Centaurus - Revision history

Sushoff: /* Eratosthenes */

2026-08-26T14:57:18Z

Eratosthenes

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:57, 26 August 2026
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	===== Eratosthenes =====		===== Eratosthenes =====
	Pamias and Zucker (2013, 117-120), translated to English:<ref>Pamìas, Jordi und Zucker, Arnaud (2013). Ératosthènes de Cyrène: Catastérrismes, Belles Lettres, Paris</ref><blockquote>'''Var. 1:''' This is apparently Chiron, who lived on Mount Pelion, surpassed all humans in his sense of justice, and was responsible for the upbringing of Asclepius and Achilles. Apparently, Heracles, who was in love with him, went to find him and shared his intimacy in his cave, whilst devoting himself to the worship of Pan. He is the only Centaur whom he did not kill. They had already been living together for some time when an arrow fell from Heracles’ quiver onto Chiron’s foot, thus causing his death. Zeus, in view of his piety and the accident of which he had been the victim, placed the Centaur amongst the constellations, holding the Beast in his hands near the Altar; and the Centaur gives the impression of carrying it to sacrifice it, a gesture which constitutes the most striking sign of his piety.</blockquote><blockquote>The Centaur has three dim stars on the top of his head, a bright star on each shoulder, one on his left elbow, one in the middle of his horse’s chest, one on each hoof of his front legs, four on his back, two bright stars on his belly, three on his tail, a bright star on his horse’s hip, and one on each hoof. Twenty in all.</blockquote><blockquote>'''Var. 2:''' This is apparently Chiron, who lived on Mount Pelion, surpassed all mortals in his sense of justice, and was responsible for the upbringing of Asclepius and Achilles. Apparently, Heracles, who was in love with him, went to find him and shared his intimacy in his cave, whilst devoting himself to the worship of Pan. He was the only Centaur whom he did not kill; on the contrary, he obeyed him, as Antisthenes, the disciple of Socrates, states in Heracles. They had already been living together for some time when an arrow fell from Heracles’ quiver onto Chiron’s foot, thus causing his death; Zeus, in view of his piety and the accident of which he had been the victim, placed the Centaur amongst the constellations.</blockquote><blockquote>In the Centaur’s hands, near the Altar, lies the Beast, and the Centaur gives the impression of carrying it to sacrifice it, a gesture which constitutes the most striking sign of his piety.</blockquote><blockquote>The Centaur has three dull stars on the top of his head, a bright star on each shoulder, one on his left elbow, one on his hand, one in the middle of his horse’s chest, one on each hoof of his front legs, four on his back, two bright ones on his belly, three on his tail, one bright one on his horse’s hip, one on each knee of his hind legs, and one on each hoof. Twenty-four in all. He also holds in his hands what is called the Beast, which is depicted in an elongated form. Some say that it is a wineskin, with which he makes libations to the gods upon the Altar. He holds it in his right hand, whilst in his left he holds a thyrsus. The Beast has two stars on its tail, a bright star at the tip of its hind leg, one on its back, one on its foreleg, one on the underside of its foreleg, and three on its head. In total nine.</blockquote>		Pamias and Zucker (2013, 117-120), translated to English:<ref>Pamìas, Jordi und Zucker, Arnaud (2013). Ératosthènes de Cyrène: Catastérrismes, Belles Lettres, Paris</ref><blockquote>'''Var. 1:''' This is apparently Chiron, who lived on Mount Pelion, surpassed all humans in his sense of justice, and was responsible for the upbringing of Asclepius and Achilles. Apparently, Heracles, who was in love with him, went to find him and shared his intimacy in his cave, whilst devoting himself to the worship of Pan. He is the only Centaur whom he did not kill. They had already been living together for some time when an arrow fell from Heracles’ quiver onto Chiron’s foot, thus causing his death. Zeus, in view of his piety and the accident of which he had been the victim, placed the Centaur amongst the constellations, holding the Beast in his hands near the Altar; and the Centaur gives the impression of carrying it to sacrifice it, a gesture which constitutes the most striking sign of his piety.</blockquote><blockquote>The Centaur has three dim stars on the top of his head, a bright star on each shoulder, one on his left elbow, one in the middle of his horse’s chest, one on each hoof of his front legs, four on his back, two bright stars on his belly, three on his tail, a bright star on his horse’s hip, and one on each hoof. Twenty in all.</blockquote><blockquote>'''Var. 2:''' This is apparently Chiron, who lived on Mount Pelion, surpassed all mortals in his sense of justice, and was responsible for the upbringing of Asclepius and Achilles. Apparently, Heracles, who was in love with him, went to find him and shared his intimacy in his cave, whilst devoting himself to the worship of Pan. He was the only Centaur whom he did not kill; on the contrary, he obeyed him, as Antisthenes, the disciple of Socrates, states in Heracles. They had already been living together for some time when an arrow fell from Heracles’ quiver onto Chiron’s foot, thus causing his death; Zeus, in view of his piety and the accident of which he had been the victim, placed the Centaur amongst the constellations.</blockquote><blockquote>In the Centaur’s hands, near the Altar, lies the Beast, and the Centaur gives the impression of carrying it to sacrifice it, a gesture which constitutes the most striking sign of his piety.</blockquote><blockquote>The Centaur has three dull stars on the top of his head, a bright star on each shoulder, one on his left elbow, one on his hand, one in the middle of his horse’s chest, one on each hoof of his front legs, four on his back, two bright ones on his belly, three on his tail, one bright one on his horse’s hip, one on each knee of his hind legs, and one on each hoof. Twenty-four in all. He also holds in his hands what is called the Beast, which is depicted in an elongated form. Some say that it is a wineskin, with which he makes libations to the gods upon the Altar. He holds it in his right hand, whilst in his left he holds a thyrsus. The Beast has two stars on its tail, a bright star at the tip of its hind leg, one on its back, one on its foreleg, one on the underside of its foreleg, and three on its head. In total nine.</blockquote>'''Eratosthenes's star catalogue''' can be reconstructed from the list of stars he mentions in the last section of each of the constelllation descriptions. Hoffmann (2017)<ref name=":0">Hoffmann, S. M., <nowiki><i>Hipparchs Himmelsglobus</i></nowiki>. Springer Wiesbaden/ New York, 2017. doi:10.1007/978-3-658-18683-8.</ref> made such a catalogue and used it for computational comparison with Hipparchus's, Ptolemy's and Babylonian data; it is based on the edition and translation by Pamias and Geus (2007)<ref>Eratosthenes: Sternsagen, übersetzt von Pamìas, Jordi und Geus, Klaus, Verlag Utopica, Oberhaid 2007</ref> and presented here in English translation.

