Auriga

Authors: Doris Vickers, Susanne M Hoffmann, Youla Azkarrula

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Auriga star chart (IAU and Sky & Telescope magazine, Roger Sinnott & Rick Fienberg).

One of the 88 IAU constellations.

Etymology and History

Origin of Constellation

The constellation is called Auriga, but the brightest star in it is called Capella, the goat. A charioteer drives a chariot, but this particular charioteer has a goat on his shoulder and its young, two kids, in his left hand. This image seems strange because the goat family would rather hinder the charioteer in holding the reins – but this peculiar image is ancient; it already existed in Hellenism.

Eratosthenes has three possible interpretations for this figure: The charioteer can either be the first Athenian and bringer of culture, Erichthonios. As the first human, he is said to have harnessed a chariot to horses and led a procession for the goddess Athena on the Acropolis. Alternatively, the charioteer may be a son of Hermes, the charioteer of King Oinomaos of Pisa, a region in the north-western Peloponnese. According to Eratosthenes, the goat is the goat of the nymph Amalthea, who has nothing to do with the charioteer in either version.

The death of Zeus's nurses is a common narrative in archaic Greek mythology – only who the nurses are exactly is interpreted differently by different poets (see also bears). The Cretan cult of Zeus names Ida, the protective mountain in the form of a nymph, the honeybee nymph Melissa and the milk-giving goat Aix or Aiga with the nymphs Amalthea and Adrasteia. The name of the nymph Amalthea was later transferred to the goat.

The juxtaposition of the charioteer and the goat in Eratosthenes could indicate that constellations from several different cultures in Alexander's empire were mixed together to form one constellation. The charioteer is linked to the Greek polis of Athens through the Erichthonios saga and to the Peloponnese through the Pelops-Oinomaos saga. The goat links the figure to the Cretan Zeus myth. It is quite possible that this reflects the newly developed ‘Greekness’ or the identity-forming ‘being Greek’ in Hellenism.

On the Farnese Globe, the charioteer is depicted without a goat, i.e. at least in Hellenistic times, the goat was the name of a single star. The heliacal rising of the star Capella, or the goat constellation consisting of several stars representing a goat and her kids, was associated by the Greeks with the stormy season and seafaring. Since the Greek word aigis means both ‘stormy weather’ and ‘goat skin’, this could be the reason why Capella and not some other white star is referred to as a goat. The star's name could therefore have a calendrical function.

In any case, neither the star name nor the constellation has Babylonian roots, because in Babylonian astronomy, this constellation was not thought to represent an anthropomorphic figure, but rather a weapon: the so-called crooked wood, a throwing weapon. In Babylonian astral science, there is a goat constellation that plays an important role in medical cults. However, this is the (white) star Vega, which is roughly opposite Capella. So either there is no connection here, or there is a significant shift.

Babylonian

see

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Kugel Globe: Auriga and Taurus (drawing by SMH 2024)

Greco-Roman

Aratos

If you are minded to observe the Charioteer and the Charioteer’s stars, and rumour has reached you of the Goat herself and the Kids, who have often looked down on men being tossed upon the heaving sea, [160] you will find the Charioteer lying large to the left of the Twins, while opposite Helice circles his head at that extremity. Fastened to his left shoulder is the sacred Goat, who is said to have tendered her breast to Zeus: the interpreters of Zeus call her the Olenian Goat. [165] Now he is large and brilliant, but her Kids there on the Charioteer’s wrist shine faintly.

Near the feet of the Charioteer look for the horned Bull crouching. This constellation is very recognisable, so clearly defined is its head: one needs no other [170] sign to identify the ox’s head, so well do the stars themselves model both sides of it as they go round. Their name is also very popular: the Hyades are not just nameless. They are set out all along the Bull’s face; the point of its left horn [175] and the right foot o f the adjacent Charioteer are occupied by a single star, and they are pinned together as they go. But the Bull is always ahead o f the Charioteer in sinking to the horizon, though it rises simultaneously.

