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Studies in the History of Natural Sciences  2021, Vol. 40 Issue (1): 19-36    DOI:
ARTICLES     
A Newly Discovered Set of Twelve Constellations of the China Zodiac
CHEN Jiujin1, WANG Rongbin2
1. Institute for the History of Natural Sciences, CAS, Beijing 100190, China;
2. Central Committee of China Democratic League, Beijing 100006, China
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Abstract  In ancient China, since there was the concept and classification of the so called twelve constellations of the Chinese zodiac, there should be corresponding maps of them. However, scholars have never previously found such maps. The author of this paper stumbled upon a manuscript, named Xingjing tianwen tushuo (星经天文图说, Illustrated Explanations of the Stars and Routes of the Heavens), in the library of the Institute for the History of Natural Science, CAS. Included in it is a set of the constellations of the Chinese zodiac, as well as the constellations of the North Pole and the South Pole. The latter part of the text concerns the astrology of the 3 Enclosures and 28 Lunar Lodges system. This paper introduces the manuscript, and argues that its author should be Luo Xiu. The first draft of the manuscript was completed in about 1875. Luo Xiu was probably from the western Hanzhong region of Shaanxi, and lived during the Tongzhi and Guangxu periods. Judging from the general nature of the astronomical maps in the manuscript, it was probably made based on catalogues dating to the early Qing Dynasty. The evolution of the Chinese zodiac, and the relationship between them and the 28 Lunar Lodges system are also discussed.

Key words： Twelve Constellations of the Chinese Zodiac      the manuscript      Xingjing tianwen tushuo (星经天文图说, Illustrated Explanations of the Stars and Routes of the Heavens)     
Received: 15 November 2019      Published: 27 January 2022
ZTFLH:  N092  
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CHEN Jiujin
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CHEN Jiujin, WANG Rongbin. A Newly Discovered Set of Twelve Constellations of the China Zodiac. Studies in the History of Natural Sciences, 2021, 40(1): 19-36.

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http://www.shns.ac.cn/     OR     http://www.shns.ac.cn/Y2021/V40/I1/19

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