, which also by Manetho and Ptolemy 

 is called the Bird. The name Cygnus is first applied to it in a work 

 mi the constellations which is ascribed to Eratosthenes.) Cygnus 

 extends towards the other eagle (Aquila), and near the head of Pegasus 

 is the right hand of Aquarius, which , it is remarked, rises before Capri- 

 cornus. Over the latter is the Dolphin. All the above constellations 

 are stated to be between the zodiac and the north pole ; and the 

 zodiacal constellations are afterwards mentioned in order, beginning 

 with Cancer and ending with Gemini. Libra (elsewhere called (uyfv) 

 is not mentioned, while Scorpio and the Claws are described as if they 

 formed two constellations. 



In the description of the constellations between the zodiac and the 

 south pole, it is stated that Orion is placed obliquely to Taurua, and 

 that Cam's Major is at his feet. Under him is said to be Lepus, and at 

 the tail of the dog is the head of the ship Argo. Under Aries and 

 Pisces, and above the river (Eridanus), Cetus advances towards Andro- 

 meda, and below Capricornus is the Southern Fish. Under Sagittarius 

 is a circle of stars (the Southern Crown), and below the sting of Scorpio 

 is the Altar. Under the Scorpion is Centaurus, while farther on is 

 Hydra, having its head under Cancer, and its tail above Centaurus : 

 about the middle of its body is Cratenis, and near the toil is Corvus. 

 The bright star Procyon is under Gemini. 



Such, nearly, is the description given by Aratus of the celestial 

 sphere ; and the constellations are, in general , the same as those which 

 are represented on the modern globes. Some inconsistencies which 

 exist in it were pointed out by Hipparchus, who lived about 100 years 

 before Christ, and wrote a commentary on the poem. It is plain that 

 the descriptions have been compiled from observations made by persons 

 at different places, and probably in different ages ; for in one part of 

 the work it is stated that the extremity of Draco, nnd in another the 

 girdle of Cepheus, touches the horizon, while in a third place Bootes is 

 said to go below that circle, except his hand : and these circumstances 

 are quite incompatible with observations made in the same latitude. 

 It should be remarked that, in the Greek sphere, the stars are not 

 always placed in the same parts of the figures as they occupy at 

 present : thus the principal star of Aries is placed by Hipparchus in the 

 front foot of the animal, while on the modem globes it is placed in 

 the head. 



It would be desirable to ascertain from the poem of Aratus the 

 position of the equinoctial or solsticial points, in order to find the 

 epoch of the observations on which the description is founded, but it 

 is to be regretted that nothing satisfactory can be discovered concerning 

 the subject. It is stated in the poem that the southern tropic cuts the 

 middle of Capricornus, and hence the equinoctial colure should pass 

 through the middle of Aries. Now, in the presumed age of Eudoxus, 

 the first remarkable star y in Aries was nearly at the point in which 

 the trace of the ecliptic in the heavens cuts that of the equator; and if 

 we suppose the extent of the constellation to be 30 degrees, the middle 

 point, reckoning from that star, would be nearly at the 1 5th degree 

 of longitude. The longitude of that star is now about 30, and hence 

 the equinoctial colure would have retrograded as much as 46 degrees, 

 which at the known rate of the precession would take place in about 

 3200 yearn : consequently the epoch would be about the year 1400 B.C. 

 Or, if with Ptolemy it is supposed that the extent of the constellation 

 between the first star y of Aries and the first star of Taurus (now S 

 Arietis) is only 18 degrees, the middle point would be in the 9th 

 degree of longitude, and the retrogradation would be 39 degrees, which 

 would place the epoch about the year 970 B.C. Nothing, however, can 

 be more uncertain than conclusions drawn from such data. 



The Uste for ornamenting buildings with sculptures representing 

 astronomical subjects appears to have existed in ancient Rome, as well 

 a in Egypt and in the East ; for in 1708 a fragment of a planisphere 

 was discovered in that city. It has in its centre a serpent, probably an 

 emblem of time, and near it two animals, apparently bears ; about the 

 serpent are the remains of three concentric rings, divided into compart- 

 ment* containing figures, among which are nouic of the , 

 constellations. 



That the Homans adopted the Greek sphere is evident from the 

 descriptions of the constellations in tha ' A.-! of Manilius: 



those of the zodiac, in particular, are given in tho verses " Aurato 

 priiiceps arie* in vellere fulgens," Ac.; and the poem contains a detailed 

 account of their astrological dispositions and qualities. The twelve 

 sign* are divided into masculine and feminine alternately, and are 

 appropriated to different deil H also a division of the zodiac 



into twelve parts, which are designated Athla, or labours, and r. 

 the occu]>ations or professions of men (lib. iii., v. 93). Four constella- 

 tions, comprehending a space equal to one -third of the circunn 

 odiac, are said to constitute a trigon ; three a tetragon, 

 on ; and there arc four trigoiix arising from the different o< 

 which may coincide with the angle* of an equilateral triangle supposed 

 to be inscribed in tlie y.odi.ie : the like is to be understood with respect 

 to the tetragon, hexagon, &c. Each sign of the zodiac is supposed, in 

 the poem, to give a certain number of years to the Hie of a man ; and 

 his profession or fortune is imagined to dcjiend on the particular sign 

 which U rising at his birth, according to the qualities or uses of tho 

 animal by whieh the -ign is distinguished (lib. iv., v. 122). It is also 

 asserted that the characters of nun dc^nd on the qualities of the 

 extra-zodiacal constellations: thus, persons born when the shi; 

 rises are said to become seamen or to have an interest in naval 

 (lib. v., v. 39). 



