Cassiopeia

From All Skies Encyclopaedia
star chart
Cas star chart (IAU and Sky & Telescope magazine, Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg).

One of the 88 IAU constellations.

Etymology and History

The Greek constellation ...


Origin of Constellation

Babylonian

Kugel Globe (1st c.BCE): Andromeda, Cassiopeia, Perseus, Cepheus, drawing by SMH 2024.

Greco-Roman

Aratos

[188] Eastward his hapless wife, Cassiepeia, gleaming when by night the moon is full, wheels with her scanty stars. For few and alternate stars adorn her, which expressly mark her form with lines of light. Like the key of a twofold door barred within, wherewith men striking shoot back the bolts, so singly set shine her stars. But from her shoulders so faint she stretches a fathom’s length. Thou would’st say she was sorrowing over her daughter.

[650?] The hapless Cassiepeia herself too hastes after the figure of her child. No longer in seemly wise does she shine upon her throne, feet and knees withal, but she headlong plunges like a diver, parted at the knees; for not scatheless was she to rival Doris and Panope. So she is borne towards the West,

(Kidd 1997)

Eratosthenes
Hipparchus
Geminos

Almagest Κασσιέπεια

id Greek

(Heiberg 1898)

English

(Toomer 1984)

ident.
Κασσιεπείας ἀστερισμός. Constellation of Cassiopeia
1 ὁ ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς The star on the head zet Cas
2 ὁ ἐν τῷ στήθει The star in the breast alf Cas
3 ὁ βορειότερος αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς ξώνης The one north of that, on the belt eta Cas
4 ὁ ὑπὲρ τὴν καθέδραη κατὰ τῶν μηρῶν The star over the throne, just over the thighs gam Cas
5 ὁ ἐν τοῖς γόνασια. The star in the knees del Cas
6 ὁ ἐπὶ τῆς κυήμης. The star on the lower leg eps Cas
ὁ ἐπ’ ἄκρου τοῦ ποδός The star on the end of the leg iot Cas
ὁ ἐπὶ τοῦ ἀριστεροῦ βραχίουος The star on the left upper arm tet Cas
ὁ ὑποκάτω τοῦ ἀριστεροῦ ἀγκῶνος The star below the left elbow phi Cas
ὁ ἐπὶ τοῦ δεξιοῦ πήχεως The star on the right fore-arm sig Cas
ὁ ἐπάνω τοῦ ποδὸς τοῦ θρόνου The star above the foot of the throne kap Cas
ὁ ἐπὶ μέσου τοῦ ἀνακλίθρου The star on the middlil of the· back of the throne bet Cas
ὁ ἐπ’ ἄκρου τοῦ ἀνακλίθρου The star on the top of the throne-back rho Cas
ἀστέρες τῇ, ὥυ γ’ μεγέθους ὅ, δ’ ὅ, ε’ ἂ, ϛ’ β 13 stars, 4 of the third magnitude, 6 of the fourth, 1 of the fifth, 2 of the sixth}

Transfer and Transformation of the Constellation

Mythology

Weblinks

References