Grand Central Terminal Zodiac Ceiling
Photo By: Kidist P. Asrat
December, 2012
I posted this image under my post Most Ancient Galaxy, where I discuss the lack of awe that modern scientists have for the grandness of our universe.
The Grand Central mural dates back to 1912, and was designed by architect Whitney Warren and artist Paul César Helleu [1]. After a restoration in the 1930s because of falling plaster, the mural began to disappear under a film of tar and nicotine from tobacco smoke. Finally, it was restored in 2010 after a twelve-year restoration project.
The sky is reversed in this mural, and the stars are displaced. One explanation is that the design, which is based on a medieval manuscript, would be the vision of God viewing the constellation from outside the celestial sphere. And the stars may have shifted because of the procession of the equinoxes. According to this 1913 New York Times article [2]:
Aquarius, the Water Carrier, should have been allotted the spot on the ceiling occupied by Pegasus; and Cancer, the Crab, is where Orion, the Hunter, ought to be.-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reference:
2. A Constellation Reversed: Grand Central Ceiling Has the Ceiling Turned About.
New York Times, March 23, 1913, p.10
http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9505EFD8133BE633A25750C2A9659C946296D6CF
2. The New York Preservation Project: Grand Central Terminal. 2010
http://www.nypap.org/content/grand-central-terminal
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Posted By: Kidist P. Asrat