Astrological symbols

The written symbols for Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn have been traced to forms found in late Classical Greek papyri.[3] The symbols for Jupiter and Saturn are monograms of the initial letters of the corresponding Greek names, and the symbol for Mercury is a stylized caduceus.[3] A.S.D. Maunder finds antecedents of the planetary symbols in earlier sources, used to represent the gods associated with the classical planets. Bianchini's planisphere, produced in the 2nd century,[4] shows Greek personifications of planetary gods charged with early versions of the planetary symbols: Mercury has a caduceus; Venus has, attached to her necklace, a cord connected to another necklace; Mars, a spear; Jupiter, a staff; Saturn, a scythe; the Sun, a circlet with rays radiating from it; and the Moon, a headdress with a crescent attached.[5] A diagram in Johannes Kamateros' 12th-century Compendium of Astrology shows the Sun represented by the circle with a ray, Jupiter by the letter zeta (the initial of Zeus, Jupiter's counterpart in Greek mythology), Mars by a shield crossed by a spear, and the remaining classical planets by symbols resembling the modern ones, without the cross-mark seen in modern versions of the symbols.[5]

The modern sun symbol, pictured as a circle with a dot (U+2609 ☉ SUN), first appeared in the Renaissance.[2] (The conventional symbols for the signs of the zodiac also develop in the Renaissance period as simplifications of the classical pictorial representations of the signs.) The modern sun symbol resembles the Egyptian hieroglyph for "sun" – a circle that sometimes had a dot in the center, (U+131F3 𓇳 EGYPTIAN HIEROGLYPH N005). Similar in appearance were several variants of the ancestral form of the modern Chinese logograph for "sun", which in the oracle bone script and bronze script were . It is not known if the Egyptian and Chinese logographs have any connection to the European astrological symbol.

Symbols for Uranus and Neptune were created shortly after their discovery. For Uranus, two variant symbols are seen. One symbol, , invented by J. G. Köhler and refined by Bode, was intended to represent the newly discovered metal platinum; since platinum, sometimes described as white gold[lower-alpha 1] was found by chemists mixed with iron, the symbol for platinum combines the alchemical symbols for iron, ♂, and gold, ☉.[6][7] An inverted version of that same symbol, was in use in the early 20th century.[8] Another symbol, , was suggested by Lalande in 1784. In a letter to Herschel, Lalande described it as "un globe surmonté par la première lettre de votre nom" ("a globe surmounted by the first letter of your name").[9] After Neptune was discovered, the Bureau des Longitudes proposed the name Neptune and the familiar trident for the planet's symbol, though at bottom may be either a cross or an orb .[10]

The astrological symbols for the first four objects discovered at the beginning of the 19th century — Ceres, Pallas, Juno and Vesta — were created shortly after their discoveries. They were initially listed as planets, and half a century later came to be called asteroids, though such "minor planets" continued to be considered planets for perhaps another century. Shortly after Giuseppe Piazzi's discovery of Ceres, a group of astronomers ratified the name, proposed by the discoverer, and chose the sickle as a symbol of the planet.[11] The symbol for Pallas, the spear of Pallas Athena, was invented by Baron Franz Xaver von Zach, and introduced in his Monatliche Correspondenz zur Beförderung der Erd- und Himmels-Kunde.[12] Karl Ludwig Harding, who discovered and named Juno, assigned to it the symbol of a scepter topped with a star.[13]

The modern astrological form of the symbol for Vesta, ⚶, was created by Eleanor Bach,[14] who is credited with pioneering the use of the big four asteroids with the publication of her Ephemerides of the Asteroids in the early 1970s.[15] The original form of the symbol for Vesta, , was created by German mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss. Olbers, having previously discovered and named one new planet (as the asteroids were then classified), gave Gauss the honor of naming his newest discovery. Gauss decided to name the planet for the goddess Vesta, and also specified that the symbol should be the altar of the goddess with the sacred fire burning on it.[16][17] Bach's variant was a simplification of 19th-century elaborations of Gauss's altar symbol.[14]

The symbol for the centaur Chiron, ⚷, is both a key and a monogram of the letters O and K (for 'Object Kowal', a provisional name of the object, for discoverer Charles T. Kowal) was proposed by astrologer Al Morrison, who presented the symbol as "an inspiration shared amongst Al H. Morrison, Joelle K.D. Mahoney, and Marlene Bassoff."[18]

A widely used convention for other centaurs, proposed by Robert von Heeren in the 1990s, is to replace the K of the Chiron key glyph with the initial letter of the object: e.g. P or φ for Pholus and N for Nessus (U+2BDB ⯛ PHOLUS, U+2BDC ⯜ NESSUS).