(Kidd 1997)

Hipparchus

Rising (Lib II Cap V §10)

The Rising of ...

	east		south
	lam1	lam2	lam1	lam2
	Psc 10 1/2	Tau 15 1/2	Sgr 20	Cap 29
star	those in the head	the in the foot
duration	3 hours = 180 min = 45 degree

Setting (Lib II Cap VI §10)

	west		south
	lam1	lam2	lam1	lam2
	Tau 23	Cnc 1 1/2	Vir 2	Lib 22
star	the one in the left foot (iota)	the one in the head (delta, ksi)
duration	3 hours = 180 min = 45°

Stars Mentioned

	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

In Latin we call him "auriga" — Erichthonius by name, as Eratosthenes shows. Jupiter seeing that he first among men yoked horses in four-horse chariots, admired the genius of a man who could rival the invention of Sol, who first among the gods made use of the quadriga. Erichthonius first invented the four-horse chariot, as we said before, and also first established sacrifices to Minerva, and a temple on the citadel of the Athenians. Euripides gives the following account of his birth. Vulcan, inflamed by Minerva's beauty, begged her to marry him, but was refused. She hid herself in the place called Hephaestius, on account of the love of Vulcan. They say that Vulcan, following her there, tried to force her, and when, full of passion he tried to embrace her, he was repulsed, and some of his seed fell to the ground. Minerva overcome by shame, with her foot spread dust over it. From this the snake Erichthonius was born, who derives his name from the earth and their struggle. Minerva is said to have hidden him, like a cult-object, in a chest. She brought the chest to the daughters of Erechtheus and gave it to them to guard, forbidding them to open it. But man is by nature so curious, that the oftener he is forbidden to do something, the more he desired to do it. So the girls opened the chest and saw the snake. As a result they were driven mad by Minerva, and threw themselves from the Acropolis. But the snake fled to the shield of Minerva, and was reared by her.

Others have said that Erichthonius merely had snake-legs, and in his youth established the Panathenaic Games for Minerva, himself competing in the four-horse chariot race. In return for these deeds he was placed among the constellations.

Some too, who have written about the stars, have said that the Charioteer was an Argive by birth, named Orsilochus, who first invented the four-horse chariot, and for his invention gained a place among the stars.

Others identified him as the son of Mercury and Clytie, Myrtilus by name, the charioteer of Oinomaus. After his death, the manner of which is common knowledge, his father is said to have put his form in the sky.

On his left shoulder (the goat) Capra stands, and in his left hand the Kids seem to be placed. They tell this story about him. A certain Olenus, son of Vulcan, had two daughters, the nymphs Aex and Helice, who were nurses of Jove. Others have said that certain cities were named from them — Olenus in Aulis, Helice in the Peloponnesus, and Aex in Haemonia — about which Homer writes in the second book of the Iliad. But Parmeniscus say that a certain Melisseus was king in Crete, and to his daughters Jove was brought to nurse. Since they did not have milk, they furnished him a she-goat, Amalthea by name, who is said to have reared him. She often bore twin kids, and at the very time that Jove was brought to her to nurse, had borne a pair. And so because of the kindness of the mother, the kids, too were placed among the constellations. Cleostratus of Tenedos is said to have first pointed out these kids among the stars.

But Musaeus says Jove was nursed by Themis and the nymph Amalthea, to whom he was given by Ops, his mother. Now Amalthea had as a pet a certain goat which is said to have nursed Jove.

Some have called Aex the daughter of Sol, who surpassed many in beauty of body, but in contrast to this beauty, had a most horrible face. Terrified by it, the Titans begged Terra to hide her body, and Terra is said to have hidden her in a cave in the island of Crete. Later she became nurse of Jove, as we have said before. But when Jupiter, confident in his youth, was preparing for war against the Titans, oracular reply was given to him that if he wished to win, he should carry on the war protected with the skin of a goat, aigos, and the head of the Gorgon. The Greeks call this the aegis. When this was done, as we have shown above, Jupiter, overcoming the Titans, gained possession of the kingdom. Covering the remaining bones of the goat with a skin, he gave life to them and memorialised them, picturing them with stars. Afterwards he gave to Minerva the aegis with which he had been protected when he won.

