UmbrielAstrology

The Old Books

Astrology from before your great-great-grandparents, word for word. Old enough to belong to everybody.

4 books on the shelf: Lilly · Ptolemy · Alan Leo · Manilius

Christian Astrology, by William Lilly (1647)

William Lilly, London, 1647. The first big astrology book written in English. Saturn, the signs, the twelve houses, all in his own words.

18 chapters · about 15,000 words · free to read in full, no account

  1. I · Introduction to AstrologyZadkiel, the 1852 editor, clears his throat: what the planets are, and why anyone should look up.
  2. II · Of Erecting a Figure of the HeavensHow to draw a chart by hand, with tables and a pencil. Respect to everyone who did this before computers.
  3. III · Of the AspectsThe angles between planets, and which ones Lilly counted as friendly.
  4. IV · Of the Twelve Houses, their Nature and SignificationThe twelve houses, as Lilly sorted life into them: from your face to, somehow, elephants.
  5. V · Of Saturn, and his SignificationLilly’s Saturn is the strict grandfather of the sky: brilliant when he’s comfortable, unbearable when he isn’t.
  6. VI · Of the Planet Jupiter, and his SignificationThe generous one. Lilly liked Jupiter a lot, as long as he wasn’t being conned at the market.
  7. VII · Of the Planet Mars, and his Several SignificationsCourage, temper and a long list of crimes. Lilly did not hold back on Mars.
  8. VIII · Of the Sun, his General and Particular SignificationsKings, gold and promises kept on time. The Sun’s chapter is a royal portrait.
  9. IX · Of the Planet Venus, and her Several Significations and NatureMusic, neat clothes and love affairs. Venus gets the most fun chapter, and the most scandal.
  10. X · Of Mercury, and his Signification, Nature, and PropertyThe clever one: lawyers, writers, mathematicians and, on a bad day, liars.
  11. XI · Of the Moon, her Properties and SignificationsQuick, changeable and fond of anything new. The Moon’s chapter moves house a lot.
  12. XII · Of the Head and Tail of the DragonThe Moon’s nodes, which Lilly called the Dragon. Short, and a little ominous.
  13. XIII · Another Brief Description of the Shapes and Forms of the PlanetsWhat each planet’s person looks like, top to toe. 1647 was very sure about noses.
  14. XIV · The Colours of the Planets and SignsEvery planet and sign gets a colour. One paragraph, painted fast.
  15. XV · The Nature, Place, Countries, General Description, and Diseases signified by the Twelve SignsEach sign’s nature, its places, its countries and its illnesses. The longest chapter, and a very strange travel guide.
  16. XVI · Teaching what Use may be made of the former Discourse of the Twelve SignsHow to use all of that: finding lost things and describing people from the signs.
  17. XVII · Of the Essential Dignities of the PlanetsWhere each planet is strong or weak. The idea behind every quote under your readings.
  18. XVIII · Table of the Essential Dignities of the Planets, &c.Lilly’s whole cheat sheet on one page: every planet’s homes, honours, terms and faces, printed sideways.

Lilly’s Book I: the planets, the signs, the houses and the dignities. Chapters I to III are Zadkiel’s own introduction, and the notes marked as his are his. Page numbers are the 1852 printing’s.

Free for everyone, everywhere: first printed in 1647, and its editor died in 1874. Cleaned from two scans of the same plates (1852 and 1898).

Tetrabiblos, by Claudius Ptolemy (c. 150, in English 1822)

Claudius Ptolemy, Alexandria, around 150 AD, in J. M. Ashmand's English of 1822. The book almost every later astrologer learned from: the planets' natures, the signs, the houses of the planets, the weather of the world and what a birth chart shows.

