As a bull he stood in the middle of the herd of the king. Taurus comes from the Greek story of Europa who was the daughter of King Agenor of Phoenicia and … The cluster of Taurus contains 500 to 1,000 stars. Let's have a closer look…. The bordering constellations are Auriga, Perseus, Aries, Cetus, Eridanus, Orion, Gemini. As far back at 15,000 BC, drawings on the walls in the caves of Lascaux depicted Taurus with the star cluster known as the Pleiades. The bull tattoo is appealing to many because it can be portrayed as ferocious, stampeding, and roaring, to help to emphasize the primal and animalistic traits of a Taurus. Taurus, the Bull, is the second sign in the Zodiac and represents those born between April 20 and May 20. Aleph, in Phoenician, represents an ox, and does, indeed, have a shape not dissimilar to that of the constellation Taurus. The tale of how Taurus the bull became immortalized in the stars is one such example! It is probably best known for it’s inclusion in Greek Mythology; King of the Gods Zeus assumed the form of a bull to rescue Princess Europa. The Mythology of Taurus, the Bull The constellation of Taurus the bull has been identified with many cultures (Druid, Babyonian, Egyptian, Greek, etc). The presents seem to have worked, because in the end they ended up having 3 sons. He was the king of the Sumerian city state of Uruk. There are at least three stories about the constellation of Taurus the Bull in Greek mythology. Constellation Taurus, the "Bull of Heaven," is one of the earliest and most famous constellations. As with many Greek myths it revolves around the amorous attentions of the King of Gods Zeus. The Taurus myth is most often interpreted as the story of Zeus and Europa, where the Greek god carried the Phoenician princess away to Crete to marry her by disguising himself as a white bull. The Taurus myth is most often interpreted as the story of Zeus and Europa, where the Greek god carried the Phoenician princess away to Crete to marry her by disguising himself as a white bull. Michael Rappenglück of the University of Munich believes that Taurus is represented in a cave painting at the Hall of the Bulls in the caves at Lascaux (dated to roughly 15,000 BC), which he believes is accompanied by a depiction of the Pleiades. The 17th brightest constellation in the sky, Taurus is a fairly prominent constellation in the northern sky. The constellation of Taurus, the Bull, is best viewed in Winter during the month of January. She was the daughter of King Agenor of Phoenicia and Telephassa. Facts about Taurus Constellation 9: the number of stars and their age. Even though the Taurus constellation has been named by Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD, this star sign dates back to the early Bronze Age. Gilgamesh is considered to be represented by the constellation Orion, which is right next to Taurus. Michael Rappenglück of the University of Munich believes that Taurus is represented in a cave painting at the Hall of the Bulls in the caves at Lascaux (dated to roughly 15,000 BC), which he believes is accompanied by a depiction of the Pleiades. Zeus took the chance to kidnap her and take her to Crete, w… In Greek Mythology, Taurus relates to Zeus, King of the Gods, is a fascinating story. He was the king of the Sumerian city state of Uruk. The bull’s head seems to be glaring at the Orion constellation which follows Taurus. In the Old Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh, the goddess Ishtar sends Taurus, the Bull of Heaven to kill Gilgamesh for spurning her advances. It is said that Zeus placed the bull in the stars as appreciation of the beast. Taurus Constellation in Mythology. While there are many tellings and re-tellings about how the stars in the sky came to be, myths about the zodiac constellations always have the most interesting alternate stories attached to them. The bull represented by the zodiacal constellation is said to be Zeus. The Mythology of Taurus and its Constellation. Europa decided to sit on its back, at which point the bull rose and ran off. It is a large constellation covering an area of 797 square degrees. Once they got to Crete, it was time for Zeus to change back into his own self and tell Europa who he really was. It is believed that this constellation marked the Sun’s location during the spring equinox in the Bronze Age. Its importance to agriculture influenced the mythology of many ancient civilizations including Sumer, Assyria, Babylon, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. The zodiac signs have been around for many centuries, so also Taurus has loads of history. It ranks 17th in size among the 88 constellations … The Egyptians, Greeks, and even the Babylonians, they all connected this constellation with the horned animal. Taurus: The Bull. Taurus, comes from the story of Europa. The identification of the constellation of Taurus with a bull is very old, certainly dating to the Chalcolithic, and perhaps even to the Upper Paleolithic. Today we will tell you the reason we have a bull as one of the 12 birth star signs in our star map. It has been a beautiful month, all Tauruses have celebrated their birthdays,…, Of all the 8 planets, Neptune is the farthest from the Sun. Two Greek bull-myths … Taurus is the 17th largest constellation in the sky, occupying an area of 797 square degrees. This constellation is connected to the story of Gilgamesh. A cave painting in Lascaux, France from the year 15,000 BC already has it represented as a bull. The Taurus features in many mythologies, including Persian, Egyptian, old Babylonian and the