and
These two adjacent constellations are
linked in a moral tale that goes back at least to the time of
Eratosthenes. As told by Ovid in his Fasti, Apollo was about to
make a sacrifice to Zeus and sent the crow to fetch water from
a running spring. The crow flew off with a bowl in its claws
until it came to a fig tree laden with unripe fruit. Ignoring
its orders, the crew waited several days for the fruit to
ripen, by which time Apollo had been forced to find a source of
water for himself.
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Corvus and Crater, two adjacent constellations on the back of Hydra, shown in the Uranographia of Johann Bode.
After eating its fill of the delicious
fruit, the crow looked around for an alibi. He picked up a
water-snake in his claws and returned with it to Apollo,
blaming the serpent for blocking the spring. But Apollo, one of
whose skills was the art of prophecy, saw through the lie and
condemned the crow to a life of thirst – which is perhaps
one explanation for the rasping call of the crow. In memorial
of this incident, Apollo put the crow, the cup and the
water-snake together in the sky.
The crow is depicted pecking at the water
snake’s coils, as though attempting to move it so that
the crow may reach the cup to drink. The cup, usually
represented as a magnificent double-handed chalice, is shown
tilted towards the crow but tantalisingly just out of the
thirsty bird’s reach. The water-snake is the
constellation Hydra which,
in another legend, doubles as the creature slain by Heracles.
The crow was the sacred bird of Apollo, who
changed himself into one to flee from the monster Typhon when
that immense creature threatened the gods. In another story,
related by Ovid in his Metamorphoses, the crow was once snow-white like a dove, but
the bird brought news to Apollo that his love, Coronis, had
been unfaithful. Apollo in his anger cursed the crow, turning
it for ever black.
© Ian Ridpath. All rights reserved
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