	{\|class="wikitable"		{\|class="wikitable"
	\|+		\|+

Sushoff: /* Hipparchus's "lost" star Catalogue */

2026-08-26T13:15:41Z

Hipparchus's "lost" star Catalogue

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 |3 Cen
 |67669
 |CPAE
 |}

Sushoff: /* Stars Mentioned */

2026-08-26T13:09:50Z

Stars Mentioned

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Sushoff: /* Eratosthenes */

2026-08-24T20:08:24Z

Eratosthenes

← Older revision		Revision as of 20:08, 24 August 2026
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	\|four on the back		\|four on the back
	\|omega Cen		\|omega Cen
	\|~~IntegerPart[omega Cen]~~		\|star cluster
	\|1		\|1
	\|-		\|-

Sushoff: /* Eratosthenes */

2026-08-24T20:07:44Z

Eratosthenes

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Sushoff: /* Mediaeval, Renaissance and Early Modern Source */

2026-08-04T16:22:29Z

Mediaeval, Renaissance and Early Modern Source

@@ Line 1,880: / Line 1,880: @@
 Roland Laffitte (2025) elaborates: <blockquote>La figure de Κένταυρος / Kentauros, qui est une création grecque attestée chez Eudoxe1, fut reprise telle quelle par les Arabes sous le nom de Qanṭūris (voir Fig. 80a, p. suivante)2. Quant à Θηρίον / Thērion, la « Bête sauvage », liée à la précédente en une seule image et connue par Eudoxe, on y reconnaît la figure mésopotamienne de UR.IDIM, « le Chien sauvage », emblème de Kusu, manifestation de Nisaba, dieu de l’Écriture et des Études. Les astronomes arabes la reprirent sous le nom d’al-Sabuc, « la Bête féroce, le Lion »3 (voir Fig. 80a), puis, tardivement, al-Fahd, « le Guépard »4. Mais ils voyaient déjà, sur l’espace al-Šamāriḫ, « le Rameau de palmier [où il est resté des dattes] »5.</blockquote>English
-Laffitte (2025) then lists the following star names:
+Laffitte (2025) then lists the following star names: <blockquote>[[Rigil Kentaurus]] (α Cen A : -0,01) / سرﻮﻄﻧ ﻞﺟر Emprunté au XIXe siècle pour α Cen, ce nom correspond à l’arabe Riğl Qanṭūris,  « le Pied du Centaure »,  dans  la  représentation  gréco-arabe, sachant que l’UAI vient de le spécialiser pour la plus importante des trois étoiles portant la même désignation de Bayer, soit α Cen6.  AUTRE NOM : [Bungula]. Allen suppose qu’il s’agit d’un nom forgé p/ Burritt en joignant la lettre grecque β et du latin ungula, décrivant la situation de cette étoile dans l’Almageste, voir aussi KUNITZSCH & SMART, 27. Bungula, Wiki.  </blockquote><blockquote>[[Toliman]] (α Cen B : 1,35) /  نﺎﻤﻠﻈﻟا Introdruit dès le XIIe siècle et apparu dans sa forme moderne au XVIIe siècle, c’est al-Ẓalimān, « les Autruches mâles », employé comme nom de la constellation dans les premiers textes arabes7 tandis que comme nom d’étoiles, il correspond à α PsA et θ Eri8. L’UAI vient d’approuver ce nom en le fixant sur αB Cen . </blockquote><blockquote>[[Hadar]] [Centauri] (β Cen : 0,61) /  ِ رﺎﻀﺣ Même si le nom Agena, introduit sans explication par Burritt a eu quelque succès, c’est Hadar, introduit au XXe siècle, qui est désormais approuvé par l’UAI. Ce nom est l’arabe Ḥaḍāri, qui pourrait concerner une divinité astrale dont l’étymologie reste énigmatique9. Cela dit, ce nom fait partie du couple Ḥaḍāri