13th April 2005

ZAIN AND THE ARATEA 

What to me is astounding about the  Church of Light Minor Arcana - Minor Constellations attributions, is that they have a  history, from Aratus to the present day, of 2,000 years. One feels a certain humility contemplating this fact,  and I think this  historical scale leaves arguments about the origins of the Tarot in the 15th century in the pale, so to speak.  As previously mentioned, the study of the myths and traditions behind this cluster of 36 Minor Arcana, was published by C.C.Zain in his book Spiritual Astrology. But this is only the tip of the iceberg, and my own researches over  40 years has has led to an accumulation of data on these 36 imaginal archetypes. The Aratea tradition continues from the Greek, Roman though to the Carolingian, the Middle Ages, and on through into later Star Maps as late as the 18th century . . . much of this material can be traced via google searches, where and of the names of the Minor Constellations churns up a good crop.

     But of course it is too Seznec, that we turn, again and again:  

"The first family is found for the most part in the illustrated manuscripts deriving from Aratus, called Aratea in Cicero's translation; their prototypes were in all probability established in the last centuries of the Roman  Empire. 3 Aratus, as we have seen, 4 described the constellations as a mythographer rather than an  astronomer, and his poem is as rich in visual themes as in scientific data. In short, it offered ideal  subject matter for a picture book, and such is, in fact, the character of the manuscripts traceable to this source.

    The Carolingian copies of the Aratea-examples are the Leidensis Voss. lat. 79, Harley 647, and Vindobonensis 387, or even Reginenses 309 and 123, cod. 188 of the Bibliotheque de Boulogne-sur-Mer (fig. 56), and cod. 7 of the Stiftshibliothek of Gottweig (fig. 57), which dale from ihe tenth or eleventh century 5 - have surprises in store for the art historian, and sometimes occasion him real emotion. For, contrary to all expectation, these copies succeed in recapturing the antique model with surprising fidelity. In some of them, the classical style is maintained with such purity that an enlargement of certain small figures irresistibly recalls the frescoes of Pompeii (fig. 54). On the other hand, the relative positions and sizes of the stars whose arrangement is supposed to be indicated by the mythological figure, are often incorrect; but in this regard also the copies show respect for the model, even where precision is subordinated to aesthetic considerations. Had not the stars which formed the original basis of the figures already disappeared from certain Roman prototypes?"

 Jean Seznec, The Survival of the Pagan Gods, p.151   - 152

 In note 3 on p151 Seznec contines:

  "They were imitated, in fact, as we shall see, from the earliest periods of Byzantine and Arabian art. It will be recalled that the Farnese Globe, the figures on which correspond exactly with the Aratus' descriptions, is a Roman copy of a Greek original."

 The Farnese Globe, then -  would seem to be a good place to start, and to gather images of it . . .

The illustrattions which appeared during the reign of Charlemaigne (768 - 814) have been published in various books on the  History of Carolingian Painting - .and illustrated more or less completely  by Renee Katzenstein   and Emilie Savage-Smith  in their researches.

FARNESE ATLAS

Some internet  resources:

FARNESE ATLAS

ATLAS FARNESE

DISCOVERY OF THE LOST STAR CATALOG OF HIPPARCHUS ON THE FARNESE ATLAS

ARATEA Ms. Voss. Lat. Q. 79   A FACSIMILE WITH SOME PICTURES

Aratea di Cicerone, Manoscritto miniato su pergamena, Italia IX-X Secolo

Aratea  - Himmelsbilder aus der Leidener Handschrift

PERSEUS FROM THE ARATEA

ILLUMINATED MSS IN THE BRITISH LIBRARY  Harley 2506

Harley 2506 f.39v Sagittarius;  f.39 Capricorn;  f.38v Aquarius f.36v Pisces