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The Story of the Scales
The Story of the Scales
(This is the roman version, where most stories so far have been the Greek version, so there might be differences )
During the Golden Age, Astraea, the goddess of justice. lived as an immortal on Earth. This was a time when crops grew all year without needing to be farmed, when there was no disease, when people didn’t wage war, and when they didn’t age. But people grew greedy, they began to fight among themselves, and the year was divided into four seasons. Appalled at the injustices she saw, Astraea became a hermit in the hills. But the behavior of people only worsened and so Astraea abandoned humankind altogether, flying up into the heavens to become the constellation Virgo, with her scales as Libra.
Fun Facts!
Libra’s star Zubeneschamali is the only star that we can spot with our eyes that shines with a greenish light
In ancient Rome, the libra, which means “scales” , was the unit of measurement for one pound in weight (329 grams). It was abbreviated as “lb” and that is the abbreviation still used today when we refer to a pound in weight.
The scales as a symbol of justice also existed in ancient Egyptian mythology. After a person died, it was believed that they passed to the Underworld, where Anubis, the jackal-headed god, weighed their hearts. If the weight was the same as a feather, the person was pure, but if the heart weighed more or less than a feather, then the person was impure and their heart was eaten.
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