Euhemerus says that a certain Aex was the wife of Pan. When she was embraced by Jove she bore a son whom she called son of Pan. So the child was called Aegipan, and Jove, Aegiochus. Since he was very fond of him, he placed in memory the form of a goat among the stars. (Mary Ward 1960)

Almagest Ἠνίοχος.

id	Greek (Heiberg 1898)	English (Toomer 1984)	ident.
	Ἡνιόχου ἀστερισμός	Constellation of Auriga
1	ὁ τῶν ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς δύο ὁ νοτιώτερος.	The southernmost of the two on the head	del Aur
2	ὁ βορειότερος καὶ ὑπὲρ τὴν κεφαλήν	The northernmost [ of these], over the head	xi Aur
3	ὁ ἐπὶ τοῦ ἀριστεροῦ ὤμου καλούμευος Αἵξ.	The star on the left shoulder, called Capella	alf Aur
4	ὁ ἐπὶ τοῦ δεξιοῦ ὥμου	The star on the right shoulder	bet Aur
5	ὁ ἐπὶ τοῦ δεξιοῦ ἀγκῶνος.	The star on the right elbow	nu Aur
6	ὁ ἐπὶ τοῦ δεξιοῦ καρποῦ.	The star on the. right wrist	tet Aur
	ὁ ἐπὶ τοῦ ἀριστεροῦ ἀγκῶνος.	The star on the left elbow	eps Aur
	τῶν ἐπὶ τοῦ ἀριστεροῦ καρποῦ β καλουμένων Ἑρίφων ὁ ἐπόμενος	The rearmost of the two stars on the left wrist, which are called 'Haedi'	eta Aur
	ὁ προηγούμενος αὐτῶν.	The more ad;,anced of these	zet Aur
	ὁ ἐπὶ τοῦ ἀριστεροῦ σφυροῦ.	The star on the left ankle	iot Aur
	ὁ ἐπὶ τοῦ δεξιοῦ σφυροῦ κοινὸς κέρατος.	The star on the right ankle, which is [ applied in] common to the horn [ of Taurus]	bet Tau
	ὁ τούτου ἀπ’ ἄρκτων ἐν τῷ περιποδύῳ.	The one to the north of the latter, in the lower hem [ of the garment]	chi Aur
	ὁ ἔτι τούτου βορειότερος ἐπὶ τοῦ γλουτοῦ.	The one north aga,in of this, on the buttock	phi Aur
	ὁ ὑπὲρ τὸν ἀριστερὸν πόδα μικρός	The small star over the left foot	14 Aur
	ἀστέρες ἰδ, ὥν α μεγέθουςα, β’ ἂ, γ’ β, δ’ὁ, ε β, ς ἂ.	14 stars, I of the first magnitude, l of the second, 2 of the third, 7 of the fourth, 2 of the fifth, I of the sixth}

Convex Hull for the stars inside Heniochos (CC BY Youla Azkarrula).