70 chapters · about 51,000 words · free to read in full, no account

Book I

  1. I · ProemPtolemy clears his throat to a friend called Syrus: there are two kinds of star study, and this book is the second.
  2. II · Knowledge may be acquired by Astronomy to a certain ExtentCan the sky tell you anything? Ptolemy's careful, very reasonable yes, with all the ways it can go wrong.
  3. III · That Prescience is usefulWhy bother knowing ahead? Because a storm you saw coming is half a storm.
  4. IV · The Influences of the Planetary OrbsEach planet's temperature: who heats, who cools, who dries and who soaks. The root of everything after.
  5. V · Benefics and MaleficsThe kind planets and the hard ones, and why, in one breath.
  6. VI · Masculine and FeminineWhich planets are masculine and which feminine, by the old reckoning of hot and moist.
  7. VII · Diurnal and NocturnalDay planets and night planets. The sky had a shift rota.
  8. VIII · The Influence of Position with regard to the SunWhat a planet does when it rises before the Sun, or after it.
  9. IX · The Influence of the fixed StarsThe bright fixed stars, one by one, each given the nature of a planet or two.
  10. X · Constellations North of the ZodiacThe constellations north of the zodiac, and which planets they behave like.
  11. XI · Constellations South of the ZodiacThe constellations south of the zodiac, the same treatment.
  12. XII · The Annual SeasonsSpring, summer, autumn and winter, as the four moods of the year.
  13. XIII · The Influence of the Four AnglesThe four angles of the sky, east, top, west and bottom, and their powers.
  14. XIV · Tropical, Equinoctial, Fixed, and Bicorporeal SignsCardinal, fixed and double signs: how a sign starts, holds or splits.
  15. XV · Masculine and Feminine SignsWhich signs are masculine and which feminine, alternating round the wheel.
  16. XVI · Mutual Configurations of the SignsHow the signs see each other across the circle: the oldest map of aspects.
  17. XVII · Signs commanding and obeyingSigns that command and signs that obey. The zodiac has a pecking order.
  18. XVIII · Signs beholding each other, and of equal PowerSigns that look at each other as equals.
  19. XIX · Signs inconjunctSigns that cannot see each other at all.
  20. XX · Houses of the PlanetsThe houses of the planets: why Saturn lives in Capricorn and Aquarius. This is where rulership comes from.
  21. XXI · The TriplicitiesThe four triplicities, fire, earth, air and water, and who rules each.
  22. XXII · ExaltationsThe exaltations: the sign where each planet is treated like royalty.
  23. XXIII · The Disposition of the TermsThe terms: each sign cut into five slices and handed out to the planets.
  24. XXIV · The Terms (according to Ptolemy)Ptolemy's own terms, which he thought fairer than the Egyptians'.
  25. XXV · The Places and Degrees of every PlanetThe exact places and degrees each planet claims.
  26. XXVI · Faces, Chariots, and other similar Attributes of the PlanetsFaces, chariots and thrones: the smaller honours a planet can hold.
  27. XXVII · Application, Separation, and other FacultiesPlanets applying, separating and catching up with each other.

Book II

  1. I · General Division of the SubjectBook II begins: from one person's chart to whole countries.
  2. II · Peculiarities observable throughout every entire ClimateHow whole climates shape whole peoples. Old geography, very confidently told.
  3. III · The Familiarity of the Regions of the Earth with the Triplicities and the PlanetsWhich countries belong to which signs and planets. Strong opinions about every nation he knew of.
  4. IV · The Familiarity of the Regions of the Earth with the fixed StarsCountries and their fixed stars.
  5. V · Mode of particular Prediction in EclipsesHow to read an eclipse for the world.
  6. VI · The Regions or Countries to be considered as liable to be comprehended in the EventWhich countries an eclipse touches.
  7. VII · The Time and Period of the EventWhen an eclipse's effects arrive, and how long they last.
  8. VIII · The Genus, Class, or Kind, liable to be affectedWho or what an eclipse affects: people, animals, crops, the sea.
  9. IX · The Quality and Nature of the EffectWhat kind of effect an eclipse brings, good or ill.
  10. X · Colours in Eclipses, Comets, and similar PhenomenaThe colours of eclipses, comets and halos, and what each colour meant.
  11. XI · The New Moon of the YearThe new Moon that starts the year, and how to read it.
  12. XII · The particular Natures of the Signs by which the different Constitutions of the Atmosphere are producedEach sign's own weather: wet, windy, hot or calm.
  13. XIII · Mode of Consideration for particular Constitutions of the AtmosphereHow to forecast the weather of a season from the sky.
  14. XIV · The Signification of MeteorsShooting stars, comets and strange lights, explained the 150 AD way.

