Virgo

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The constellation Virgo, the maiden, can be seen in spring and summer in the northern hemisphere and in autumn and winter in the southern hemisphere. It is a very large constellation covering a total area of 1,294 square degrees. This makes it the second largest constellation in the night sky. It is located between Leo to the west and Libra to the east and can be easily found through its brightest star, Spica. It is one of the thirteen constellations of the zodiac. This means it lies along the path the Sun travels in the sky during the year. The September equinox is currently located in Virgo. This means that the Sun will be in the constellation Virgo on that date. Since the Sun passes through Virgo in mid-September, this makes it the constellation that announces the harvest.

Virgo is one of the 48 constellations first cataloged by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the second century. Its name means “virgin” in Latin. It is an ancient constellation. The Babylonians knew it as “The Furrow”, representing the goddess Shala’s ear of grain. In Roman times she was represented by the goddess Ceres, who was the mother of Prosperina. Her festival was in the second week of April, the same time that the constellation appears in the spring skies. She was also sometimes identified as the virgin goddess Astraea, holding the scales of justice represented by the constellation Libra. Virgo is usually depicted on charts as a maiden with angelic wings holding two ears of wheat, one of which is marked by the bright star Spica.