Humans are wired to find patterns. When faced with chaos, our brains seek to impose order and identify familiar shapes. It’s no surprise that since the dawn of time, people have gazed at the stars and crafted stories around the figures they saw in the heavens. Many of the brightest stars have been grouped into constellations, each with its own unique origin story.
Here are ten captivating myths explaining the origin of some of the most well-known constellations.
Coma Berenices
While most constellations have ancient, mysterious origins, Coma Berenices stands out as being named after a real historical figure. Its name, meaning ‘Berenice’s Hair,’ originates from a tale of sacrifice and theft.
Queen Berenice II of Egypt, wife of King Ptolemy III in the 3rd century BC, vowed to cut off her beautiful hair as an offering to the goddess Aphrodite if her husband returned safely from war in Syria. Upon his safe return, she fulfilled her promise, placing her shorn locks on the altar. However, the next morning, the hair had vanished.
King Ptolemy was outraged by the theft, demanding an investigation. To appease him, the court astronomer Conon cleverly suggested that the goddess was so pleased with Berenice’s sacrifice that she had placed the hair in the sky, creating the constellation Coma Berenices. This story became a popular symbol of royal propaganda, celebrated in poems and images of the queen with her shaved head. [1]
Canis Major
The Greek gods weren’t fond of logical paradoxes. This aversion led to a canine being immortalized among the stars.
According to one version of the legend of Canis Major, Latin for ‘Greater Dog,’ the story begins with the Teumessian Fox, a creature destined never to be caught, which terrorized the farmers around Thebes. To end the fox’s reign of terror, a hunter unleashed his dog, Laelaps, which was fated to always catch its prey.
The chase created an unsolvable paradox: If Laelaps caught the fox, fate would be undone; if the fox escaped, fate would be equally defied. To resolve this cosmic conflict, Zeus placed both Laelaps and the fox in the sky, where they continue their eternal chase, forever preserving fate. [2]
Orion and the Scorpion
Orion, one of the most recognizable constellations, is eternally locked in battle with Scorpius.
In Greek myth, Orion, son of Poseidon and a renowned hunter, boasted he could kill every animal on Earth. This angered Gaia, the Earth goddess and protector of animals. In retaliation, Gaia sent a monstrous scorpion to kill Orion. The scorpion stung Orion’s heel, leading to the hunter’s demise.
The gods placed Orion and Scorpius on opposite sides of the sky. As one constellation rises, the other sets, ensuring their eternal conflict is never-ending. The bright star Rigel marks the spot where the scorpion stung Orion. [3]
The Pleiades
The Pleiades, also known as the Seven Sisters, might have the oldest myths attached to it, as similar stories appear in different cultures. The Greek myth describes their origin through a tale of attempted seduction.
The Pleiades were the daughters of the Titan Atlas, admired for their beauty, which attracted the attention of many Greek deities. The hunter Orion desired them but was kept away by Atlas. With Atlas occupied holding up the heavens, Orion pursued the Pleiades relentlessly.
The sisters fled, and the gods transformed them into doves to help them escape. Later, they were placed in the sky as a constellation, with Orion positioned to eternally chase them without ever catching them. [4]
Cancer
The story behind the constellation Cancer teaches a valuable lesson: ‘When you aim at the king, you better not miss.’ The legend involves a crab and the hero Heracles.
Heracles had to complete twelve labors after Hera drove him mad, causing him to kill his wife and children. These labors included defeating fearsome beasts. As an expert in defeating mighty creatures, Heracles faced the Lernaean Hydra, a multi-headed serpent.
Hera sent a crab to distract Heracles during his battle with the hydra, hoping the creature would help the hydra defeat him. However, the crab failed quickly. In one version, Heracles kicked the crab into the heavens, creating the constellation Cancer. In another, he simply crushed it, and Hera immortalized the crab in the stars as a reward for its service. [5]
Cassiopeia, Cetus, Perseus, and Andromeda
Hubris, or outrageous arrogance, was a significant sin in Greek myths, often punished severely. Cassiopeia, queen of Aethiopia, learned this lesson when she boasted that she was more beautiful than the Nereids, the sea nymphs. Poseidon, the sea lord, punished Cassiopeia by sending the monster Cetus to attack Aethiopia.
To stop the attacks, the king and queen consulted an oracle, who advised them to sacrifice their daughter Andromeda to Cetus. As Andromeda awaited her fate chained to the shore, Perseus rescued her on the winged horse Pegasus, some say by turning Cetus to stone using Medusa’s head.
The gods later placed Perseus, Andromeda, Cetus, and Cassiopeia among the stars as constellations. As a reminder of Cassiopeia’s hubris, her constellation appears upside down in the sky for half the year. [6]
Pisces
Pisces represents two fish within the zodiac. Roman-era authors recount the Greek tale of how they reached the heavens.
Typhon, a terrifying monster with a head touching the stars and covered in snakes, attacked the gods. The battle was so intense that it shook the ground and caused the seas to overflow. Only Zeus could defeat Typhon. During the attack, Aphrodite and her son Eros fled Syria.
To escape Typhon, they jumped into the Euphrates River, where two fish carried them to safety. These fish were placed in the sky to honor their rescue. [7]
Ursa Major
Zeus was known for his infidelities, and many Greek myths tell of his affairs. Hera, his wife, often sought revenge on Zeus’s lovers. Callisto, a nymph in Artemis’s retinue, was tricked into sleeping with Zeus when he disguised himself as Artemis.
Artemis discovered Callisto’s pregnancy, and she was banished. Callisto gave birth to Arcas. One day, while walking with Callisto, Zeus saw Hera approaching. To hide Callisto, Zeus transformed her into a bear. Hera suspected the truth and insisted Zeus leave the bear behind. Arcas, a hunter, unknowingly killed his transformed mother.
Discovering this tragedy, Zeus placed Callisto as Ursa Major (the Great Bear) and Arcas as Ursa Minor (the Little Bear) in the sky. [8]
Cygnus
Cygnus, the swan, features stars that form a neat cross, making it easy to spot. The origin of this constellation has varied stories.
One story involves Zeus transforming into a swan to seduce Leda, the queen of Sparta. Zeus succeeded, and Leda later gave birth to an egg, from which Helen of Troy emerged. This version suggests Cygnus represents Zeus in his swan form.
Another tale tells of the love between Phaeton and Cycnus. Phaeton lost control of Apollo’s sun chariot and was struck down for nearly scorching the earth. Cycnus mourned Phaeton’s death so deeply that he transformed into a swan and was placed in the heavens. [9]
Ophiuchus
Asclepius, the god of healing, had a traumatic birth. Apollo killed his lover Coronis for her infidelity but rescued their unborn child, Asclepius, from her womb.
Asclepius became famous for his healing abilities, often finding the herb of life with the help of a snake or receiving secret knowledge whispered by snakes. He wielded a wand with a serpent coiled around it. Asclepius could even raise the dead, alarming Hades, the lord of the underworld.
Hades complained to Zeus, who feared Asclepius would make humans immortal. Zeus struck Asclepius dead with a lightning bolt. Apollo was angered by his son’s death, so Asclepius was made a god and placed in the sky as Ophiuchus, the ‘serpent-bearer.’ [10]
Conclusion
From tales of love and sacrifice to stories of hubris and revenge, the ancient origin stories of constellations offer a fascinating glimpse into the human imagination. These myths provide explanations for the patterns we see in the night sky and reflect the values and beliefs of the cultures that created them. So, the next time you gaze at the stars, remember these captivating stories behind the constellations.
Which constellation story captivated you the most? Leave your comment below!