Pluto, like Uranus, has multiple symbols in use. One symbol, ♇, is a monogram of the letters PL (which can be interpreted to stand for Pluto or for astronomer Percival Lowell), was announced with the name of the new planet by the discoverers on May 1, 1930.[19] Another symbol, which was popularized in Paul Clancy's astrological publications, is based on Pluto's bident: . This symbol is described by Dane Rudhyar as "suggest[ing] the planetary character of the Pluto mind by the circle, floating above the open cup." Although, this meaning is readily debatable due to Blavatskian origins, rather than a properly traditional understanding, such as may be found in Hermeticism.[20]

Symbols for other large trans-Neptunian objects have mostly been proposed on the Internet;[21] some created by Denis Moskowitz have been used by NASA[22] and are used by the popular open-source astrological software Astrolog, as well as being used less consistently by commercial programs.

The symbol for retrograde motion is ℞, a capital 'R' with a tail stroke.[23][24][25] An 'R' with a tail stroke was used to abbreviate many words beginning with the letter 'R'; in medical prescriptions, it abbreviated the word recipe[26] (from the Latin imperative of recipere "to take"[27]), and in missals, an R with a tail stroke marked the responses.[26]

The symbols of the planets are usually (but not always) broken down into four common elements by astrologers: A circle denoting spirit, a crescent denoting the mind, a cross denoting practical/physical matter and an arrow denoting action or direction.[31] This is not the historical origin of the symbols. (The cross, for example, was an attempt to Christianize pagan symbols.)

Name[32]	Image	Text	Unicode	Symbol represents
Sun		☉	U+2609	Circle with a dot as a solar symbol from Apollo's round shield with a boss
Moon		☽	U+263D	A crescent moon
		☾	U+263E
Mercury		☿	U+263F	Mercury's caduceus; cross added in 16th century CE.
Venus		♀	U+2640	Perhaps a copper hand mirror with handle or necklace with pendant; cross added in 16th c. (see Venus symbol)
Mars		♂	U+2642	Mars' shield and spear
Jupiter		♃	U+2643	Monogram Ζ for Zeus with a cross-bar indicating an abbreviation (perhaps later seen as a cross)
Saturn		♄	U+2644	κρ for Cronus with a cross-bar indicating an abbreviation; cross added in 16th c.
Uranus		♅	U+2645	An orb with a monogram H for the discoverer's last name, Herschel
		⛢	U+26E2	Derived from the alchemical symbols of the planetary metals gold (Sun) and iron (Mars) to create a symbol for platinum, then applied to the planet
Neptune		♆	U+2646	Neptune's trident
Pluto		⯓	U+2BD3	Pluto's orb and a bident
		♇	U+2647	PL monogram for Pluto and Percival Lowell
		⯔	U+2BD4	Symbol used mainly in France, Spain, Italy and Germany.[33]
		⯕	U+2BD5	Symbol invented by German astrologer Hermann Lefeldt in 1946. Used by some followers of the Hamburg School of Astrology.[33] Also proposed for Pluto's moon Charon.[21]
		⯖	U+2BD6	Pluto's orbit crossing that of Neptune. Symbol mostly used in German-speaking countries and Denmark.[33]

Since the 1970s, some astrologers have used asteroids and other celestial bodies in their horoscopes. The symbol for the first-recognised centaur, 2060 Chiron, was devised by Al H. Morrison soon after it had been discovered by Charles Kowal, and has become standard amongst astrologers.[34] In the late 1990s, German astrologer Robert von Heeren created symbols for other centaurs based on the Chiron model, though only those for 5145 Pholus and 7066 Nessus are included in Unicode, and only that for Pholus in Astrolog.[35] The following list is by no means exhaustive, but for bodies outside this list, there is often very little to no independent usage beyond the symbols' creators.[36]

