In
Greco-Roman
The Greco-Roman civilization (; also Greco-Roman culture; spelled Graeco-Roman in the Commonwealth), as understood by modern scholars and writers, includes the geographical regions and countries that culturally—and so historically—were di ...
Classical Mythology
Classical mythology, Greco-Roman mythology, or Greek and Roman mythology is both the body of and the study of myths from the ancient Greeks and ancient Romans as they are used or transformed by cultural reception. Along with philosophy and polit ...
, the Astra Planeta (
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
: (Astra Planêta); lit. "
Wandering Stars", "Planets" (their Roman name is the ''Stellae Errantae'')) are brothers, and are five of
Eos
In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Eos (; Ionic and Homeric Greek ''Ēṓs'', Attic ''Héōs'', "dawn", or ; Aeolic ''Aúōs'', Doric ''Āṓs'') is the goddess and personification of the dawn, who rose each morning from her home at ...
' and
Astraeus
In Greek mythology, Astraeus () or Astraios (Ancient Greek: Ἀστραῖος means "starry"') was an astrological deity. Some also associate him with the winds, as he is the father of the four Anemoi (wind deities), by his wife, Eos.
Etymolog ...
' children--along with the ''
Anemoi
In ancient Greek religion and myth, the Anemoi (Greek: , 'Winds') were wind gods who were each ascribed a cardinal direction from which their respective winds came (see Classical compass winds), and were each associated with various seasons an ...
'' and ''
Astraea
Astraea, Astrea or Astria ( grc, Ἀστραία, Astraía; "star-maiden" or "starry night"), in ancient Greek religion, is a daughter of Astraeus and Eos. She is the virgin goddess of justice, innocence, purity and precision. She is closely asso ...
''--personifying the
Classical planet
In classical antiquity, the seven classical planets or seven luminaries are the seven moving astronomical objects in the sky visible to the naked eye: the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. The word ''planet'' comes fro ...
s (minus the Sun and the Moon (Eos' siblings), and the Earth (
Gaia
In Greek mythology, Gaia (; from Ancient Greek , a poetical form of , 'land' or 'earth'),, , . also spelled Gaea , is the personification of the Earth and one of the Greek primordial deities. Gaia is the ancestral mother—sometimes parthenog ...
)); Uranus, Neptune and Pluto are not included, as they are invisible to the naked eye and were thus unknown to the ancient Hellenic peoples.
The ''Astra Planeta''s names are:
# ''Phainon'' (
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
: (Phainôn); lit. "Shining" (phainô));
the personification of the planet Saturn. Associated with the god, ''
Kronus''/''
Saturn
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second-largest in the Solar System, after Jupiter. It is a gas giant with an average radius of about nine and a half times that of Earth. It has only one-eighth the average density of Earth; h ...
'' (''Kronion'').
# ''Phaethon'' (
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
: (Phaethôn); lit. "Blazing", "Shining" (phaethô));
the personification of the planet Jupiter. Associated with the god, ''
Zeus
Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label=Genitive case, genitive Aeolic Greek, Boeotian Aeolic and Doric Greek#Laconian, Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label=Genitive case, genitive el, Δίας, ''D ...
/
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the List of Solar System objects by size, largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but ...
/
Jove
Jupiter ( la, Iūpiter or , from Proto-Italic "day, sky" + "father", thus " sky father" Greek: Δίας or Ζεύς), also known as Jove ( gen. ''Iovis'' ), is the god of the sky and thunder, and king of the gods in ancient Roman religio ...
'' (''Dios''). ''Phaethon'' also shares a similar name with ''
Phaethon
Phaethon (; grc, Φαέθων, Phaéthōn, ), also spelled Phaëthon, was the son of the Oceanid Clymene and the sun-god Helios in Greek mythology.
According to most authors, Phaethon is the son of Helios, and out of desire to have his par ...
'', the son of ''Helios'' and a queen of Aethiopia; after his disastrous attempt at driving the solar chariot, ''Phaethon'' was struck down by ''Zeus'' and placed into the sky as (also) the god of Zeus' planet - Jupiter.
# ''
Pyroeis
Pyroeis ( grc, Πυρόεις) in ancient Greek religion is the god of the wandering star (''Aster Planetos'' / ''Astra Planeta'') Areios, the planet Mars.
He is also known as Mesonyx (Μεσονυξ; "midnight").
His parents are Astraeus and E ...
'' (
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
: (Pyroeis); lit. "Fiery" (pyroeis, pyra));
the personification of the planet Mars (see also
History of Mars observation
The history of Mars observation is about the recorded history of observation of the planet Mars. Some of the early records of Mars' observation date back to the era of the ancient Egyptian astronomers in the 2nd millennium BCE. Chinese records a ...
). He was also called ''Mesonyx'' (from middle-night), the Midnight Star. Associated with the gods, ''Mars''/''Ares'' &/or ''Herakles''/''Heracles''.
# ''Eosphorus''/''
Phosphorus
Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ear ...
'' and ''
Hesperus
In Greek mythology, Hesperus (; grc, Ἕσπερος, Hésperos) is the Evening Star, the planet Venus in the evening. He is one of the ''Astra Planeta''. A son of the dawn goddess Eos (Roman Aurora), he is the half-brother of her other son, Pho ...
