SAXON STARS

<OTTO SIGFRID> REUTER

Star-maps from Otto Sigfrid Reuter’s book Germanische Himmelskunde (Ancient German Astronomy), 1934. Reuter reconstructed, with impeccable scholarship, the ancient constellations as seen by the Saxons in the year 800 C.E. These constellations are sometimes considerably different from the Graeco-Arabic constellations of conventional astronomy, but are of fundamental importance to ancient studies, both on the literary and iconographical sides. The map below shows the pole for the year 800. It was then in the constellation of the Giraffe, as modern astronomers call it. To the right <here: second below>, the larger map shows the ancient constellations. Parallels are as follows: The Great Bear (grosser Bär); The Day Star (Tagstern; Arcturus); Aurvandil’s Toe (Aurvandilsta; the Northern Crown); The South Star (Sudstern; Vega); The Fisher, Frigga’s Spindle (Friggs Rocken; Orion’s Belt); The Greater Wolf’s Jaws (Grosser Wolfsrachen; Cygnus, Andromeda); The Battle of the Asa (Asenkampf ;the Waggoner); The Torchbearer (Fackelbringer; Algol); Little Wolf’s Jaws (Kleiner Wolfsrachen; Taurus); Loki’s Brand (Sirius); The Seven Stars (Siebengestirn; Pleiades); Thiazi’s Eyes (Thiazis Augen; Gemini); Iring’s Way (Iringsweg; Milky Way); in addition to these constellation names there were The Wandering Stars (Planets); the Trailing Stars (comets), and the strata of stars.
Prudence Jones/Nigel Pennick.

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