The mythical single-horned beast, the
unicorn, is represented by this constellation. Monoceros was
first depicted in 1612 on a globe by the Dutch theologian and
cartographer Petrus Plancius, who apparently introduced the
constellation because a unicorn appears several times in the
Old Testament of the Bible.
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Monoceros prances between Canis Major (below it) and Canis Minor (above) on the Atlas Coelestis of John Flamsteed.
Monoceros fills a large area between Hydra
and Orion, separating Orion’s two dogs. It is not
prominent (its brightest stars are of fourth magnitude) but it
lies in the Milky Way and contains a host of fascinating
objects, most notably the Rosette Nebula, a wreath-shaped mass
of glowing gas with embedded stars.
There are no legends associated with the
constellation, as it is a modern figure, and none of its stars
have names.
Chinese astronomers were adept at creating
constellations from faint stars, but even they struggled in
Monoceros. A chain of four stars consisting of 8, 13 and 17
Monocerotis plus one in southern Gemini formed Sidu, representing the
four major rivers of China (Yangtze, Yellow, Huai and Si).
Delta Monocerotis and one other star, identity uncertain but
possibly 18 Mon, formed Quejiu, a door or gateway of some kind. According to
Sun and Kistemaker (1997) Alpha Monocerotis was part of Tiangou, a dog, most
of which lay in northern Puppis; other sources, though, place Tiangou farther
south. Beta and Gamma Monocerotis seem not to have featured in
any Chinese constellation.
© Ian Ridpath. All rights reserved
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