wa-l-Wazn10, lequel se nomme également al-Muḥlifān,  « les  Deux  qui poussent  à jurer » (voir γ Cen). Comme le rapporte al-Ṣūfī, ces deux étoiles se lèvent avant Suhayl et « quand se lève l’une de ces deux étoiles, quelqu’un prendra celle qu’il voit pour Suhayl et s’écrira : c’est Suhayl ! Un autre qui voit l’étoile et la connaît dira : ce n’est pas Suhayl ! Après quoi ils jureront chacun de son côté mais comme celui qui dit que c’est Suhayl jure faux, on nomme ces étoiles al-Muḫlifān ‘les Deux qui poussent à jurer’ ou al-Muḫniṯān, les Deux qui ‘poussent à se parjurer’ ». Nous avons déjà abordé ce couple (voir αβ Col), mais il semble bien que sa place la plus probable se situe dans la région du Centaure, où le nom paraît bien correspondre à αβ Cen11. </blockquote><blockquote>Muhlifain [Centauri] (γ Cen : 2,20) /  نﺎﻔﻠﺤﻤﻟا Emprunté au XXe siècle, ce nom est al-Muḫlifān, « les Deux qui poussent à jurer », nom classique donné à plusieurs couples d’étoiles dans le ciel arabe traditionnel, et l’on peut penser qu’il convient bien à αβ Cen (voir β Cen)12.  </blockquote><blockquote>Al Birdhaun (ε Cen : 2,29) /  ن و ذﱪ ﻟا  Emprunté de façon toute récente, c’est l’arabe al-Birḏawn, « le Cheval de somme »13, épithète utilisée pour la partie cheval du Centaure dans un texte arabe classique (voir supra, Fig. 80a). </blockquote><blockquote>[[Alnair]] [Centauri] (ζ Cen : 2,55) / [سرﻮﻄﻨﻗ نﺪﺑ]  ﺮّﯿ ﻧ Emprunté au début du XXe siècle, ce nom vient de la locution arabe Nayyir Badan Qanṭūris, « la Brillante [du Tronc du Centaure] », attestée dans un catalogue arabe d’époque tardive14 (voir ci-après).  AUTRE NOM : Baten Kentaurus. Ar. سرﻮﻄﻨﻗ نﺪﺑ [ﺮّﯿﻧ] Nayyir Badan Qanṭūris, al-Tīzīnī, voir ci-dessus. Troncation de ‘Al Nāir Al Baṭn Al Kentaurus’, Allen, repris p/ Nit. 02. Batn Kentaurus, Rhoads. Sans suite. </blockquote><blockquote>Marfikent (η Cen, 2,33) /   سرﻮﻄﻨﻗ  ﻖﻓﺮﻣ Introduit récemment, ce nom est la contraction de l’arabe Marfiq Qanṭūris, « l’Épaule droite du Centaure », dans un catalogue arabe tardive non repéré15. </blockquote><blockquote>[[Menkent]] (θ Cen, 2,06) /   سرﻮﻄﻨﻗ [ﻦﻣ ﻦﻤﯾﻷا] ﺐﻜﻨﻤﻟا Introduit récemment, et reconnu par l’UAI, cette appellation est manifestement la contraction de l’expression al-Mankib al-Aysar min Qanṭūris, « l’Épaule droite du Centaure », dans une liste arabe tardive16. AUTRES NOMS : 1. Chort p/ θ Cen. Ar. نﺎﺗﺪﺨﻟا al-Ḫarātān, « les Deux Trous », Smyth, d’après Allen, nom déplacé de θ Leo. 2. Haratan, Photographical Atlas. Même explication, Sans suite. </blockquote><blockquote>Kabkent Prim., Sec. et Ter. (τυφ Cen : 3,85, 3,87 et 3,83) /   سرﻮﻄﻨﻗ  ﺐﻠﻗ Introduit récemment pour les étoiles τ, υ et φ Cen, ce nom doit être la contraction de Qalb Qanṭūris, « « le Cœur du Centaure », faite sur le modèle de Mankent (voir θ Cen)17. [Kakkab] p/ a Lup). Akkadien : mul [= kakkabu] ŠU GÙB UR.IDIM. À la suite d’Allen qui le relève, on trouve ce nom pour cette étoile dans les catalogues modernes, not. Pultar. Notons 1. que ce nom est l’akkadien pour « étoile », tout simplement, l’arabe étant kawkab, et 2. que ce nom est aujourd’hui affecté à θ Lup.  </blockquote>
 === Mediaeval, Renaissance and Early Modern Source ===