Scaliger, in his notes on Manilius, has given, from a manuscript of 



! './.ra, a description of three planispheres, of which one i 

 posed to have related to the astronomy of the ancient 1 

 another to that of the Hindus; the third is supposed to be 

 in or Greek. The significations of the figures in the 1 

 are very uncertain ; but among those which have been recog- 

 nised are Ursa Major aud Ursa Minor, and a winged horse, besides 

 Virgo, Leo, and Taurus. The figures of men and women are without 

 designations ; but among the former is one on a throne, which is 

 thought to represent Cepheus, and one in a kneeling po.-ture, whieh 

 may be Hercules ; of the latter, there is one whieh is ] 

 represent Cassiopeia or Andromeda. A figure of a ship is also 

 guished. It is asserted in the ' Zend-Avesta' [ZiNnAvi sis] th 

 ancient Persians divided the zodiac into twenty-eight constellations, or 

 houses of the moon, and also into twelve signs : to th' 

 ;i.-.-igne.d names which correspond to those at present given to the con- 

 stellations in that region of the heavens; and the cluster railed tho 

 Hyades (in Taurus) is described as a bull with gilt horns. The division 

 of the zodiac into twenty-eight lunar mansions prevailed also among 

 the Arabian astronomers in or before the !'th century. It is men 

 by Alfragan, who states (' Elementa Astron.,' A.D. 850) that the first 

 was called Xartan, and that it commenced near the three principal stars 

 in Aries. 



The Hindu zodiac, which is described in the ' Philosophical Trans- 

 actions ' for 1772, consists of twelve figures disposed on the four 

 of a square. In this the place of Gemini is occupied by a figure of a 

 man apparently with a shield on each arm ; Virgo is represented bj :i 

 female figure naked and seated j Libra is represented by a pair of scales 

 similar to those in common use at present ; and in place of Caprioornns 

 are figures of a ram aud a fish, which are close together, but do not, as 

 in the modern sphere, constitute one body. A globular vessel repre- 

 sents Aquarius ; and for Pisces, one fish only is delineated. The figure 

 in the place of Scorpio cannot be made out. This remarkable monu- 

 ment was discovered in the ceiling of a choultry or pagoda at 

 Verdapettoh, in Madura ; and the separation of the figures in Capri- 

 cornus seems to indicate that it is of great antiquity, as it may be 

 reasonably supposed that such a disposition preceded in order of time 

 that of a union of the two bodies in one. 



In the second volume of the ' Asiatic Researches' there is given, by 

 Sir William Jones, a paper containing a description, from the. Sanskrit 

 of Sripeti, of an ancient zodiac, which is divided into twelve parts, 

 each of 30 degrees, corresponding to the modern signs. The ram, the 

 bull, the crab, the lion, and the scorpion are said to have the figures of 

 those animals, and in the plate which accompanies the memoir the 

 entire figure of the bull is given: the twins consist of amain and a 

 female figure, and in the description, the woman is said t 

 musical instrument, while tho man holds a club, but the figures are 

 not so represented in the plate. Virgo is represented by a woman in 

 a boat; in one hand she holds a lamp, and in the other a blade i 

 Libra is represented by scales, which are held by a man who ai 

 i o 1.,. Blueing a weight hi one of them. Sagittarius is the figure of an 

 archer, whose legs are like those of a horse. Capricornus is the figure 

 of a gazelle. Aquarius is represented by a man pom 

 vessel which he carries on his shoulders; aud lastly, Pisces consists of 

 two fishes, the head of one being turned towards the tail of the other. 

 The zodiac is also divided into twenty-seven parts, constituting the 

 mansions of the moon : these are not represented in tho plate, but 

 ines, as well as those of the twelve signs, are given. The age in 

 which Sripeti lived is unknown. 



Tho Zodiacs of India and of ancient Persia maybe i have 



been originally the same as that of the Greeks or Egyptians; for 

 although all of them dill'er from one another in the details, the point 

 ' idence are too numerous to be accidental, and it i* pi 



the course nc| primitive sphere was altered in the 



countries eastward of Egypt, and Chaldiea, as it was by tie 

 Europe. On the subject of the Indian zodiac the reader may consult 

 ISohlen, 'Dai Alto Indien,' vol. it., p. 252, &o., and tho refercn. 

 the notes. 



The representations of tho heavens which have been found among 

 the people of northern India, China, and Japai 

 which were in ue in the western parts of Asia, in the zodiac 

 divided into twelve pai t ... \\ hieli are c -ailed mam-ions of the sun 



