Hesperus

Hesperus (Greek Ἕσπερος, Latin Hesperus ) is a Titan in Greek mythology. It is also the ancient name for the evening star, the planet Venus.

Mythology

Hesperus is the son or the brother of Atlas. As his son, he is regarded as one astronomer. One night he was from Mount Atlas, where he wanted to watch the stars, taken away by a storm and was gone for his fellow man. However, the held him in honor and named after him, the evening star Hesperus. [ Ovid ]

According to others, he should be the son of Astraeus and Eos.

As a brother of Atlas applies Hesperos as the father of Hesperis, was the father of the Hesperides Atlas. They lived in that garden, from which one of his labors, Heracles took the apples and thereby short for Atlas shouldered the world.

The wandering star Hesperos

The evening star Hesperus (see above) is the planet Venus: In ignorance of the fact that the morning star and the evening star temporally different manifestations of the same celestial body, namely the planet Venus, Venus in ancient Greece also received as a morning star names Phosphoros ( Φώσφορος: light bearer, light bringer; Latin lucifer ) and (H ) Eosphoros ( Ἑωσφόρος: Bringer of dawn ).

The ancient Babylonians, this was already known by 1700 BC, and the planet was seen as the love goddess Ishtar. After the acquisition of this knowledge by the Greeks, the planet was named according to Aphrodite, while the Romans called it Venus.

Even when you knew that evening and morning star is the same celestial body ( Pythagoras or Parmenides ), they were kept apart as mythological persons.

Artist's impression

Hesperos both as Phosphorus, the morning star, are shown as upward or downward flying boys with torches, also hovers Hesperos often in front of the moon goddess forth. This underlies that the constellation Venus crescent moon is rather common and presents a very impressive picture. For example, is shown on the Turkish flag, the constellation Morgenstern / decreasing crescent moon.

Etymology

The name of this mythological figure is derived from the Greek word for evening, West ἡ ἑσπέρα ( Hespera ). This word in turn has a common etymological root with the Latin vesper: the evening, the evening star and West in the Germanic languages ​​. Probably derived from Hesperios is Hesperia, a mythical country that is different identified with Spain or Italy.