Sceptrum et Manus Iustitiae (
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
for ''scepter and hand of justice'') was a
constellation created by
Augustin Royer
Augustin Royer was a French architectKanas. N., (2007) ''Star Maps: History, Artistry, and Cartography'', Praxis, Chichester, p. 159. who lived in the time of Louis XIV.
In 1679 he published a star map; in addition to the 48 constellations of P ...
in 1679 to honor king
Louis XIV of France
, house = Bourbon
, father = Louis XIII
, mother = Anne of Austria
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
, death_date =
, death_place = Palace of ...
. It was formed from stars of what is today the constellations
Lacerta
Lacerta is one of the 88 modern constellations defined by the International Astronomical Union. Its name is Latin for lizard. A small, faint constellation, it was defined in 1687 by the astronomer Johannes Hevelius. Its brightest stars form a "W" ...
and western
Andromeda.
Due to the awkward name the constellation was modified and name changed a couple of times, for example some old star maps show ''Sceptrum Imperiale'', ''Stellio'' and ''Scettro'', and
Johannes Hevelius
Johannes Hevelius
Some sources refer to Hevelius as Polish:
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Some sources refer to Hevelius as German:
*
*
*
*
*of the Royal Society
* (in German also known as ''Hevel''; pl, Jan Heweliusz; – 28 January 1687) was a councillor ...
's star map divides the area between the new Lacerta and as a chain end fettering Andromeda. The connection with the later constellation
Frederici Honores, that occupied the chain end of Andromeda, is unclear, except that both represent a regal spire attributed to varying regents.
Former constellations
1679 in France
Lacerta
Andromeda (constellation)
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