Centaurus - Revision history

Rolandlaffitte: /* Transfer and Transformation of the Constellation */

2026-03-15T15:55:09Z

Transfer and Transformation of the Constellation

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 ===Transfer and Transformation of the Constellation===

Sushoff at 11:53, 27 February 2026

2026-02-27T11:53:09Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 11:53, 27 February 2026
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	===Origin of Constellation===		===Origin of Constellation===
	The Greek constellation is possibly derived from a Babylonian one. There were several centaur-like creatures and other mixed man-animal beings in Mesopotamian culture; seal imprints and reliefs witness them.		The Greek constellation is possibly derived from a Babylonian one.<ref>Hoffmann, Susanne M. Wie der Löwe an den Himmel kam. Franckh Kosmos Verlag, Stuttgart 2021</ref> There were several centaur-like creatures and other mixed man-animal beings in Mesopotamian culture; seal imprints and reliefs witness them.

	Ptolemy divides the super-constellation into separate figures and lists Lupus under the Centaur, but for Aratos (and therefore also in the version of Eratosthenes that has been handed down to us), it was only one image. The depictions of what the centaur is holding in his hands vary:		Ptolemy divides the super-constellation into separate figures and lists Lupus under the Centaur, but for Aratos (and therefore also in the version of Eratosthenes that has been handed down to us), it was only one image. The depictions of what the centaur is holding in his hands vary:

Sushoff: /* Greek Mythology */

2026-02-24T18:10:41Z

Greek Mythology

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:10, 24 February 2026
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	==Greek Mythology==		==Greek Mythology==

			Mythographers agree that this centaur was Cheiron. He lived in a cave on Mount Pelion and was the only centaur who was educated and wise—not boisterous and wild like his fellow centaurs. He was therefore the teacher of numerous Greek heroes, including Achilles and Asclepius. Heracles was probably also one of Chiron's students, as Eratosthenes reports that Heracles listened to Chiron, lived with him in his cave, and may have had a pederastic relationship with him.

			One day, Chiron accidentally injured himself with one of Heracles' arrows. There are several versions of this story: Eratosthenes says that an arrow accidentally fell out of Heracles' quiver and landed on Chiron's foot. Later versions of the myth tell of an attack by the wild other centaurs, which Heracles repelled. In the process, an arrow fired at the attackers accidentally grazed his friend Chiron's leg. Whatever the case, Chiron had a very painful wound. Eratosthenes says that Chiron died from this wound. Later poets claim that Chiron was immortal, which would have condemned him to eternal pain. Since Heracles' arrows were dipped in the blood of the Hydra, none of the medicinal herbs known to the wise Chiron could heal the wound. In this version, Chiron gave up his immortality and thus freed Prometheus from his torment.

			All poets agree that Cheiron was placed in the heavens by Zeus because his wisdom and virtue taught many heroes and because his justice surpassed that of all men.

			There is no direct myth about the monster. It is sometimes claimed that he was the father of Arcas (Bootes), who was transformed into a wild animal by Zeus for his brutality. However, this seems to be a later addition.

	==Weblinks==		==Weblinks==
	* Ridpath, Ian, “[http://www.ianridpath.com/startales/centaurus.html Star Tales: online edition]”.		* Ridpath, Ian, “[http://www.ianridpath.com/startales/centaurus.html Star Tales: online edition]”.

Sushoff: /* Etymology and History */

2026-02-24T18:06:56Z

Etymology and History

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 ==Etymology and History==
 [[File:Kugel cen+lup+Ara.JPG|thumb|Kugel Globe: Centaurus sacrifices Lupus on Ara (drawing by SMH 2024).]]
 [[File:Kugel cen-lup-ara+sgr-sco.JPG|thumb|Kugel Globe: two centaurs in Cen and Sgr with Lup+Ara in between (drawing by SMH 2024).]]
 ===Origin of Constellation===
 ==== Babylonian ====
 ==== Greco-Roman ====

Sushoff: /* Eratosthenes */

2026-02-24T10:34:37Z

Eratosthenes

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:34, 24 February 2026
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	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|		\|Lib 10
	\|		\|Sgr 4
	\|		\|Cnc 12
	\|		\|Vir 16 1/2
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
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	\|-		\|-
	\|star		\|star
	\|		\|in the left shoulder (iota)
	\|		\|the rear of the front feet (alf)
	\|		\|
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|duration		\|duration
	\| colspan="4" \|2 1/8 hours = ~~127.5~~ min = ~~31 7/8~~ degree		\| colspan="4" \|4 1/3 hours = 260 min = 65 degree
	\|}		\|}

Sushoff: /* Hipparchus */

2026-02-22T17:36:57Z

Hipparchus

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:36, 22 February 2026
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	===== 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 Κένταυρος */

2026-02-06T09:32:08Z

Almagest Κένταυρος

Show changes

Sushoff at 13:14, 20 January 2026

2026-01-20T13:14:58Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 13:14, 20 January 2026
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			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 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.		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.

Sushoff at 10:12, 10 August 2025

2025-08-10T10:12:30Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:12, 10 August 2025
Line 1:		Line 1:
	[[File:Centaurus IAU.svg\|alt=star chart\|thumb\|IAU star chart (CC By: IAU and Sky & Telescope magazine, Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg)]]		[[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 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.		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.

	==Etymology and History==		==Etymology and History==

Sushoff at 10:11, 10 August 2025

2025-08-10T10:11:29Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:11, 10 August 2025
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	[[Category:European]]		[[Category:European]]
	[[Category:Constellation]]		[[Category:Constellation]]
			[[Category:Super-Constellation]]
	[[Category:Almagest]]		[[Category:Almagest]]
	[[Category:Mesopotamian]]		[[Category:Mesopotamian]]