Cassiopeia - Revision history

Sushoff at 11:52, 27 February 2026

2026-02-27T11:52:06Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 11:52, 27 February 2026
Line 6:		Line 6:
	==Etymology and History==		==Etymology and History==
	===Origin of Constellation===		===Origin of Constellation===
	Cassiopeia is the name of a queen, which is not translated but only written in Latin with a ‘c’. The queen sits on a throne – in Eratosthenes' version it may be an armchair, but in general it is understood to be a throne. On star charts from the last 250 years, Cassiopeia is often depicted fussing with her hair or even – as in modern planetariums – looking in a mirror. These are supposed to be signs of her vanity. Her throne has a backrest that reaches up to her shoulders, and one of the bright stars sits in its upper third.		<ref>Hoffmann, Susanne M. Wie der Löwe an den Himmel kam. Franckh Kosmos Verlag, Stuttgart 2021</ref>Cassiopeia is the name of a queen, which is not translated but only written in Latin with a ‘c’. The queen sits on a throne – in Eratosthenes' version it may be an armchair, but in general it is understood to be a throne. On star charts from the last 250 years, Cassiopeia is often depicted fussing with her hair or even – as in modern planetariums – looking in a mirror. These are supposed to be signs of her vanity. Her throne has a backrest that reaches up to her shoulders, and one of the bright stars sits in its upper third.

	In ancient times, the figure was seen differently: on the Farnese Globe, whose pictorial model dates back to the Hellenistic period, the seat has no backrest. The queen also holds up one arm, but there is nothing in her raised hand – Aratos believes she is lamenting her child. Her other hand (her left) is stretched out towards her husband, as if the two were about to hold hands. Her hair is draped in a strict bun, as was and is customary for older women. This contrasts with the looser hair of her daughter [[Andromeda]].		In ancient times, the figure was seen differently: on the Farnese Globe, whose pictorial model dates back to the Hellenistic period, the seat has no backrest. The queen also holds up one arm, but there is nothing in her raised hand – Aratos believes she is lamenting her child. Her other hand (her left) is stretched out towards her husband, as if the two were about to hold hands. Her hair is draped in a strict bun, as was and is customary for older women. This contrasts with the looser hair of her daughter [[Andromeda]].

Sushoff: /* Mythology */

2026-02-26T19:25:58Z

Mythology

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:25, 26 February 2026
Line 1,465:		Line 1,465:

	==Mythology==		==Mythology==
	The tragedian Sophocles is quoted by Eratosthenes as the source of the story: he recounts that Cassiopeia competed with the Nereids for beauty and thus fell into disfavour. Because of her, the sea god Poseidon is said to have sent a sea monster to ravage the land she ruled with her husband Cepheus. To save the land from the monster, the princess was to be sacrificed – but she was saved in the face of danger. The poets agree that Cassiopeia was punished for her vanity with her uncomfortable position in the sky (rapidly ascending and descending, and sometimes upside down).[[File:IauWGSN Cassiopeia SadeghFaghanpour2025.jpg\|thumb\|Cassiopeia with WGSN-names (CC BY Sadegh Faghanpour and Susanne M Hoffmann for WGSN 2025).]]		The tragedian Sophocles is quoted by Eratosthenes as the source of the story: he recounts that Cassiopeia competed with the Nereids for beauty and thus fell into disfavour. Because of her, the sea god Poseidon is said to have sent a sea monster to ravage the land she ruled with her husband [[Cepheus]]. To save the land from the monster, the princess was to be sacrificed – but she was saved in the face of danger. The poets agree that Cassiopeia was punished for her vanity with her uncomfortable position in the sky (rapidly ascending and descending, and sometimes upside down).[[File:IauWGSN Cassiopeia SadeghFaghanpour2025.jpg\|thumb\|Cassiopeia with WGSN-names (CC BY Sadegh Faghanpour and Susanne M Hoffmann for WGSN 2025).]]

	== IAU Star Naming ==		== IAU Star Naming ==

Sushoff at 19:25, 26 February 2026

2026-02-26T19:25:38Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:25, 26 February 2026
Line 2:		Line 2:
	----		----
	[[File:Cassiopeia IAU.svg\|alt=star chart\|thumb\|Cas star chart (IAU and Sky & Telescope magazine, Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg).]]		[[File:Cassiopeia IAU.svg\|alt=star chart\|thumb\|Cas star chart (IAU and Sky & Telescope magazine, Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg).]]
	~~One~~ of the [[:Category:88_IAU-Constellations\|88 IAU constellations]].		Cassiopeia, The Queen, one of the [[:Category:88_IAU-Constellations\|88 IAU constellations]].

