One more time...

More constellations! (There’s so many!)

6) Hercules: Hercules, originally Heracles or Herakles, was ironically most greatly threatened in mythology by the wife of Jupiter, Juno (ironically because ‘Heracles’ can literally be translated as the ‘glory of Hera’, Juno’s Greek name). At birth, Heracles was beset upon by snakes sent by Juno into his crib as an act of vengeance for her husband Jupiter’s infidelity with a mortal woman.  Easily strangling the twin snakes, this began Heracles career as a monster killer. He later married Megara who, as it was believed (possibly to retain Heracles’ heroic persona), was put under a spell of madness by Juno and killed Megara along with his own children. As atonement for these sins, however, he completes twelve necessary labours (one of which was of course the slaying of the Nemean lion…Leo!).

The constellation of Hercules is shown with him and his Nemean lion skin and club. An interesting parallel however- Heracles was never thought of as being intelligent, but was always famed for his brute strength. The Hercules constellation is the fifth largest in the sky, yet also one of the dimmest.

7) Cassiopeia: If you’ve read the blogs before this one, you actually know a bit about this myth already! Cassiopeia is the mother of Andromeda- the same mother that bragged how her daughter (or herself, according to different versions) was more beautiful than the sea nymphs. As penance for her pride, she was forced to have her daughter strung up and fed to the sea monster sent by a vengeful Neptune, God of the Seas and of the sea Nymphs themselves. Enter Perseus, the saviour and future husband to the daughter of Cassiopeia. He saves Cassiopeia’s daughter and runs off with her to be married.

In the constellation, Cassiopeia is assumed to be sitting on her throne in all her vanity. 

And there we have it. Two more to add to your mounting repetoir of constellation/mythological knowledge. 

-StarKid