Category	Name	Image	Text	Unicode	Symbol represents
Asteroids	Ceres		⚳	U+26B3	A scythe (handle down), emblematic of Ceres as goddess of the harvest
	Pallas		⚴	U+26B4	A spear, emblematic of Athena
	Juno		⚵	U+26B5	A scepter, emblematic of Juno as queen of the gods, topped with a star
	Vesta		⚶	U+26B6	The fire-altar of Vesta's temple
	Astraea[35]		%, ⯙	U+0025, U+2BD9	The % sign (shift-5 on the keyboard for asteroid 5)[37]
	Hygiea		⯚	U+2BDA	A caduceus (an apparent error for the rod of Asclepius, itself an error for the snake as a symbol of Hygieia)[35]
Centaurs	Chiron		⚷	U+26B7	Stylized key; simultaneously the letters OK for "Object Kowal", as the object was known when announced as a new planet. The top is half of a "perfect X", with the staff rising above so that they're radii of a circle centered where they meet. The width and height of the oval are the golden ratio.[38]
	Pholus		⯛	U+2BDB	Symbols devised by German astrologer Robert von Heeren in the late 1990s, based on Chiron's[35][38]
	Nessus		⯜	U+2BDC
	Chariklo
	Hylonome
	Cyllarus
Large trans-Neptunian planetoids, incl. dwarf planets	Eris		⯰	U+2BF0	The Hand of Eris; also used non-astrologically by Discordians[39]
			⯱	U+2BF1	Based on the symbols for Pluto, Mars, and Venus; proposed by Henry Seltzer and used in Time Passages[39]
	Haumea		🝻	U+1F77B	Conflation of Hawaiian petroglyphs for woman and birth, as Haumea was the goddess of both[36]
	Makemake		🝼	U+1F77C	Engraved face of the Rapa Nui god Makemake, also resembling an M[36]
	Gonggong		🝽	U+1F77D	Chinese character 共 gòng (the first character in Gonggong's name), combined with a snake's tail[36]
	Sedna		⯲	U+2BF2	Monogram of the Inuktitut syllabics for 'sa' and 'n', as Sedna's Inuit name is 'Sanna' (ᓴᓐᓇ)[36]
	Quaoar		🝾	U+1F77E	A Q for Quaoar combined with a canoe, stylised to resemble the angular rock art of the Tongva[36]
	Orcus		🝿	U+1F77F	An O-R monogram for Orcus, stylised to resemble a skull and an orca's grin[36]
					Inverted Pluto, from Orcus being styled the 'anti-Pluto'[36]
	Salacia				A stylized hippocamp[36]
	Varda		❈	U+2748	A gleaming star, as Varda was creator of the stars[36]
	Ixion				The solar wheel that Zeus bound Ixion to in Tartarus, with the spokes stylized as an I-X for 'Ixion'[36]
					Based on the preceding, but with the Greek letters Ι Ξ for Ιξιων in place of Latin I and X.[36]
	Varuna				Devanagari व va and Varuna's snake-lasso.[36]
	Gǃkunǁʼhomdima				An aardvark, representing the beautiful aardvark girl Gǃkunǁʼhomdima[36]
	Chaos				Arrows pointing in all directions; the symbol of Chaos[36]
	Rhadamanthus				Unknown[36]
Fictitious planets	Proserpina		⯘	U+2BD8	Object and symbol are unrelated to the asteroid 26 Proserpina.[35]
			♁	U+2641	Symbol used for Proserpina and apparent synonym Kora by astrologers in Poland, and the astrology software Urania, who identify Proserpina with the dwarf planet Eris.[36]
	Transpluto[35]		⯗	U+2BD7	Fictitious planet beyond Pluto (arrow pointing beyond Pluto's orbit)

The Hamburg School of Astrology, also called Uranian Astrology, is a sub-variety of western astrology.[40] It adds eight fictitious trans-Neptunian planets to the normal ones used by western astrologers:[40]

