VMs: Re: astro-nymphs?

[Grzegorz Stachowski <greg@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hello Rafal, Rene, et al.,

There are 12 figures around the outer (red) ring, between what are clearly
the symbols of the zodiac. I've only got the web jpg from Rafal's post to
go on, but some of them seem to be male (for example the figures between
Aries and Taurus and between Aquarius and Pisces), and they are all
different. There aren't enough planets to go round for them to be
personficiations. The personifications of the planets are the figures in
the circles in the middle, of which there are eight, which would be one
for each of the eight "planets" (as they were known in pre-modern times) -
Earth, Moon, Sun, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. Four of the
planets have animals as well as humanoid figures, but the image is too low
resolution to identify them. I would guess that the smallest circle, with
a figure with large black "ears" is Mercury - who is often depicted with a
winged helmet. That would suggest the nearby circle is Venus, and both are
on orbits around the Sun, who seems to have rays around his head. The Sun,
along with the outer planets, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn, orbit the Earth
which is in the centre of the diagram. This was one way of reconciling the
movement of the inner planets, Mercury and Venus - which was most easily
explained by having them move around the Sun - with an Earth-centered
universe. It is similar to the system of Tycho Brahe in which all the
planets bar the Earth and Moon move round the Sun, which in turn moves
round the Earth, and according to my Britannica was first suggested in the
4th century BC by Heracleides Ponticus and might well have been
resurrected in later times.

The twelve figures round the edge are, again, too indistinct, but I notice
that they are all fully clothed in the winter months (going by the star
signs), and increasing scantily dressed through the spring to fully naked
in the summer. I would therefore suggest that they are personifications of
the months. This was a very common occurence in art and illustration from
ancient times into at least the 17th century.

One interesting thing about these figures though is that they have some of
the odd arm and hand positions seen on the nymphs in the VMS.
Coincidence? Artistic licence? Or some underlying meaning common to both?

Best wishes,

Greg

> Can the text be actually read from that reproduction?
> I wonder about those "nymphs" - perhaps they are just
> personalisations of planets ruling the signs?
>
> Best regards,
>
> Rafal
>

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