Copa
Cup (Crateris)
Crater, the Cup, is a faint constellation representing a two-handled goblet, sitting on the back of Hydra, the water snake. This ancient constellation was one of the 48 listed by Ptolemy but contains no bright stars. It lies south of Leo and Virgo in a relatively sparse region of the sky.
📜 Mitología
Crater represents the cup carried by Apollo's crow (Corvus). When Apollo sent the crow to fetch water, the lazy bird waited by a fig tree for the fruit to ripen. It returned with excuses and a water snake (Hydra), but Apollo punished all three by placing them in the sky. The crow stands on Hydra's back, eternally unable to drink from the cup that sits tantalizingly close. Some versions identify the cup as a wine goblet sacred to Dionysus or the cup of Demeter.
💡 Datos curiosos
- ✦Crater contains no Messier objects and few notable deep-sky targets
- ✦The name 'Labrum' means 'lip' in Latin, referring to the cup's rim
- ✦Crater is one of the 48 ancient constellations listed by Ptolemy in the 2nd century CE