'' (
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
: (Eôsphoros); lit. "Dawn-Bringer") / (
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
: (Hesperos / Hesperus); lit. "Evening");
the personification of the planet Venus (see also
Observations and explorations of Venus
Observations of the planet Venus include those in antiquity, telescopic observations, and from visiting spacecraft. Spacecraft have performed various flybys, orbits, and landings on Venus, including balloon probes that floated in the atmospher ...
). Associated with the goddess, ''
Aphrodite
Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols include ...
/
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never fa ...
''. The name, ''Eosphoros''/''Phosphorus'', is specific to Venus in the morning, as the "Morning Star", and the name, ''Hesperus'', is specific to Venus in the evening, as the "Evening Star"; while it was once believed that ''Venus'' in the morning and ''Venus'' in evening were two different celestial bodies, these two star-gods were later combined.
# ''
Stilbon'' (
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
: {{lang, grc, Στιλβων (Stilbôn); lit. "Gleaming", "Glittering" (stilbô));
the personification of the planet Mercury. Associated with the god, ''
Hermes
Hermes (; grc-gre, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travellers, thieves, merchants, and orato ...
''/''
Mercury
Mercury commonly refers to:
* Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun
* Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg
* Mercury (mythology), a Roman god
Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to:
Companies
* Merc ...
''.
The term ''Astra Planeta'' can be translated as “star wanderer”, but of course are more commonly known as the “wandering stars” or the classical planets; and in antiquity, the planets ''Mercury'', ''Venus'', ''Mars'', ''Jupiter'' and ''Saturn'' were all believed to be heavenly bodies that moved across the sky differently compared to the fixed stars and constellations. Thus the five ''Astra Planeta'' were ''Phainon'' (representing the planet Saturn), ''Phaethon'' (representing the planet Jupiter), ''Pyroeis'' (representing the planet Mars), ''Eosphoros''/''Hesperus'' (representing the planet Venus), and ''Stilbon'' (representing the planet Mercury). The planets or wandering stars-themselves would all subsequently be named after Roman deities (confusingly)--as were the later identified ''Uranus'', ''Neptune'' and ''Pluto''--although this was explained by the fact that the planets were sacred to that deity rather than the god/''Astra Planeta'' being present there; therefore, in Greek mythology, the planet ''Saturn'' was sacred to the Titan, ''Cronus'', the planet ''Jupiter'' was sacred to the Olympian, ''Zeus'', the planet ''Mars'' sacred to the Olympian, ''Ares'' (due to Mars' reddish tint), the planet ''Venus'' sacred to Olympian, ''Aphrodite'', and the planet ''Mercury'' sacred to Olympian, ''Hermes'' (being the one that moved the fastest).
The ''Astra Planeta'' were naturally considered to reside in the sky, but also as their journey would see them disappear below the horizon. They were also considered to have homes within the River ''
Oceanus
In Greek mythology, Oceanus (; grc-gre, , Ancient Greek pronunciation: , also Ὠγενός , Ὤγενος , or Ὠγήν ) was a Titan son of Uranus and Gaia, the husband of his sister the Titan Tethys, and the father of the river gods a ...
''/''Okeanos'', the earth-encircling river into which other constellations, the sun and moon also disappeared. The ''Astra Planeta'' are the entourage of their mother, ''Eos'' (with ''Eosphoros''/''Hesperus'' (as the morning star) preceding her), and their uncle, ''
Helios
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Helios (; grc, , , Sun; Homeric Greek: ) is the deity, god and personification of the Sun (Solar deity). His name is also Latinized as Helius, and he is often given the epithets Hyper ...
''; in Greco-Roman artwork (Greek vase paintings, etc.), as-such all five of the ''Astra Planeta'' brothers are depicted as youths diving back-down into the river ''Oceanus'', the endless ocean, along with ''Helios'' riding his chariot, and at daybreak the next day, they would all arise with their uncle, with the rising of the sun each day.
''Astra Planeta'' is also the name/title that is given, by-extension, to all star deities, collectively, in Greco-Roman mythology; during Cronus' reign, fearing them for their overpowering numbers and as potential enemies, Cronus banished them from the earth to live up in the abodes of his brother, ''
Coeus
In Greek mythology, Coeus (; grc, Κοῖος, ''Koios'', "query, questioning" or "intelligence"), also called Polus, was one of the Titans, one of the three groups of children born to Uranus ( Sky) and Gaia (Earth).
Mythology
Coeus was an ...
'' (the personification of the celestial axis around which the heavens revolve) in their true forms, arranging into formations, becoming the first constellations--''Eos'' and ''Astraeus'' siring ''Phainon'', ''Phaethon'', ''Pyroeis'', ''Eosphoros''/''Hesperus'' and ''Stilbon'' all-afterwards.
See Also
*
Wufang Shangdi
The Wǔfāng Shàngdì ( "Five Regions' Highest Deities" or "Highest Deities of the Five Regions"), or simply Wǔdì ( "Five Deities") or Wǔshén ( "Five Gods") are, in Chinese canonical texts and common Chinese religion, the fivefold manifest ...
(the
Classical planet
In classical antiquity, the seven classical planets or seven luminaries are the seven moving astronomical objects in the sky visible to the naked eye: the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. The word ''planet'' comes fro ...
s in Chinese mythology).
External links
Theoi Project: Astra Planeta
Greek gods
Stellar gods
Children of Eos
Titans (mythology)
Personifications in Greek mythology