Cassiopeia (mother of Andromeda) facts for kids
Cassiopeia (Ancient Greek: Κασσιόπεια) or Cassiepeia (Κασσιέπεια), a figure in Greek mythology, was Queen of Aethiopia and wife of King Cepheus. She was arrogant and vain, characteristics that led to her downfall. Her name in Greek is Κασσιόπη, Kassiópē; other variants are Κασσιόπεια, Kassiópeia and Κασσιέπεια, Kassiépeia.
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Family
Some sources describe Cassiopeia as the daughter of Coronus and Zeuxo but Nonnus calls her a nymph. While according to Stephanus, she was called Iope, the daughter of Aeolus, from whom the town of Joppa (now the Jaffa neighborhood in Tel Aviv) derived its name.
Mythology
Cassiopeia boasted that she and her daughter Andromeda were more beautiful than all the Nereids, the nymph-daughters of the sea god Nereus. This brought the wrath of Poseidon, ruling god of the sea, upon the kingdom of Ethiopia.
Accounts differ as to whether Poseidon decided to flood the whole country or direct the sea monster Cetus to destroy it. In either case, trying to save their kingdom, Cepheus and Cassiopeia consulted a wise oracle, who told them that the only way to appease the sea gods was to sacrifice their daughter.
Accordingly, Andromeda was chained to a rock at the sea's edge and left to be killed by the sea monster. Perseus arrives to kill Cetus, saves Andromeda and marries her.
Poseidon thought Cassiopeia should not escape punishment, so he placed her in the heavens chained to a throne in a position that referenced Andromeda's ordeal. The constellation resembles the chair that originally represented an instrument of torture. Cassiopeia is not always represented tied to the chair in torment, in some later drawings she holds a mirror, symbol of her vanity, while in others she holds a palm frond.
Constellation
The constellation Cassiopeia, near to the pole star, can be seen from latitudes north of 35°N during the whole year. The constellation is also visible in countries north of the Tropic of Capricorn, in late spring.
Ethiopian tradition
Some Ethiopian king lists mention Cassiopeia as a ruling queen of Ethiopia. According to a king list presented by prince Tafari Makonnen, she ruled as part of the Agdazyan dynasty and reigned for 19 years from 1890 to 1871 BC, with dates following the Ethiopian calendar.