Book III

  1. I · ProemBook III begins: the birth chart itself.
  2. II · The Conception, and the Parturition, or Birth; by which latter Event the Animal quits the Womb, and assumes another State of ExistenceConception and birth, and which moment the chart should be cast for.
  3. III · The Degree ascendingHow to find the rising degree when the birth time is uncertain. Rectification, ancient edition.
  4. IV · Distribution of the Doctrine of NativitiesHow the reading of a birth chart is divided up, topic by topic.
  5. V · The ParentsWhat the chart says about the parents.
  6. VI · Brothers and SistersBrothers and sisters, by the stars.
  7. VII · Male or FemaleBoy or girl, by the old rules.
  8. VIII · TwinsTwins, and how one sky can make two people.
  9. IX · Monstrous or defective BirthsBirths that went wrong. Ptolemy at his most clinical.
  10. X · Children not rearedChildren who did not survive. A hard chapter, told plainly.
  11. XI · The Duration of LifeHow long a life will last: the old astrologers' most dangerous question.
  12. XII · The Prorogatory PlacesThe places in the chart that hold the thread of life.
  13. XIII · The Number of Prorogators, and also the Part of FortuneHow many life-givers a chart has, and the Part of Fortune.
  14. XIV · Number of the Modes of ProrogationHow the thread of life is measured, in degrees and years.
  15. XV · ExemplificationA worked example of the life-length method.
  16. XVI · The Form and Temperament of the BodyWhat the planets say about the body's shape and constitution.
  17. XVII · The Hurts, Injuries, and Diseases of the BodyInjuries and illnesses, planet by planet.
  18. XVIII · The Quality of the MindThe quality of the mind: Mercury, the Moon and the planets that touch them. The most quotable chapter in the book.
  19. XIX · The Diseases of the MindTroubles of the mind, as 150 AD understood them.

Book IV

  1. I · ProemBook IV begins: the things that happen to you.
  2. II · The Fortune of WealthMoney: where it comes from and whether it stays.
  3. III · The Fortune of RankRank and reputation.
  4. IV · The Quality of EmploymentWhat work suits you, planet by planet: one of Ptolemy's liveliest chapters.
  5. V · MarriageMarriage: who, when and how well.
  6. VI · ChildrenChildren.
  7. VII · Friends and EnemiesFriends and enemies, and the aspects between two charts that make them.
  8. VIII · TravellingLong journeys, and whether you come home.
  9. IX · The Kind of DeathHow a life ends. The oldest astrology did not look away.
  10. X · The Periodical Divisions of TimeThe ages of a life, each ruled by a planet: the Moon for babies, Saturn for old age.

All four books. Ptolemy's own words in Ashmand's translation; the notes are Ashmand's, 1822. Page numbers are the 1822 printing's. The appendices (Almagest extracts, the Centiloquy) are not on the shelf yet.

Free for everyone, everywhere: written about 150 AD, translated in 1822. Cleaned from two scans of the 1822 printing (Wellcome Library and Harvard).

Astrology for All, by Alan Leo (1899)

Alan Leo, London, 1899. The book that turned astrology into character reading: a chapter for every Sun sign, the Moon in every sign, and all 144 Sun and Moon pairs.

