To continue what is possibly becoming a series of mine, this is the development of what started as a major digression in a discussion of Augustus Caesar in Plutarch’s Life of Antony and has turned into a full blown deep dive into the zodiac signs of ancient figures. That said, it is largely Roman figures, because we don’t know the specific birthday of most of the central Greek political and cultural figures. Either way, enjoy!
Aquarius = Hadrian
- You are analytical, honest, assertive, confident, innovative, and idealistic.
- Hadrian was an emperor of Rome in the 2nd century CE but spent more than half of his reign outside of Rome travelling his empire. He broke with the expansionist policies of his predecessors to focus on securing the Roman Empire within its existing borders. It is under his rule that Romans in Britain built Hadrian’s Wall in Northumberland to protect them from the Scots.
Aries = Caracalla
- You are bold, energetic, charismatic, lively, creative, and brave.
- If you’ve seen the new Gladiator II movie, then you know Caracalla (played by Fred Hechinger). He was a Roman emperor at the end of the 2nd and beginning of the 3rd centuries CE, and his main achievements were building colossal baths and his edict of 212 CE giving Roman citizenship to all free inhabitants of his empire. However, his reign contributed to the decay of the empire, and he is seen as one of the most bloodthirsty tyrants in Roman history.
Cancer = Julius Caesar and Alexander the Great
- You are compassionate, loving, protective, devoted, charming, and intuitive
- Julius Caesar: some say he was the first emperor of Rome, Julius Caesar was a Roman politician in the 1st century BCE, before a civil war broke out between him and Pompey, which he went on to win. His adopted son, Augustus, went on to be the first definitive Roman emperor. He also is said to be a lover of Cleopatra, and had a child with her named after him, called Caesarion.
- Alexander the Great: Alexander III was a king of the Greek kingdom of Macedon in the 4th century BCE. He is most known for his expansionist approach to ruling, conquering vast swaths of North Africa, Southern Europe and Asia, and founding many cities named after him, including Alexandria in Egypt.
Capricorn = Cleopatra and Augustus Caesar
- You are perfectionist, hard-working, dedicated, honest, loyal, and ambitious.
- Cleopatra: the final pharaoh of Egypt in the Ptolemaic Dynasty, Cleopatra was an enemy of Augustus Caesar when Mark Antony defected from Rome to be her lover. Her armies fought Rome at the Battle of Actium and lost. After Mark Antony’s death, Augustus took her to Rome, and she died mysteriously: no one can determine if it was an accident, murder or suicide.
- Augustus Caesar: the first ever emperor of Rome, he was born with the name Octavian but was adopted by Julius Ceasar and so changed his name when he became successor. As an emperor he valued the cultural and moral purity of his people and provided great funding for the arts and literature. Virgil wrote the epic Aeneid with Augustus as his patron about the founding of Rome.
Gemini = Plato and Germanicus
- You are witty, curious, funny, communicative, inquisitive, and impulsive.
- Plato: a 4th century BCE Athenian philosopher, Plato is famous for writing dialogues between his teacher, Socrates, and other characters seeking to define abstract concepts. For example, the ‘Republic’ starts by seeking to define the concept of justice, and the ‘Symposium’ talks about the nature of love.
- Germanicus: Germanicus was the nephew and adopted son of Emperor Tiberius and was a Roman general and politician. He is most known for his martial success in Germania. He was also grandfather of the later Emperor Nero.
Leo = Claudius I
- You are confident, ambitious, generous, protective, funny, and energetic.
- Claudius was a Roman emperor in the 1st century CE. He was the first Roman to invade Britain, but he did not successfully conquer it. It is said that he was killed by his wife, Agrippina by poisoning, so that their son Nero could become emperor.
Libra = Virgil and Pompey the Great
- You are diplomatic, fair, idealistic, social, clever, and indecisive.
- Virgil: Virgil was an epic poet under the emperor Augustus. His most famous work is the epic ‘Aeneid’ that tells the story of the hero Aeneas as he journeys from Troy to Italy to found Rome. He died before he finished the poem, and wanted it burned because it was not ready, but Augustus insisted on it being published, and in the Renaissance the poem became part of the western literary canon.
- Pompey the Great: Pompey was a protégé of the Roman dictator Sulla, before briefly ruling Rome as part of the First Triumvirate alongside Julius Ceasar and Crassus, before becoming a sworn enemy of Julius Caesar, triggering a civil war which he later lost.
Pisces = Ovid
- You are compassionate, artistic, imaginative, supportive, intuitive, and kind.
- Ovid: another poet in Augustan Rome, Ovid was perhaps the opposite of Virgil. He wrote a variety of poetry, including the ‘Heroides’ (which feature letters from mythical women to their absent lovers) and the ‘Ars Amatoria’ (which aimed to teach people how to love). However, this second work angered Augustus, and he was exiled from Rome in 8 CE “for a poem and a mistake”.
Sagittarius = Nero and Horace
- You are lively, passionate, philosophical, adventurous, outgoing, and faithful.
- Nero: Nero, the son of Agrippina, was a Roman emperor in the 1st century CE. He is famous for his debauchery and persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire, some even say he burned them. He is also accused of being responsible of the burning of Rome, and was later assassinated in 98 CE. His beard was also really bad, which is crucial.
- Horace: Horace was a Roman poet in the 1st century BCE, best known for his epicurean poems, embodied by his immortal line: “carpe diem”.
Scorpio = Emperor Tiberius and Agrippina (Nero’s mum)
- You are ambitious, brave, loyal, secretive, independent, and passionate.
- Tiberius: the adopted son of Augustus Caesar, Tiberius was emperor of Rome in the 1st century CE. He was also a key player in the Roman conquest of Gaul (France)
- Agrippina: Claudius’ wife, Germanicus’ daughter and Nero’s mum. Agrippina was a controversial figure in Rome as she was suspected of poisoning Claudius in order for Nero to become emperor. She heard an oracle that Nero would kill her if he came to power, but she accepted this, saying that all that mattered as that he became ruler.
Taurus = Justinian
- You are reliable, down to earth, loyal, dedicated, intelligent, and stubborn.
- Justinian was an emperor of the Byzantine Empire in the 6th century CE. He codified the legal code and changed the law so he could marry his true love, Theodora despite religious differences – he even stopped religious persecution of her faith.
Virgo = Mark Antony and Caligula
- Still my favourite star sign.
- You are practical, organised, methodical, sympathetic, modest, and sensitive.
- Mark Antony: Mark Antony ruled alongside Augustus Caesar and Lepidus as part of the Second Triumvirate before Augustus became emperor. He is most famous for his intense love for Cleopatra, leading him to leave Rome and be stripped of his power. When Augustus waged war on Egypt Mark Antony’s martial failings certainly contributed to Egypt’s defeat. He died in Egypt, but Augustus allowed him proper burial.
- Caligula: Caligula, Germanicus’ son, was a Roman emperor in the 1st century CE, known for his madness and cruelty to his people. He levied harsh taxes during his reign, executed senators he didn’t trust and tried to make a horse a consul (high political position).