Sushoff: /* Aratos */

2026-08-01T18:45:20Z

Aratos

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:45, 1 August 2026
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	===== Aratos =====		===== Aratos =====
	<blockquote>~~[400] This cluster as a whole men call The Water. But others low beneath the forefeet of the Archer (Centaur) [Centaurus], a tuned in a circled ring, go wheeling round the sky.~~		<blockquote>[436] The constellation of Centaur [Centaurus] thou wilt find beneath two others. For part in human form lies beneath Scorpio, but the rest, a horse’s trunk and tail, are beneath the Claws. He ever seems to stretch his right hand towards the round Altar, but though his hand is drawn and firmly grasped another sign – the Beast [Fera], for so men of old have named it.

	[436] The constellation of Centaur [Centaurus] thou wilt find beneath two others. For part in human form lies beneath Scorpio, but the rest, a horse’s trunk and tail, are beneath the Claws. He ever seems to stretch his right hand towards the round Altar, but though his hand is drawn and firmly grasped another sign – the Beast [Fera], for so men of old have named it.

	[660?] So she is borne towards the West, but other signs in the East the vault of heaven brings from below, the remaining half of the Crown and the tail of the Hydra, and uplifts the body and head of the Centaur and the Beast that the Centaur holds in his right hand. But the fore-feet of the Centaur-Knight await the rising of the Bow.		[660?] So she is borne towards the West, but other signs in the East the vault of heaven brings from below, the remaining half of the Crown and the tail of the Hydra, and uplifts the body and head of the Centaur and the Beast that the Centaur holds in his right hand. But the fore-feet of the Centaur-Knight await the rising of the Bow.

