Thursday 22 February 2007

Scorpius (constellation)

Originally posted to Shrubbery, 19 Oct 2003

Scorpius, the eighth zodiacal constellation, represents a giant scorpion.

You'll find one version of the story of Orion here, but the story has a couple of different endings. In one, the brash hunter claimed he would show his prowess by destroying all of the animals on earth. In another, Orion grew bored with waiting for the virgin goddess Artemis to marry him so he raped one of her attendants. Either way, the goddess decided he had to be destroyed. Since he would have been able to fight off any of the bigger animals, she sent a scorpion to sneak up and sting him fatally on the foot.

The scorpion was placed in the sky for his service, but he and his enemy Orion are never found in the sky at the same time (Scorpius is in the opposite quadrant).

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