Druids. Still, Neptune is very important in your horoscope and birth chart. It is said that Taurus is the god Zeus disguised in order to seduce the maiden Europa. Obviously, Zeus was the most handsome bull, so he managed to get Europa’s attention. The brightest stars in the cluster represent the Pleiades, the Seven Sisters in Greek mythology, and their parents, the nymph Pleione and the Titan Atlas. The constellation Taurus, the bull, can be seen during the winter and the early spring in the northern hemisphere. The Greek letter alpha is also derived from aleph, but rotates the symbol so it opens downward. She was so angry at him for not falling for her advances that she thought he deserved to die. He handed her tons of presents in order to keep her happy. See Also: 10 Facts about Red Shift. There are even cave painting as old as 17.000 years depicting a bull. Taurus is a prominent northern constellation, lying immediately north-west of Orion. Taurus means bull in Latin, but it weren’t just the Romans that associated this zodiac sign with a bull. Facts about Taurus Constellation 10: Taurus in Greek mythology If you want to know what a Taurus is like, make sure to check out this page. It's brightest star is Aldebaran at magnitude 0.85. The mythology of the constellation is complex and varied. FACTS, LOCATION & MAP. Fascinated by the animal’s beauty, the princess approached it to caress its horns and climbed onto its back. It offers many exciting celestial objects. Globe at Night is a program of NSF’s NOIRLab, the preeminent US national center for ground-based, nighttime optical and infrared astronomy, which is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), under cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation. Right now the star sign of Taurus is the reigning constellation, so people born under this zodiac sign have certain character traits. The Sun's entrance into Taurus marked the vernal equinox from about 4000 to 1700 B.C. Messier 45 is one of the nearest star clusters to Earth. It was created to mark the location of the Sun during the spring equinox. It is an ancient constellation dating back to the Bronze Age, where it marked the location of the Sun during the spring equinox. It can be seen in Palaeolithic cave paintings that are dated to about 15,000 BC at Lascaux in southwestern France. The type of the stars in the cluster is varied. Zeus adopted the shape of a bull and seduced Europa, dau… The constellation of Taurus the bull has been identified with many cultures (Druid, Babyonian, Egyptian, Greek, etc). However, the current conception of Taurus comes from Greek Mythology. One of the oldest constellations to be recognized in the night sky. The identification of the constellation of Tauruswith a bull is very old, certainly dating to the Chalcolithic, and perhaps even to the Upper Paleolithic. Europa became the object of Zeus' affections, and he appeared to her as a beautiful, white bull at the Phoenician waterside. This spectacular constellation is very popular as it has many stellar bodies in it. In the first myth, Zeus tries to gain the favor of Europa, a legendary Phoenician princess, by assuming the form of a magnificent white bull and carries her out to sea. Taurus is one of the oldest known constellations and dates as far back as the Bronze Age. Taurus is the second sign of the zodiac, and it is represented as a bull, from the Greek mythology in which Zeus abducts Europa while in the bull's form. The constellation of Taurus is associated with Greek mythology. Zeus, being happy with the results, decided to promote the bull to a constellation by placing it amongst the stars in the sky. Taurus. According to Greek mythology, the constellation Taurus commemorates the god Zeus changing himself into a beautiful white Bull to win the affections of the Phoenician princess Europa. In the second Greek myth, Zeus hides Io, his girlfriend from his wife, Hera by changing Io into the form of a heifer (or bull). In Babylonian mythology, the bull was known as the Heavenly Bull, or MUL.APIN. And with this rule of zodiac signs comes lots of changes. Aldebaran – … Among them are the star clusters Hyades and Pleiades. Two objects in Taurus stand out to the unaided eye: the bright star Aldebaran , the thirteenth brightest in the … The Pleiades, also known as the Seven Sisters or Messier 45, is a famous open star cluster located in Taurus constellation. In the book The Epic of Gilgamesh, the king has to fight the Heavenly Bull. Practice finding Taurus or review the Magnitude Charts for Taurus. The boundary of the Taurus constellation contains 18 stars that host known exoplanets. Taurus constellation is symbolized by the Cretan Bull or the Bull of Heaven. In Roman mythology the bull of Taurus represents the god Jupiter who turned himself into a bull in order to kidnap the maiden Europa, who he took to the island of Crete. Minos ended up to become the king of Crete and he built a palace at Knossos where bull games were held every year. As far back at 15,000 BC, drawings on the walls in the caves of Lascaux depicted Taurus with the star cluster known as the Pleiades. If this is the case, then Taurus is unique as the only constellation that is also a letter. According to myth, the Greek god assumed the form of a white bull to seduce Europa, a Phoenician princess. The age of the stars, reach 100 million years old. MYTH. The princess was awestruck by the beauty of the bull and walked … After a period of about a month a different constellation is in charge of our night’s sky. 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