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Billy Henry
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The Charioteer
The tales that describe many of the ancient constellations can be romantic, tragic, heroic, or majestic. Some, on the other hand, are just weird. An example is Auriga. The constellation is low in the eastern sky at nightfall, and climbs high across the sky later on. It’s marked by a pentagon of stars. It’s easy to pick out thanks to the brightest member of that figure, Capella – one of the brighter stars in the entire night sky. Although Auriga is described as a charioteer, the character usually isn’t depicted with a chariot. But he is shown with a goat and her two kids on his shoulder. There are several versions of his story. In one, he was an early king of Athens. He was raised by the goddess Athena. Among other things, she taught him how to tame horses. He was so good at it that he became the first person to harness four horses to a chariot, like the chariot that carried the Sun across the sky. Zeus, the king of the gods, was so impressed that he placed the charioteer in the stars. The goat is represented by Capella. It isn’t a part of any of the legends of Auriga from Greek or Roman mythology. It may represent the goat that suckled the infant Zeus, who placed her and her children in the sky in gratitude. The goat and kids may once have formed their own small constellation. Today, though, they ride on the shoulder of the charioteer – who rides on nothing at all. More about the charioteer tomorrow. Script by Damond Benningfield
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