Stars within the Constellation Area

id	Label	IAU design.	description	Vmag
1	Capella	HIP 24608	Constellation lines	0.08
2	Elnath	HIP 25428	Constellation lines (Vertex)	1.65
3	Menkalinan	HIP 28360	Constellation lines	1.9
4	Mahasim	HIP 28380	Constellation lines (Vertex)	2.62
5	Hassaleh	HIP 23015	Constellation lines (Vertex)	2.69
6	Almaaz	HIP 23416	Constellation lines (Vertex)	2.99
7	Haedus	HIP 23767	Constellation lines	3.18
8	Bagu	HIP 28358	Constellation lines (Vertex)	3.72
9	Saclateni	HIP 23453	Constellation lines	3.75
10	ν Aurigae	HIP 27673	Constellation lines	3.95
11	C 0519+409	C 0519+409	Inside the hull	4.2
12	τ Aurigae	HIP 27483	Inside the hull	4.5
13	λ Aurigae	HIP 24813	Inside the hull	4.71
14	υ Aurigae	HIP 27639	Inside the hull	4.74
15	2 Aur	HIP 22678	Inside the hull	4.779
16	χ Aurigae	HIP 25984	Constellation lines	4.79
17	μ Aurigae	HIP 24340	Inside the hull	4.821
18	1 Aur	HIP 22453	Constellation lines (Vertex)	4.867
19	σ Aurigae	HIP 25292	Constellation lines	4.996
20	ω Aurigae	HIP 23179	Inside the hull	5
21	KW Aur	HIP 24504	Inside the hull	5
22	19 Aur	HIP 24879	Inside the hull	5.03
23	ϕ Aurigae	HIP 25541	Inside the hull	5.059
24	ρ Aurigae	HIP 25048	Inside the hull	5.207
25	IQ Aur	HIP 24799	Inside the hull	5.371
26	-	HIP 24902	Inside the hull	5.456
27	ο Aurigae	HIP 27196	Constellation lines	5.46
28	-	HIP 25143	Inside the hull	5.542
29	PU Aur	HIP 24738	Inside the hull	5.65
30	-	HIP 25001	Inside the hull	5.67
31	-	HIP 25492	Inside the hull	5.72
32	-	HIP 25471	Inside the hull	5.905
33	-	HIP 28343	Inside the hull	5.907
34	-	HIP 25291	Inside the hull	5.925
35	AE Aur	HIP 24575	Inside the hull	5.96
36	5 Aur	HIP 23261	Inside the hull	5.97
37	-	HIP 25816	Inside the hull	5.991
38	M 36	M 36	Inside the hull	6
39	-	HIP 26363	Inside the hull	6.082
40	-	HIP 22955	Inside the hull	6.089
41	-	HIP 26315	Inside the hull	6.095
42	-	HIP 23511	Inside the hull	6.111
43	AR Aur	HIP 24740	Inside the hull	6.144
44	-	HIP 25476	Inside the hull	6.151
45	-	HIP 25475	Inside the hull	6.158
46	NGC 1912 562	NGC 1912 562	Inside the hull	6.17
47	-	HIP 24771	Inside the hull	6.199
48	-	HIP 23799	Inside the hull	6.207
49	-	HIP 26071	Inside the hull	6.261
50	-	HIP 25290	Inside the hull	6.29
51	-	HIP 27319	Inside the hull	6.292
52	-	HIP 26463	Inside the hull	6.355
53	-	HIP 25810	Inside the hull	6.377
54	-	HIP 27777	Inside the hull	6.39
55	M 38	M 38	Inside the hull	6.4
56	-	HIP 25580	Inside the hull	6.4
57	-	HIP 26592	Inside the hull	6.44
58	-	HIP 25301	Inside the hull	6.46
59	-	HIP 27293	Inside the hull	6.46
60	-	HIP 24332	Inside the hull	6.47
61	-	HIP 26054	Inside the hull	6.474
62	6 Aur	HIP 23268	Inside the hull	6.48
63	-	HIP 24881	Inside the hull	6.48
64	18 Aur	HIP 24832	Inside the hull	6.489
65	-	HIP 23724	Inside the hull	6.5

Transfer and Transformation of the Constellation

• 
  Auriga as Erichtonius in Fortin's Atlas Céleste, 3rd edition (1795).

Mythology

Three Greek myths must be told for this constellation:

The Athens legend: Erichthonios is said to have been a man who sprang from the earth goddess Gaia. She gave birth to him after the seed of the god Hephaistos fell on her, and this happened because Hephaistos had pursued Athena, who wanted to remain a virgin. Erichthonios was thus unwittingly fathered by a lustful god and grew out of the earth. He became an admired competitor and, together with another man, led the greatest religious festival in ancient Athens, the Panathenaea.

The legend of Pelops, on the other hand, bears witness to ancient brutality:

Myrtilos was responsible for King Oinomaos' royal chariot. The king had promised his daughter to the man who could defeat him in a chariot race, which was impossible because he would strike his opponents from behind with a spear and kill them. The suitor Pelops therefore outwitted the king with the help of Myrtilos and a pact with the sea god Poseidon. Myrtilos sabotaged the chariot, causing Oinomaos to be dragged to his death and Pelops to win. But then Myrtilos himself claimed the king's daughter, whereupon he was thrown into the sea and drowned. A variation of the legend claims that Poseidon had given his favourite Pelops winged horses, with which he defeated Oinomaos. In any case, Pelops became the new king, which is commemorated to this day in the name of the island, Peloponnese.

The goat legend: When Zeus was born, the mother goddess Rhea was tired of her husband Kronos swallowing all newborn children. She gave Kronos a stone to swallow and handed the infant over to the Titaness Themis, a goddess of justice, who gave him to the nymphs. Ida nursed him in a cave, Amalthea fed him with the milk of her goat, and the goat Aix defended him from Kronos's gaze, losing a horn in the process. This magical goat's horn, known as the cornucopia, is always filled with whatever its owner desires. Thus Zeus was raised as a boy by his nurses, who were later joined by Ida's sister Adrasteia.

References

• References (general)
• References (ancient Greco-Roman)
• References (medieval)