Bedroom Skies: a ceiling mural showing all the constellations of the night sky

Constellation

Myth(s)

Andromeda

Daughter of Cepheus and Cassiopeia. Chained to a rock and rescued from the sea monster Cetus by the hero Perseus

Antlia

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Apus

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Aquarius

The cup bearer of the gods. Zeus fell in love with Ganymede and raised him to mount Olympus in replacement for the unfortunate Hebe.

Aquila

The Eagle that tormented Prometheus in Hades by plucking out his liver each day. Hercules shot it with an arrow. (see Sagitta)

Ara

An Altar. Now assumed to mean a Christian altar, but originally a pagan one.

Aries

The Lamb. represents the Golden Fleece of Jason fame. Legend possibly arose from the ancient method of panning for gold whereby flecks of gold would stick to the oily sheep's wool

Auriga

The charioteer of the gods. either Helios, who drove the chariot which took the sun on its daily path in the heavens, or his son Phaethon, who failed to control the chariot’s horses and died falling into the river Eridanus.

Boötes

Commemorates Icarius, a herdsman who kept some vines. Dionysus, the god of wine, came down from Olympus and gave him the secret of fermentation. He was immediately killed by out of control first time drinkers who thought they had been poisoned.

Caelum

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Camelopardalis

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Cancer

Cancer. The crab that pinched Hercules’ toe when he was defeating the many headed Hydra.

Canes Venatici

Modern Constellation. No Legend, but represents the hunting dogs of Boötes.

Canis Major

Orion’s hunting dog chasing Lepus the Hare.

Canis Minor

A Roman addition to Orion’s hunting dogs

Capricornus

Half Goat, Half Fish. A very ancient constellation, Commemorates moment that Pan is caught by Typhon, the ancient Babylonian god as he jumped into a river to escape. Parts of him above the water stayed goat, anything below became a fish.

Carina

Broken up from the enormous ancient constellation Argo Navis. This commemorated the journey made by Jason to capture the Golden Fleece.

Cassiopeia

Cassiopeia is the mother of Andromeda. It was her vanity that led to the appearance of Cetus and the chaining of her daughter to a rock. Perseus rescues her just before the arrival of the monster.

Centaurus

Represents the wise Chiron, teacher of Hercules. He was immortal, but was accidentally shot by Hercules’ poisoned arrows. Driven mad with pain, he gave his immortality to Prometheus.

Cepheus

The King. Father of Andromeda and husband to Cassiopeia. Joyfully thanked Perseus for saving his daughter by giving her to him in marriage.

Cetus

The sea monster that was about to attack the unfortunate Andromeda before a wing-sandled Perseus swooped down and turned it to stone.

Chamaeleon

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Circinus

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Columba

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Coma Berenices

Modern Constellation, although referred to as Berenice's hair by the ancients. The episode commemorates the sacrifice made by a wife for the safe return of her husband from battle.

Corona Australis

Modern Constellation. No legends

Corona Borealis

Ariadne, deserted by Theseus on the island of Naxos, was wooed by the god Dionysos. He made her a crown and when she accepted his advances, he threw the crown into the heavens in his joy.

Corvus

Corvus the crow used to be white and had a beautiful singing voice. However, when he went to fetch some water for the god Apollo in a golden cup (Crater), he spied a delicious fruit tree. He gorged himself and then came back to Apollo with a lame story about being attacked by a snake (Hydra). Apollo promptly threw soot down his throat so that now the raven is black and can only cry Caw! Caw!

Crater

The cup carried by Corvus to fetch Apollo water.

Crux

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Cygnus

Zeus desired Queen Leda, and disguised himself as a swan (but of course). From this union came Helen of Troy, Clytemnestra, Castor and Pollux. Also, Cygnus is the friend of Phaethon (Auriga) who crashed into the river Eridanus when driving the sun’s chariot. He dived in repeatedly to save his friend to no avail

Delphinus

Arion, the famed poet, in danger of being made to walk the plank by greedy pirates, sang a song of such beauty to Apollo that when he finally did jump in he was borne to safety by two dolphins.

Dorado

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Draco

A myth that originates from earliest, pre-classical civilisation. Tiamat the dragon lived in the primeval sludge before the world was born. Other gods wished to have light, earth and water, so they fought Tiamat. Eventually the greatest of these gods, Marduk, picked up Tiamat and swung him round and hurled him into the heavens where he stays permanently circling the North Pole.

Equuleus

The little horse was Celeris, the ‘Swift One’, foal of Pegasus.

Eridanus

Rivers had great mystical associations in ancient civilisations. All the great rivers had their own gods. in the context of Greek culture, Eridanus was the river that Phaethon fell into when driving the chariot of the sun (see Auriga)

Fornax

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Gemini

The twins were the offspring of Zeus and Leda (see Cygnus), mortal Castor and immortal Pollux

Grus

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Hercules

The hero, one of the most important myths of the ancient age, it can be claimed that all the heavens describe his feats, and that he owns the ecliptic, the area in which the zodiac resides, due to his strong association with the sun.

Horologium

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Hydra

The many headed Hydra was defeated through the cunning of Hercules who burnt each stump as he cut off another head. Hydra is also associated with the story of Corvus.

