Libra constellation. Ptolemy's Star Catalogue, from a late Latin version of the Almagest, 1490. Libra is a constellation of the zodiac. Its name is Latin for weighing scales. It is one of the 48 constellations described by the 2nd century astronomer Ptole
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Libra constellation. Ptolemy's Star Catalogue, from a late Latin version of the Almagest, 1490. Libra is a constellation of the zodiac. Its name is Latin for weighing scales. It is one of the 48 constellations described by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy, and remains one of the 88 modern constellations defined by the International Astronomical Union. Libra is a constellation not mentioned by Eudoxus or Aratus. In Roman mythology, Libra is considered to depict the scales held by Astraea (identified as Virgo), the goddess of justice. Libra was known in Babylonian astronomy as MUL Zibanu (the scales). The scales were held sacred to the sun god Shamash, who was also the patron of truth and justice. Libra has been associated with law, fairness and civility. Libra is the seventh astrological sign of the zodiac, originating from the constellation of Libra. It spans the 180-210th degree of the zodiac, between 180 and 207.25 degree of celestial longitude, which the Sun transits this area on average between September 23 to October 22 each year. The original caption reads: "Ptolemy's Star Catalogue, from a late Latin version of the Almagast, 1490. A line of text locates each star within its constellation. Lattitudes measured from the ecliptic are constant, but because of precession the writer of this text has given three longitudes: one for the time of Ptolemy, the first century AD, another for the time of Adam, set at 349BC and the third for the mid fifteenth century when this copy was made. The crude pictures contrast oddly with the precision of the mathematical data."