NEW THEORY OF ACHILLES' SHIELD. 309 



robbed of their just proportions to form the smaller 

 asterisms. Corona Borealis was the right arm of 

 Bootes, Ursa Minor was a wing of Draco (now wing- 

 less, and no longer a dragon), and so on. 



Secondly, it is necessary that the actual appearance 

 of the heavens, with reference to the position of the pole 

 in Homer's time, should be indicated. For our pre- 

 sent purpose, it is not necessary that we should know 

 the exact date at which the most ancient of the zodiac- 

 temples were constructed (or to which they were made 

 to correspond). There are good reasons, though this 

 is not the proper place for dwelling upon them, for 

 supposing that the great epoch of reference amongst 

 ancient astronomers preceded the Christian era by 

 about 2200 years. Be this as it may, any epoch 

 between the date named and the probable date at 

 which Homer flourished say nine or ten centuries 

 before the Christian era will serve equally well for 

 our present purpose. Now, if the effects of equi- 

 noctial precession be traced back to such a date, we 

 are led to notice two singular and not uninteresting 

 circumstances. First, the pole of the heavens fell in 

 the central part of the great constellation Draco ; and, 

 secondly, the equator fell along the length of the great 

 sea-serpent, Hydra, in one part of its course, and else- 

 where to the north of all the ancient aquatic constella- 

 lations,* save that one-half of the northernmost fish 

 (of the zodiac pair) lay north of the equator. Thus, 



* We may exclude Delphinus as probably later than Homer's time, 

 though mentioned by Aratus. 