Hydrus

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Indus

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Lacerta

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Leo 

The Lion. A huge and dominating constellation in pre Islamic Bedouin myth, the lion is associated with the first labour of Hercules – killing the Nemean Lion. He subsequently wore its skin as a cloak.

Leo Minor

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Lepus

Lying at Orion’s feet, the Hare is his quarry

Libra

A relatively new ancient constellation, Libra represents Astraea, the goddess of justice. The area used to form the  claws of Scorpius.

Lupus

The Wolf, speared by Chiron the Centaur.

Lynx

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Lyra

The lyre played by Hermes, the inventor of music, was given to Apollo and then eventually to Orpheus who surpassed both of them. Orpheus was eventually killed by binge drinkers and his head used as an oracle.

Mensa

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Microscopium

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Monoceros

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Musca

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Norma

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Octans

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Ophiuchus

The Healer. Commemorates Asclepius. Taught the power of healing by Chiron (Centaurus). He was so skilled that he had the power to bring the dead back to life. Hades, the god of the Underworld, had a fit because no more souls were entering his domain so Zeus threw a thunderbolt through Ophiuchus’ head. He holds Serpens in his hands. His powers eventually reached his descendant Hippocrates and the medical profession was born.

Orion

The mighty hunter, born of humble stock to a poor old man who showed generosity to the gods. So proud of his skills, Orion boasted that he could hunt and kill every living creature in the world. Gaia, the mother goddess, took fright at this and sent a scorpion to kill him. That is why Orion sets when Scorpius rises in the night sky.

Pavo

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Pegasus

The flying horse was born from Poseidon and the Gorgon Medusa. Greatly beloved of the gods, Pegasus founded Athens by stamping its hoof on the Acropolis and water poured forth. Ridden by Bellerophon (and some say Perseus) in his hunt for Chimera, the gods sent a gadfly to buck him off when he attempted to fly to Mount Olympos.

Perseus

The Hero, probably the greatest in the Greek Pantheon after Hercules. His story dominates this area of the sky with the constellations Andromeda, Cassiopeia, Cepheus, Cetus and Pegasus. He killed the mortal Gorgon Medusa with the help of winged sandals, a highly polished shield and a cloak of invisibility. On his way back he saved Andromeda from the sea monster.

Phoenix

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Pictor

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Pisces

A very ancient constellation. Aphrodite and her son Eros escape the monster Typhon by diving into the sea and changing into fish. They used a cord to ensure that they didn’t lose each other. The constellation is a symbol of the unbreakable bond between mother and child.

Piscis Austrinus

The Southern Fish. Sometimes called the Great fish, it is of Babylonian origin or earlier. No myth has descended with it.

Puppis

Broken up from the enormous ancient constellation Argo Navis. This commemorated the journey made by Jason to capture the Golden Fleece.

Pyxis

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Reticulum

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Sagitta

The Arrow shot by Hercules to kill the eagle that was tormenting Prometheus by plucking out his liver every day.

Sagittarius

The Wild Centaur. Unlike the wise Chiron in Centaurus, these ones are frenzied and dangerous. No particular legend is attached to this figure as it is one of the most ancient, and was adopted by the Greeks, originally from the earliest Sumerian traditions.

Scorpius

The Scorpion sent to kill Orion.

Sculptor

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Scutum

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Serpens

Held by Asclepius, Serpens represents his power over life and death. Just as the venom of the snake can kill or provide an antidote, so the original Serpens came from the head of the Medusa; snakes from the right of her head would cure, snakes from the left were deadly. This symbolism is carried through to the present day in the symbol of the caduceus, the double headed snake of the medical profession.

Sextans

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Taurus

The Bull. Everyone says that. Myths include the story of the Minotaur, Minos, Pasiphaë, Ariadne and Theseus, or the legend of Zeus and Europa. Or that of Zeus and Io. In any case, Crete figures quite strongly in most of the stories, pointing to ancient origins in the Minoan empire, where the bull and the shape of the crescent moon (the horns of the bull) are recurrent themes.

Telescopium

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Triangulum

No real myths, although some see the figure of the Nile delta being represented. Most likely just the Greek preoccupation with Geometry.

Triangulum Australe

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Tucana

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Ursa Major

The Great Bear. Hera, jealous of the attention that Zeus was paying to Callisto, hand maiden to Artemis the goddess of hunting, turned her into a bear. After many years she met Arco, her son by Zeus, who killed her not knowing her true identity. In compensation, Zeus placed both Callisto and Arco in the sky as Ursa Major and Boötes. Hera then complained that her rival was placed too prominently in the heavens. Everyone told her to shut up.

Ursa Minor

Originally the wing of Draco, it was broken off by the Greeks (Possibly Thales of Miletos.)

Vela

Broken up from the enormous ancient constellation Argo Navis. This commemorated the journey made by Jason to capture the Golden Fleece.

Virgo

The Virgin. Symbolises many goddesses, e.g.  Astraea. Also Persephone, daughter of Demeter, who was kidnapped by Hades. Unfortunately, as the incarnation of fertility in the real world, all crops stopped growing with her disappearance. As a result Zeus ordered Hades to return her for part of the year, which is why we have the cycle of seasons.

Volans

Modern Constellation. No Legend.

Vulpecula

Modern Constellation. No Legend.