19 chapters · about 35,000 words · free to read in full, no account

  1. I · First Steps—AstronomyLeo starts with the astronomy: the Sun, the planets and their distances, so nobody is lost.
  2. II · The Earth and the ZodiacHow the Earth's year makes the zodiac.
  3. III · The Sun and the ZodiacThe Sun as the centre of everything, and what your Sun sign is.
  4. IV · The Individual and Personal Character of the Sign AriesAries in 1899: leaders, pioneers and a lot of headaches.
  5. V · The Individual and Personal Character of the Sign TaurusTaurus in 1899: slow, solid, and impossible to hurry.
  6. VI · The Individual and Personal Character of the Sign GeminiGemini in 1899: two things on the go, always.
  7. VII · The Individual and Personal Character of the Sign CancerCancer in 1899: the best memory of the twelve.
  8. VIII · The Individual and Personal Character of the Sign LeoLeo in 1899: the warmest heart in the zodiac, according to a man called Leo.
  9. IX · The Individual and Personal Character of the Sign VirgoVirgo in 1899: the critic, mostly of themselves.
  10. X · The Individual and Personal Character of the Sign LibraLibra in 1899: born to weigh things up.
  11. XI · The Individual and Personal Character of the Sign ScorpioScorpio in 1899: loyal, dignified and not to be crossed.
  12. XII · The Individual and Personal Character of the Sign SagittariusSagittarius in 1899: the arrow that never misses.
  13. XIII · The Individual and Personal Character of the Sign CapricornCapricorn in 1899: patience as a superpower.
  14. XIV · The Individual and Personal Character of the Sign AquariusAquarius in 1899: the reformer, decades early.
  15. XV · The Individual and Personal Character of the Sign PiscesPisces in 1899: romance novels and a soft heart.
  16. XVI · The Nature of the Twelve Signs of the ZodiacAll twelve signs side by side, with tables.
  17. XVII · The Moon and the ZodiacThe Moon in each sign: Leo's sketch of your inner weather.
  18. XVIII · The Solar-Lunar CombinationsAll 144 Sun and Moon pairs, each with its own short portrait. Find yours.
  19. XIX · The Lunar Positions from 1850 to 1900Where the Moon was, 1850 to 1900. The tables themselves are not reprinted.

Part I of the first edition: the Sun signs, the Moon signs and the Sun-Moon combinations. Page numbers are the 1899 printing's. The year-by-year Moon tables are not reprinted.

Free for everyone, everywhere: printed in 1899, and its author died in 1917. Cleaned from two scans of the 1899 printing.

Astronomica, by Marcus Manilius (c. 15 AD, in English 1697)

Marcus Manilius, Rome, around 15 AD, in Thomas Creech's English verse of 1697. The oldest astrology book that survives whole, and it rhymes: the sky's machinery, the twelve signs at work, and what each one makes of the people born under it.

126 chapters · about 45,000 words · free to read in full, no account

Book I

  1. I · The Rise and Progress of AstronomyCreech's summary of Book I, then Manilius announces he is the first to put the stars into a poem, and tells how people learned to read the sky.
  2. II · Different Opinions about the beginning of the WorldWhere did the world come from? Seeds, fire, water, atoms: the old guesses, lined up and weighed.
  3. III · The Order of the FrameNobody knows how it began, but the shape is clear: fire on top, earth at the bottom, everything else in order between.
  4. IV · The Earth the Centre of the WorldWhy the Earth must hang in the middle of everything, held up by nothing.
  5. V · The Earth is roundThe Earth is round, says a Roman in 15 AD, and here is how he knows.
  6. VI · God the Soul of the WorldOne mind runs through the whole universe and holds it together. The poem's big idea, in a few lines.
  7. VII · The Signs of the ZodiackThe twelve signs named one by one, from the Ram to the Fishes.
  8. VIII · The AxisThe invisible line the sky turns on, and the two poles at its ends.
  9. IX · The Northern ConstellationsThe northern constellations: the Bears, the Dragon, and the stars that never set.
  10. X · The Constellations between the Tropicks and the South-poleDown past the tropics to the stars of the south: Orion, the Dog, the Ship, the Whale.
  11. XI · The Figures of the Constellations onely fanciedThe pictures in the stars are only drawn by us. A surprisingly modern moment.
  12. XII · Providence against the EpicureansThe sky is too orderly to be an accident. Manilius argues with the Epicureans.
  13. XIII · The bigness of the WorldHow big is the universe? Too big to see, so reason has to go and look.
  14. XIV · The movable and immovable CirclesThe great circles of the sky: the ones that move with you and the ones that don't.
  15. XV · The Milky wayThe Milky Way, the bright road across the night, and the old guesses at what it is.
  16. XVI · The PlanetsThe seven wanderers that go against the sky's turn. A short one.
  17. XVII · MeteorsComets and falling fires, and why the ancients read them as warnings.

