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This book had its origins in my skywatching guides for amateur astronomers. As I came to describe each constellation, I found myself wondering about its origin and the way in which ancient people had personified it in mythology. Astronomy books did not contain satisfactory answers. They either gave no mythology at all, or they recounted stories that, I later discovered, were not true to the Greek originals. I decided to write my own book on the mythology of the constellations. The result, Star Tales, appeared in 1988 and remains a favourite of mine. To make it more widely available, I have now transferred it to the web with amendments and enhancements. Further updates and improvements are made from time to time.
Contents


Chapter One:  Stars and storytellers

Chapter Two:  Star maps

Chapter Three:  The celestial eighty-eight

Chapter Four:  Obsolete constellations





Additional reading (links):

The Golden Age of the Celestial Atlas  (Linda Hall Library, Missouri)

Historical Celestial Atlases on the web  (Robert Harry van Gent)

Stars and Constellations  (University of Oklahoma History of Science department)

Atlas Coelestis  (Felice Stoppa – in Italian)


Book Ian’s constellation talks (click on image for synopsis):
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Stories of the Stars: Constellations in myth, art and reality
Pictures in the sky: The origin and history of the constellations
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Supporting the UNESCO/IAU International Year of Astronomy