	==Etymology and History==		==Etymology and History==
	The Greek ~~constellation .~~..		===Origin of Constellation===
			Cassiopeia is the name of a queen, which is not translated but only written in Latin with a ‘c’. The queen sits on a throne – in Eratosthenes' version it may be an armchair, but in general it is understood to be a throne. On star charts from the last 250 years, Cassiopeia is often depicted fussing with her hair or even – as in modern planetariums – looking in a mirror. These are supposed to be signs of her vanity. Her throne has a backrest that reaches up to her shoulders, and one of the bright stars sits in its upper third.

			In ancient times, the figure was seen differently: on the Farnese Globe, whose pictorial model dates back to the Hellenistic period, the seat has no backrest. The queen also holds up one arm, but there is nothing in her raised hand – Aratos believes she is lamenting her child. Her other hand (her left) is stretched out towards her husband, as if the two were about to hold hands. Her hair is draped in a strict bun, as was and is customary for older women. This contrasts with the looser hair of her daughter [[Andromeda]].

			In Greek art, women are not depicted naked – except for Aphrodite – so Cassiopeia, like her daughter, wears a long dress in the original. Bare-breasted depictions since the Middle Ages (Leiden Aratea) show the frivolous image of antiquity that was invented in retrospect.

			It is unclear where the image of the queen comes from, as it is not the first thing that comes to mind when we see the zigzag pattern in the sky. Aratos does not describe the five bright stars that we call the ‘celestial W’ with a letter. The Greek sigma would have been a natural choice: Σ, but only a few people could write and the didactic poem was intended for everyone. Aratos compares the shape of the constellation to a key (bit) that opens a folding door. It is not entirely clear whether the folded door is also an allusion to the arrangement of the stars. In any case, the key is not a constellation, but, like our W in the sky, merely a mnemonic device.

	~~===Origin~~ of ~~Constellation===~~		It is unclear what this constellation was in Mesopotamia, but in any case it was not a queen. It could be the constellation of the deer or the plough – or something else entirely, which unfortunately cannot be determined with certainty based on the available data. Current philological research gives reason to believe that this is the constellation of the seed funnel plough, an innovation of the 2nd millennium that made it possible to scatter seeds from a storage funnel directly into the furrow.

	==== Babylonian ====		==== Babylonian ====
			see

			* [[APIN]]

	[[File:Kugel family.JPG\|thumb\|Kugel Globe (1st c.BCE): Andromeda, Cassiopeia, Perseus, Cepheus, drawing by SMH 2024.]]		[[File:Kugel family.JPG\|thumb\|Kugel Globe (1st c.BCE): Andromeda, Cassiopeia, Perseus, Cepheus, drawing by SMH 2024.]]

Line 1,455:		Line 1,465:

	==Mythology==		==Mythology==
	[[File:IauWGSN Cassiopeia SadeghFaghanpour2025.jpg\|thumb\|Cassiopeia with WGSN-names (CC BY Sadegh Faghanpour and Susanne M Hoffmann for WGSN 2025).]]		The tragedian Sophocles is quoted by Eratosthenes as the source of the story: he recounts that Cassiopeia competed with the Nereids for beauty and thus fell into disfavour. Because of her, the sea god Poseidon is said to have sent a sea monster to ravage the land she ruled with her husband Cepheus. To save the land from the monster, the princess was to be sacrificed – but she was saved in the face of danger. The poets agree that Cassiopeia was punished for her vanity with her uncomfortable position in the sky (rapidly ascending and descending, and sometimes upside down).[[File:IauWGSN Cassiopeia SadeghFaghanpour2025.jpg\|thumb\|Cassiopeia with WGSN-names (CC BY Sadegh Faghanpour and Susanne M Hoffmann for WGSN 2025).]]

	== IAU Star Naming ==		== IAU Star Naming ==

Sushoff: /* Setting (Lib II Cap VI §10) */

2026-02-24T07:35:09Z

Setting (Lib II Cap VI §10)

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:35, 24 February 2026
Line 24:		Line 24:
	===== Hipparchus =====		===== Hipparchus =====

	====== Rising (Lib II Cap V ~~§10~~) ======		====== Rising (Lib II Cap V §9) ======
	<blockquote>The Rising of ...</blockquote>		<blockquote>The Rising of ...</blockquote>
	{\| class="wikitable"		{\| class="wikitable"
Line 60:		Line 60:
	\|}		\|}

	====== Setting (Lib II Cap VI ~~§10~~) ======		====== Setting (Lib II Cap VI §9) ======
	{\| class="wikitable"		{\| class="wikitable"
	!		!