Book II

  1. I · The whole World Animate, and God the Soul of itCreech's summary of Book II, a long dig at other poets, then the world as one living creature with God as its soul.
  2. II · The Influence of the HeavensHow what happens up there reaches us down here.
  3. III · The several kinds or sorts of SignsThe signs come in kinds. Here is where the sorting begins.
  4. IV · Male and Female SignsThe male signs and the female signs, taking turns around the wheel.
  5. V · Humane and Brute SignsSigns shaped like people and signs shaped like animals, and why it matters.
  6. VI · Single and Double SignsSingle signs and double signs: one shape, or two in one.
  7. VII · PairsThe true pairs, Gemini and Pisces, and how they differ.
  8. VIII · Double Signs of different SpeciesHalf-and-half signs: the Centaur, the Goat-Fish, the Archer.
  9. IX · Double Signs by PlaceSigns that are double because of where they sit, at the turn of a season.
  10. X · Signs of Natural or Unnatural PosturesSigns that rise backwards. The Bull is one of them, of course.
  11. XI · Day Signs and Night SignsDay signs and night signs.
  12. XII · Earth and Water SignsSigns of the land and signs of the sea.
  13. XIII · Fruitful and Barren SignsThe fruitful signs and the barren ones.
  14. XIV · Signs of different PosturesRunning signs, standing signs, sitting and lying signs.
  15. XV · Maim'd and intire SignsSigns that are missing a part: the lame Bull, the clawless Scorpion.
  16. XVI · Season SignsWhich signs bring which season.
  17. XVII · The various ConfigurationsThe signs work in teams. The start of the aspects.
  18. XVIII · TrinesTrines: three signs joined in a triangle, and the friendship between them.
  19. XIX · QuadratesSquares: four signs joined across the wheel.
  20. XX · Cautions concerning Squares and TrinesA warning: count the degrees, not just the signs, or your trine is not a trine.
  21. XXI · The Intercourse of Trines and QuadratesWhy a trine is stronger than a square.
  22. XXII · Of SextilesSextiles: the signs two apart, half friends.
  23. XXIII · Of Contiguous SignsSigns side by side cannot see each other, so they cannot be friends.
  24. XXIV · Of Unequal SignsSigns at odd distances have nothing to say to each other.
  25. XXV · Of OppositesOpposite signs: far apart, and still in touch.
  26. XXVI · The Guardians of the SignsEach sign gets a god to guard it. Minerva takes the Ram.
  27. XXVII · The Signs for the several parts of the BodyWhich sign rules which part of the body, from the Ram at the head to the Fishes at the feet.
  28. XXVIII · Signs that See, Hear, Love, or HateSigns that see each other, hear each other, love and hate each other.
  29. XXIX · A short digression concerning FriendshipA detour about friendship: why it is so rare, with the worst betrayals of the old stories as proof.
  30. XXX · The friendly and unfriendly AspectsFriendly and unfriendly angles between the signs, and the planets' places.
  31. XXXI · DodecatemorionThe twelfth-parts: every sign holds a tiny zodiac inside it.
  32. XXXII · The Dodecatemoria of the PlanetsFinding the twelfth-parts of the planets.
  33. XXXIII · The Celestial HousesThe four hinges of the sky and the houses between them.

