Two pages from the Ratdolt edition of the Poeticon astronomicon showing woodcuts of the constellations Cassiopeia and Andromeda. Courtesy of the US Naval Observatory Library

Poeticon astronomicon is a star atlas attributed to "Hyginus," though the true authorship is disputed. During the Renaissance, the work was attributed to the Roman historian Gaius Julius Hyginus who lived during the first century B.C. However, the fact that the book lists the constellations in the same order as Ptolemy's Almagest (published in the second century, A.D.) has led many to believe that a more recent Hyginus created the text. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (3273x2274, 553 KB) Woodcuts of Cassiopeia and Andromeda from Hyginus Poeticon Astronomicon. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (3273x2274, 553 KB) Woodcuts of Cassiopeia and Andromeda from Hyginus Poeticon Astronomicon. ... Cassiopeia is a northern constellation which Greek mythology considered to represent a vain queen. ... Andromeda is a constellation named for the princess Andromeda (which is Greek for Ruler over men), a character in Greek mythology. ... Aerial view of USNO. The United States Naval Observatory (USNO) is one of the oldest scientific agencies in the United States. ... A Star Atlas is a variant of the traditional geographic atlas, ie. ... By region Italian Renaissance Spanish Renaissance Northern Renaissance English Renaissance French Renaissance German Renaissance Polish Renaissance The Renaissance, also known as Il Rinascimento (in Italian), was an influential cultural movement which brought about a period of scientific revolution, religious reform and artistic transformation, at the dawn of modern European history. ... City motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus – SPQR (The Senate and the People of Rome) Founded 21 April 753 BC mythical, 1st millennium BC Region Latium Mayor Walter Veltroni (Left-Wing Democrats) Area  - City Proper  1285 km² Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density (city proper) 2. ... Gaius Julius Hyginus, (c. ... Orion is a remarkable constellation, visible from most places on the globe (but not always the whole year long). ... Claudius Ptolemaeus, given contemporary German styling, in a 16th century engraved book frontispiece. ... Almagest is the Latin form of the Arabic name (al-kitabu-l-mijisti, i. ...

The text describes 47 of the 48 Ptolemaic constellations, centering primarily on the mythology surrounding the constellations, though there is some discussion of the relative positions of stars. The first known printing was in 1475, attributed to "Ferrara."

The Poeticon wasn't formally published until 1482, by Erhard Ratdolt in Venice, Italy. This edition carried the full title Clarissimi uiri Hyginii Poeticon astronomicon, opus utilissimum. Ratdolt commissioned a series of woodcuts depicting the constellations to accompany Hyginus' text. As with many other star atlases that would follow it, the positions of various stars are indicated overlayed on the images of the constellation. However, the relative positions of the stars in the woodcuts bear little resemblance to the descriptions given by Hyginus in the text or the actual positions of the stars in the sky. Location within Italy Venice (Italian: Venezia, Venessia in the local dialect), the city of canals, is the capital of the region of Veneto and of the province of Venice, 45°26′N 12°19′E, population 271,663 (census estimate January 1, 2004). ...

As a result of the inaccuracy of the depicted star positions and the fact that the constellations are not shown with any context, the Poeticon is not particularly useful as a guide to the night sky. However, the illustrations commissioned by Ratdolt served as a template for future sky atlas renderings of the constellation figures.

See also

• Star atlas

A Star Atlas is a variant of the traditional geographic atlas, ie. ...

External links

• Images of all pages from the Ratdolt edition
• High-resolution images of some pages from the Ratdolt edition