Sushoff at 08:52, 29 July 2026

2026-07-29T08:52:48Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 08:52, 29 July 2026
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	Authors: {{PAGEAUTHORS}}		Authors: {{PAGEAUTHORS}}
	----		----
	[[File:Centaurus ~~IAU~~.~~svg\|alt=star chart~~\|thumb\|IAU star chart (CC By: IAU and Sky & Telescope magazine, Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg)]]		[[File:Centaurus (cen).jpg\|thumb\|IAU star chart (CC By: IAU and Sky & Telescope magazine, Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg)]]
	{{Infobox constellation		{{Infobox constellation
	\| name = Κένταυρος (Kentauros)		\| name = Κένταυρος (Kentauros)

Sushoff at 08:51, 29 July 2026

2026-07-29T08:51:53Z

@@ Line 2: / Line 2: @@
 ----
 [[File:Centaurus IAU.svg|alt=star chart|thumb|IAU star chart (CC By: IAU and Sky & Telescope magazine, Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg)]]
 One of the [https://xing.fmi.uni-jena.de/mediawiki/index.php/Category:88_IAU-Constellations 88 IAU constellations]. The ancient Greek constellation of the Centaur forms a [[:Category:Super-Constellation|super-constellation]] with [[Lupus]] and [[Ara]]. It is unknown whether or not Centaurus had a Babylonian predecessor: The Mesopotamian uranologies in this area mention a god ([[NU.MUŠ.DA|Numushda]]) whose appearance and exact location in the sky are not preserved, and the constellation [[UR.IDIM]] which is commonly translated as "Mad Dog" (or rabid dog) but also associated with a benevolent door keeper daemon who is a lion-man. Such a lion-man may possibly be depicted in seal imprints and mythologically named Urmahlullu.

IanRidpath: Superscripts

2026-07-24T12:45:50Z

Superscripts

← Older revision		Revision as of 12:45, 24 July 2026
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	\|τῶν βορειοτέρωυ αὐτοῦ β’ ἀμαυρῶν ὁ ἑπόμενος		\|τῶν βορειοτέρωυ αὐτοῦ β’ ἀμαυρῶν ὁ ἑπόμενος
	\|The rearmost of the 2 faint stars to the north of this		\|The rearmost of the 2 faint stars to the north of this
	\|~~ups2~~ Cen		\|ups<sup>2</sup> Cen
	\|-		\|-
	\|20		\|20
	\|ὁ προηγούμενος αὐτῶν		\|ὁ προηγούμενος αὐτῶν
	\|The more advanced of them		\|The more advanced of them
	\|~~ups1~~ Cen		\|ups<sup>1</sup> Cen
	\|-		\|-
	\|21		\|21
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	\|-		\|-
	\|5		\|5
	\|* ~~alf01~~ Cru		\|* α<sup>1</sup> Cru
	\|HR 4730		\|HR 4730
	\|Inside the hull		\|Inside the hull
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	\|-		\|-
	\|23		\|23
	\|υ 1 Centauri		\|υ<sup>1</sup> Centauri
	\|HIP 68282		\|HIP 68282
	\|Constellation lines		\|Constellation lines
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	\|-		\|-
	\|30		\|30
	\|μ 1 Crucis		\|μ<sup>1</sup> Crucis
	\|HIP 63003		\|HIP 63003
	\|Inside the hull		\|Inside the hull
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	\|-		\|-
	\|35		\|35
	\|ξ 2 Centauri		\|ξ<sup>2</sup> Centauri
	\|HIP 64004		\|HIP 64004
	\|Inside the hull		\|Inside the hull
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	\|-		\|-
	\|38		\|38
	\|υ 2 Centauri		\|υ<sup>2</sup> Centauri
	\|HIP 68523		\|HIP 68523
	\|Inside the hull		\|Inside the hull
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	\|-		\|-
	\|41		\|41
	\|τ 2 Lupi		\|τ<sup>2</sup> Lupi
	\|HIP 70576		\|HIP 70576
	\|Inside the hull		\|Inside the hull
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	\|-		\|-
	\|47		\|47
	\|τ 1 Lupi		\|τ<sup>1</sup> Lupi
	\|HIP 70574		\|HIP 70574
	\|Inside the hull		\|Inside the hull
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	\|-		\|-
	\|60		\|60
	\|ξ 1 Centauri		\|ξ<sup>1</sup> Centauri
	\|HIP 63724		\|HIP 63724
	\|Inside the hull		\|Inside the hull
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	\|-		\|-
	\|73		\|73
	\|μ 2 Crucis		\|μ<sup>2</sup> Crucis
	\|HIP 63005		\|HIP 63005
	\|Inside the hull		\|Inside the hull