Book III

  1. I · The Twelve Signs of the Zodiack the chief Disposers of FortunesCreech's summary of Book III, then the twelve signs as the bosses of fortune.
  2. II · The twelve Lots of the twelve SignsEvery sign carries a lot, a part of life it looks after.
  3. III · The Lots named and describedThe twelve lots named: fortune, war, the city, the law, marriage, wealth, danger and the rest.
  4. IV · How the Lots are to be suited to the SignsHow to set the lots in a chart, by day and by night.
  5. V · How to find the HoroscopeFinding the rising sign, and why it is harder than it looks.
  6. VI · The Chaldaeans refutedThe Chaldeans' shortcut for the rising sign, and why Manilius thinks it is wrong.
  7. VII · How to find the different length of Hours, and to find the HoroscopeMeasuring the hours of the day and night, with a table of the signs rising.
  8. VIII · Third Argument against the ChaldaeansMore against the Chaldeans: the days are not the same length everywhere.
  9. IX · Another way to find the Signs Rising and Setting by HoursAnother way to find which signs rise and set, hour by hour.
  10. X · How Days encrease from Capricorn to CancerHow the days grow longer from the Goat to the Crab.
  11. XI · The Years, Months, Days, and Hours of SignsEach sign has its own years, months, days and hours.
  12. XII · How many Years belong to each Sign and StationHow many years each sign and each part of the chart can give a life.
  13. XIII · The Tropick SignsThe tropical signs, where the seasons turn.

Book IV

  1. I · The first Argument for FateCreech's summary of Book IV, then why worry, when everything is fated? The first proof: Rome's history.
  2. II · Second ArgumentSudden deaths and sudden recoveries, against all medicine. Fate again.
  3. III · Third ArgumentChildren of the same parents turn out nothing alike.
  4. IV · Fourth ArgumentWhy great people are rare, and death is certain.
  5. V · Fifth ArgumentGood people fail and fools win. Fate, says Manilius.
  6. VI · Sixth ArgumentStrange births as proof that something bigger is at work.
  7. VII · Seventh ArgumentIf the future can be foretold, it must be fixed.
  8. VIII · An Objection answer'dBut if it is all fate, why praise anyone? Manilius answers back.
  9. IX · The Influence of the SignsOn to the signs, and the work each one gives the people born under it.
  10. X · Of AriesAries in 15 AD: the wool trade, and a fortune that comes and goes like a fleece.
  11. XI · Of TaurusTaurus in 15 AD: the plough, the field, and no hurry at all.
  12. XII · Of GeminiGemini in 15 AD: singers, pipers, stargazers. Nobody gets old.
  13. XIII · Of CancerCancer in 15 AD: merchants on far seas. Manilius was not kind about it.
  14. XIV · Of LeoLeo in 15 AD: hunters with trophies on the wall, quick tempers, open hearts.
  15. XV · Of VirgoVirgo in 15 AD: speakers, scholars, and the fastest shorthand in Rome.
  16. XVI · Of LibraLibra in 15 AD: born to weigh, measure and judge.
  17. XVII · Of ScorpioScorpio in 15 AD: even their days off are a fight.
  18. XVIII · Of SagittariusSagittarius in 15 AD: horse-breakers, chariot racers, elephant teachers.
  19. XIX · Of CapricornCapricorn in 15 AD: miners and goldsmiths, all fire and metal.
  20. XX · Of AquariusAquarius in 15 AD: the engineers who brought water uphill.
  21. XXI · Of PiscesPisces in 15 AD: sailors, shipwrights, and everyone who trusts the sea.
  22. XXII · The Tenths and the Lords of the third part of each SignEach sign split into three tens, each ten lent to another sign. The decans, with Creech's table.
  23. XXIII · Encouragements to this StudyIt is hard, he admits, and worth it. A pep talk in verse.
  24. XXIV · The Good and Bad Degrees of each SignThe good degrees and the harmful ones, sign by sign.
  25. XXV · How the Signs Act when they riseA sign rising at your birth gives a different temper from the same sign anywhere else.
  26. XXVI · A Map of the Earth and SeasA map of the known world in 15 AD, and which sign rules which land.
  27. XXVII · What Signs are EccliptickThe eclipse signs, and why they take turns.
  28. XXVIII · Objections to this curious search answeredWhy bother looking up? Because reason can climb the sky. Book IV ends on a high.