Sushoff: /* Setting (Lib II Cap VI §10) */

2026-02-24T07:34:30Z

Setting (Lib II Cap VI §10)

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:34, 24 February 2026
Line 73:		Line 73:
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|		\|Ari 21
	\|		\|Tau 23 1/2
	\|		\|Cnc 23 1/2
	\|		\|Vir 5
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
Line 85:		Line 85:
	\|-		\|-
	\|star		\|star
	\|		\|the one in the head (zeta)
	\|		\|the one in the feet (eps)
	\|		\|
	\|		\|

Sushoff: /* Rising (Lib II Cap V §10) */

2026-02-23T15:08:11Z

Rising (Lib II Cap V §10)

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:08, 23 February 2026
Line 39:		Line 39:
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|		\|Sgr 22
	\|		\|Cap 12
	\|		\|Lib 11
	\|		\|Sco 2 1/2
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
Line 51:		Line 51:
	\|-		\|-
	\|star		\|star
	\|		\|the bright one at the throne
	\|		\|the one in the head
	\|		\|
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|duration		\|duration
	\| colspan="4" \|2 1/8 hours = ~~127.5~~ min = ~~31 7/8~~ degree		\| colspan="4" \|1 1/3 hours = 80 min = 20 degree
	\|}		\|}

Sushoff: /* Hipparchus */

2026-02-22T17:36:15Z

Hipparchus

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:36, 22 February 2026
Line 23:		Line 23:

	===== Hipparchus =====		===== Hipparchus =====

			====== Rising (Lib II Cap V §10) ======
			<blockquote>The Rising of ...</blockquote>
			{\| class="wikitable"
			\|+
			!
			! colspan="2" \|east
			! colspan="2" \|south
			\|-
			!
			!lam1
			!lam2
			!lam1
			!lam2
			\|-
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|-
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|-
			\|star
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|-
			\|duration
			\| colspan="4" \|2 1/8 hours = 127.5 min = 31 7/8 degree
			\|}

			====== Setting (Lib II Cap VI §10) ======
			{\| class="wikitable"
			!
			! colspan="2" \|west
			! colspan="2" \|south
			\|-
			!
			!lam1
			!lam2
			!lam1
			!lam2
			\|-
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|-
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|-
			\|star
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|-
			\|duration
			\| colspan="4" \|2 2/3 hours = 160 min = 40°
			\|}

			====== Stars Mentioned ======
			{\| class="wikitable"
			\|+
			!
			!Greek
			!German
			!English
			!ident.
			!src
			!
			!lam_culm
			\|-
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|Lib II Cap V §10
			\|rising, east, first
			\|
			\|-
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|Lib II Cap V §10
			\|rising, east, last
			\|
			\|-
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|Lib II Cap VI §2
			\|setting CrB, south, last
			\|Psc 13.5
			\|-
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|Lib II Cap VI §13
			\|setting Aql, south, first
			\|Ari 2
			\|-
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|
			\|Lib III Cap I §9
			\|rising Ori, south, last
			\|Psc 13
			\|}

	===== Hyginus, Astronomica =====		===== Hyginus, Astronomica =====

YoulaAzkarrula: /* Almagest Κασσιέπεια */

2026-02-06T10:49:58Z

Almagest Κασσιέπεια

Show changes

Sushoff at 13:14, 20 January 2026

2026-01-20T13:14:41Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 13:14, 20 January 2026
Line 1:		Line 1:
			Authors: {{PAGEAUTHORS}}
			----
	[[File:Cassiopeia IAU.svg\|alt=star chart\|thumb\|Cas star chart (IAU and Sky & Telescope magazine, Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg).]]		[[File:Cassiopeia IAU.svg\|alt=star chart\|thumb\|Cas star chart (IAU and Sky & Telescope magazine, Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg).]]
	One of the [[:Category:88_IAU-Constellations\|88 IAU constellations]].		One of the [[:Category:88_IAU-Constellations\|88 IAU constellations]].

Sushoff: /* IAU Star Naming */

2025-12-09T14:55:31Z

IAU Star Naming

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:55, 9 December 2025
Line 119:		Line 119:

	==Mythology==		==Mythology==
			[[File:IauWGSN Cassiopeia SadeghFaghanpour2025.jpg\|thumb\|Cassiopeia with WGSN-names (CC BY Sadegh Faghanpour and Susanne M Hoffmann for WGSN 2025).]]

	== IAU Star Naming ==		== IAU Star Naming ==