Obscure Constellation
Apart from a few double stars,
There’s little of interest.
Rarely figures
In discussions of seasonal signs.
Looking nothing more
Than like a traditional
Old coat hanger.
Residing in a relatively empty
Area of the sky.
Invented by the Dutch astronomer Petrus Plancius,
But gained its prominence
Through a book by Adalai Stevenson.
Recognized as an altar, pyramid-temple,
Ship, eagle, emu, serpent and even
The Southern Cross.
Unless you were born under the sign,
It’s likely you have not
Spent much time there.
The freezing nights passed in a small
University observatory
Doing photometry
Of a dim heavy nova.
Back to Collection