Book V

  1. I · What Constellations rise with the several Degrees of the Twelve SignsCreech's summary of Book V, then the stars that rise beside each degree of the zodiac, starting with the Ram.
  2. II · The ShipThe Ship rises with Aries: born sailors and pilots.
  3. III · OrionOrion rises with Aries: quick, busy, and everyone in town is their friend.
  4. IV · Heniochus or the DriverThe Charioteer: drivers, racers, and the hands that hold the reins.
  5. V · The Hoedi, or the KidsThe Kids: soft love turned to wild desire, and goatherds. No stern Catos here.
  6. VI · The HyadesThe Hyades: lovers of a crowd and a riot.
  7. VII · The GoatThe Goat that fed Jupiter: restless travellers, wandering like goats on the rocks.
  8. VIII · The PleiadesThe Pleiades: face, dress, and the art of pleasing.
  9. IX · The HareThe Hare: the fastest feet in any race.
  10. X · The AssesThe Asses rise with Cancer: hunters with snares in wood and water, and the story of Meleager.
  11. XI · Procyon, or the little DogThe little Dog: breeders and trainers of hounds.
  12. XII · The great DogThe great Dog, the scorching Dog Star: fury, rage and a burning temper.
  13. XIII · The BowlThe Bowl: born to look after vines and wine.
  14. XIV · The CrownThe Crown: gardens, flowers and the scent trade.
  15. XV · The SheafThe Sheaf: ploughs, corn and full barns.
  16. XVI · The ArrowThe Arrow: archers, and anyone who never misses.
  17. XVII · The GoatThe Goat again: tireless public servants who keep cheats afraid.
  18. XVIII · The HarpThe Harp: the music Orpheus played to the rocks.
  19. XIX · The AltarThe Altar, where Jupiter first stood as priest.
  20. XX · The CentaurThe Centaur: drivers of mules, horses and chariots.
  21. XXI · ArcturusArcturus: the keeper of treasure, never poor.
  22. XXII · The SwanThe Swan: keepers of birds, and singers.
  23. XXIII · With Capricorn riseth OphieuchusThe Serpent-holder: those who handle snakes and come to no harm.
  24. XXIV · The South FishThe Southern Fish: fishers on every shore, and pearl divers.
  25. XXV · The Strings of the HarpBack to the Harp, and its strings this time.
  26. XXVI · The DolphinThe Dolphin: swimmers and divers, as at home in water as on land.
  27. XXVII · CepheusCepheus: stern tutors, and writers of very bloody tragedies.
  28. XXVIII · The EagleThe Eagle, who carries Jove's thunder: a fierce brood, born to seize.
  29. XXIX · CassiopeiaCassiopeia: goldsmiths and jewellers.
  30. XXX · AndromedaAndromeda, chained to the rock, and the monster from the sea. The poem's big set piece.
  31. XXXI · The HorseThe Horse: healthy, strong, quick, and at home in the saddle.
  32. XXXII · Hercules, or the Kneeling ConstellationThe kneeling hero: daredevils, who love a skill more dangerous than useful.
  33. XXXIII · The WhaleThe Whale: the monster again, and fishers with nets.
  34. XXXIV · The rising of the two BearsThe two Bears, which barely rise at all: tamers of wild beasts.
  35. XXXV · The Magnitudes of the StarsAfter a gap in the text, the stars sorted by brightness like a city's ranks: nobles, knights, the people, the crowd.

All five books in Creech's verse, each opening with his prose Argument; the notes are Creech's, 1697. A chapter is one of the numbered sections Creech prints in the margin. Page numbers are the 1697 printing's (Books IV and V are numbered again from page 1). Creech's long preface is not on the shelf.

Free for everyone, everywhere: written about 15 AD, translated in 1697, and its translator died in 1700. Cleaned from three scans of the same type (the 1697 printing, the 1700 printing and a third copy).

✦ Open the shelf in Umbriel

The same books on the shelves of House IX in Umbriel’s town, with a note in the margin for every old word, and each book’s line for the planets in your own chart.

14160+ people cast their chart here in the last 30 days.

Where the rest of the shelf comes from

Only books that are free for everyone, everywhere: printed in 1930 or earlier, by authors (and translators and editors) who died before 1956. Evangeline Adams and Sepharial are next.

Elsewhere on Umbriel

Free astrology lessonsPlanetsHousesZodiac signs

The portrait is William Marshall’s engraving of Lilly from the front of the 1659 printing (Wellcome Library, public domain).

Updated 1 November 2026.