In the evening sky of December, five constellations play out a story in the stars.
Perseus flies from east to west, carrying the head of Medusa
He’s headed toward Andromeda, who is bound on the beach awaiting her fate
—a seamonster, Cetus, seen to the south.
To the north her parents, Cassiopeia and Cepheus, observe the scene unfolding below.
We think of these today as five constellations,
which happen to tell a story.
But stop to consider
how they came to be in the sky;
you quickly realize
that this is not five constellations,
but a single tableau.
These five figures
were placed in the sky
as a group,
all at the same time.
The background to this story, briefly told:
At the time, there was an origins tale known around much of the eastern Mediterranean.
Belus and Agenor were brothers, who between them founded several kingdoms of the region of
Libya, Egypt, the Sinai, and thereabouts.
The genealogy of their kin was a shorthand for history, as remembered by the peoples of this time.
The Mycenaeans wanted to add themselves to this genealogy.
To do so, they invoked a lesser known
(or newly invented?) brother to Belus & Agenor:
Cepheus of Æthiopia.
Andromeda is daughter to Cepheus.
By rescuing and marrying her, Perseus of Mycenae ties the Bronze Age Greeks
to the family of nations and peoples of the Mediterranean.
Once you see that,
it’s easy to see further that
these constellations are not a matter of folk tradition.
The Rescue of Andromeda is Bronze Age palace propaganda.
We could go on and on at length.
Someday we shall.