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Hipparchus' Celestial Globe

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Bianca
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« on: December 08, 2007, 08:57:14 am »








The Catasterismi that survives to today is an epitome from c. A.D. 100 (by an author known as Pseudo-Eratosthenes) of an original work of the same name by the famous Eratosthenes from c. 245 B.C.7 It is unclear what fraction of the surviving text is from Eratosthenes’s composition. The Catasterismi contains a verbal description of the myths and constellations, these being for the most part simply the usual descriptions such as are from Aratus. The Catasterismi does give some non-traditional details that match with the statue, in particular that

(A) the Arctic Circle is along the neck of Cepheus,

(B) the upheld wrist of Bootes is also along the Arctic Circle, and

(C) Eridanus appears above Canopus (hence it must extend through Columba). The Catasterismi differs in many details from those visible on the Farnese Atlas:



(1) Auriga is not shown on the Atlas with either the Goat or the Kids.

(2) The Asses are not shown on the west side of Cancer.

(3) Hercules is not shown on the Atlas as standing.

(4) Hercules is not shown as holding a lion skin. (5) Hercules is not shown as holding a club.

(6) Pegasus is shown as having wings, despite the explicit denial in the Catasterismi.

(7) The constellation Corona Australis is depicted on the globe but never mentioned by the Catasterismi.

(9) The modern constellation of Libra is not separated out and is described as simply the claws of Scorpius, unlike what we find on the statue.





Ptolemy’s Almagest dates from c. A.D. 128 and contains a long catalogue of stars individually labelled by their positions in the constellations.8 These labels allow us to visualize the constellation figure for comparison with the Farnese Atlas. There are many differences between the Almagest and the Atlas:

(1) Auriga is not shown on the statue as carrying the Kids.

(2–4) The constellations of Equuleus, Coma Berenices, and Antinous are not depicted on the globe.

(5) The Almagest identifi es the Asses near the middle of Cancer, while these are not displayed on the globe.

(6) The modern constellation of Libra is called “The Claws” by the Almagest but is drawn as a balance on the Farnese Atlas.

(7) Sagittarius does not have a cloak over the shoulders as stated in the Almagest.

(Cool In the Almagest Aquarius in not said to have a water jar, although this is clearly depicted on the statue.

(9) Canis Major does not have a crown, as shown on the globe, although the crown may simply be a depiction of light rays from Sirius.

(10) In the Almagest Eridanus turns south along the modern track near υ Eri, rather than extending to near the feet of Canis Major as shown on the Farnese Atlas.

(11) Ptolemy explicitly assigns two legs to Cygnus, whereas the Atlas shows only one.

From this detailed analysis, we see that the Farnese Atlas is virtually identical to the constellation description by Hipparchus, yet is greatly different from the descriptions from all other ancient sources. This obviously strongly suggests that the ultimate source of the position information used by the original Greek sculptor was Hipparchus’s data, which must be closely related to his (now lost) star catalogue.
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