Name	Image	Text	Unicode
Cupido		⯠	U+2BE0
Hades		⯡	U+2BE1
Zeus		⯢	U+2BE2
Kronos		⯣	U+2BE3
Apollon		⯤	U+2BE4
Admetos		⯥	U+2BE5
Vulcanus		⯦	U+2BE6
Poseidon		⯧	U+2BE7

In astrology, an aspect is an angle the planets make to each other in the horoscope, also to the ascendant, midheaven, descendant, lower midheaven, and other points of astrological interest. The following symbols are used to note aspect:[41]

Name	Image	Text	Unicode	Angle	Ratio	Explanation
Conjunction		☌	U+260C	0°	-	Two or more planets in the same house (zodiacal sign). A circle with a line implying two objects are aligned (or, the starting point of an angle)
Vigintile	V	V	U+0056	18°	20	Also known as semidecile.
	SD	SD	U+0053 U+0044
Semisextile		⚺	U+26BA	30°	12	One sign apart The intersecting lines from the inner angles of the upper half of a hexagon (see Sextile). Also known as dodecile.
Undecile	U	U	U+0055	32.73°	11
Decile	D	D	U+0044	36°	10
		⊥	U+22A5
Novile	N	N	U+004E	40°	9	Also known as nonile.
Semi-square		∠	U+2220	45°	8	Half the angle of Square. Also known as semiquartile and octile. The symbol was originally an 'L' shape (half a square), now commonly an acute angle, though not actually drawn as a 45° angle.
Septile	S	S	U+0053	51.43°	7
Sextile		⚹	U+26B9	60°	6	Two signs apart The intersecting lines from the inner angles of a hexagon
Quintile	Q	Q	U+0051	72°	5
		⬠	U+2B20
Binovile	N2	N2	U+004E U+00B2	80°	9/2	Also known as binonile.
Square		□	U+25A1	90°	4	Three signs apart / Same modality A regular quadrilateral that represents the right angle. Also known as quartile.
Biseptile	S2	S2	U+0053 U+00B2	102.86°	7/2
Tredecile	D3	D3	U+0044 U+00B3	108°	10/3	Also known as tridecile.
		∓	U+2213
Trine		△	U+25B3	120°	3	Four signs apart / Same elemental triplicity An equilateral triangle. Also known as trinovile.
Sesquiquadrate		⚼	U+26BC	135°	8/3	The glyph of the Semi-Square under the glyph of the Square, implying the sum of them both. Also known as the sesquisquare, square-and-a-half, and trioctile.
Biquintile	Q2	Q2	U+0051 U+00B2	144°	5/2
	bQ	bQ	U+0062 U+0051
		±	U+00B1
Quincunx		⚻	U+26BB	150°	12/5	Five signs apart The intersecting lines from the inner angles of the lower half of a hexagon (see Sextile). Also known as the inconjunct.
Triseptile	S3	S3	U+0053 U+00B3	154.29°	7/3	Also known as tridecile.
Quadranovile	N4	N4	U+004E U+2074	160°	9/4	Also known as quadnovile and quadranonile.
Opposition		☍	U+260D	180°	2	Six signs apart The glyph of the Conjunction plus a circle on top of its line, implying two objects are opposed.
Occultation		🝵	U+1F775	0°		Conjunction with eclipse. Solar eclipse when the Sun and Moon are in conjunction. Less commonly used for the Moon eclipsing any of the planets, as opposed to a mere conjunction.
Lunar eclipse		🝶	U+1F776	180°		Opposition with eclipse, or (rarely) any body in the shadow of the other. Lunar eclipse when the Sun and Moon are in opposition.

Russian aspects

In addition to the aspect symbols above, some Russian astrologers use additional or unique aspect symbols:[42][41]

Name	Image	Text	Unicode	Angle
Vigintile		⯳	U+2BF3	18°
Novile		⯴	U+2BF4	40°
Quintile		⯵	U+2BF5	72°
Binovile		⯶	U+2BF6	80°
Centile (Sentagon)		⯷	U+2BF7	100°
Tredecile		⯸	U+2BF8	108°