Miscellaneous Myths: The Zodiac
2,564,543
Published 2020-11-27
We know their names! We know their symbols! We know there's a truly staggering number of websites dedicated to their stereotypical personality traits! But what do we know about their stories? Let's discuss!
FUN FACT I GLOSSED OVER IN THE VIDEO: like I said, it's REALLY hard to determine when these constellations entered Greece. Most people set the date at 300ish, when Eudoxus codified the Greek calendar based on the Babylonian one - but that clashes with the fact that Heracles's labors predate that by at least three centuries, and they've had those zodiacal themes since that lost epic poem was initially written. We know, therefore, that the babylonian zodiac entered greece between Homer's time (when he conspicuously didn't mention them - and neither did Hesiod in his Astronomia) and Peisander's time (author of the lost Heracleia), basically the interval between 800 and 600 CE. The phoenician traders carrying that info is a reasonable assumption, especially considering how important the stars are to sailors navigating at night. But it is WILD to me how hard this is to research and how nobody seems to have really explored the timeline here!
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All Comments (21)
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Mythology is cool and all but TINY RED TINY RED TINY RED
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"There is no Easter Bunny, there is no Tooth Fairy, and there is no time travelling Goatman and goatfish"
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"There is no time-traveling goat fish in Greek mythology." Well, my evening is ruined.
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I love the fact that “the infamous boob incident” is actually an important part of a real myth involving infant Heracles.
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Plot twist: The time-traveling goat-fish removed itself from Greek Mythology so it can time travel without anyone realizing. We’re on to you, goat-fish. We’re on to you.
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Just saying, but staring up at the stars for hours and being left behind by a group without realizing is probably the most protagonist thing I can think of a kid doing.
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"I am 85% sure that there is no time travelling goatfish in Greek mythology" is probably my favorite OSP quote yet.
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Red: THERE IS NO GOATMAN INTERNET Shane: It's my myth now, goatman.
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Sometimes I forget that Red used to be a child who didn't know shit, and wasn't always a spirit of knowledge drifting infinitely through existence telling stories to wayward travelers
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All horoscopes: “Some people like you, and some people don’t. You’re probably living right now. You need to do work.”
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Twins having different fathers is one of those things you'd think was just mythological nonsense, but apparently it's entirely possible for fraternal twins.
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I love how I'm so accustomed to Red's art style as meaning "ancient history/mythos" that the anecdote at the start comes across as some intriguing legend instead of midwest stargazing
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Red is basically the headstrong curious shounen anime main character. Red: "Agh! My Hubris!"
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"Cup-bearer" High-ranking and trusted officer, or another ancient gay sex joke? Possibly both! The world will never know.
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> The constellation Leo was seen as a cat by the Babylonians > Cats loaf > Lions loaf > The Babylonians saw a cat-loaf thing in the stars and went “yep, that’s a cat in the sky”
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fun fact: the orphic hymn to Heracles has the line: "your twelve deeds of valor stretch from east to west" so reds astronomical interpretation of Heracles' story sees legit
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"The Mayan zodiac made Pisces a skeleton. Why can't you be more like the Mayans?" Red is the disapproving parent of world mythology and I love it.
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"Thats such a Gemini thing to say" "I will cut you" So damn relatable
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The lack of stars in the city is actually really trippy for county kids, it’s seriously unnerving and gives me a headache looking for them.
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The idea that Aphrodite protected Eros by turning him into a fish and tying him to her while they swim is adorable to me 😅
