29-07-2015, 12:46 PM
One of the interesting leads which I simply have no time to follow up - I'd be glad if anyone would like to work on it with me.
I noticed that in al-Sufi's Book of the Fixed Stars, his table for Sagittarius has 31 stars.
The figure on folio 73v, with the archer in the centre, contains only 30 stars-and-holders.
Which suggests (among other possibilities) that (a) the central figure may be identified with the leading star of a constellation (i.e. first over the horizon),
or that - as many others have suggested - we are looking at some version of the Egyptian-Indian decans.
I'm more interested in the first possibility and would dearly like to know if there is any pre-fifteenth century astronomical text (from any tradition) in which the star-list for Sagittarius contains only 30 stars.
Ditto, of course, for all the rest, but Sagittarius interests me most just now.
It's a pest that I simply haven't time to concentrate on this at the moment; it could, potentially direct us to an informing written text.. maybe.
D
I noticed that in al-Sufi's Book of the Fixed Stars, his table for Sagittarius has 31 stars.
The figure on folio 73v, with the archer in the centre, contains only 30 stars-and-holders.
Which suggests (among other possibilities) that (a) the central figure may be identified with the leading star of a constellation (i.e. first over the horizon),
or that - as many others have suggested - we are looking at some version of the Egyptian-Indian decans.
I'm more interested in the first possibility and would dearly like to know if there is any pre-fifteenth century astronomical text (from any tradition) in which the star-list for Sagittarius contains only 30 stars.
Ditto, of course, for all the rest, but Sagittarius interests me most just now.
It's a pest that I simply haven't time to concentrate on this at the moment; it could, potentially direct us to an informing written text.. maybe.
D
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