Ptolemy, Claudius (100-178 C.E.)
Ptolemy, Claudius (100-178 C.E.)
Greek scholar and the father of Western astrology. Ptolemy lived in the Greek community of Alexandria, Egypt, then one of the major centers of learning in the Mediterranean basin. He is most remembered as the author of Mathematiké Syntaxis.
In Mathematiké Syntaxis (also known as the Almegest, ) Ptolemy synthesized current knowledge of the solar system. His earth-centered astronomy was accepted for centuries until finally overthrown by the solar-centered view of Copernicus (1473-1543).
From his earth-centered astronomy Ptolemy derived his perspective on astrology (the two disciplines not then so rigidly separated as they are today). In the Tetrabiblos, he organized the astrological knowledge then available into a unified system and tied it to a set of ethical principles that stress the proper function of astrology and the ways in which it can be properly used. Although his system has been modified in a number of ways in modern astrology, its basic structure remains.
Sources:
Brau, Jean-Louis, Helen Weaver, and Allan Edwards, eds. Larousse Encyclopedia of Astrology. New York: New American Library, 1982.
Holden, James H., and Robert A. Hughes. Astrological Pioneers of America. Tempe, Ariz.: American Federation of Astrologers, 1988.
Lewis, James R. The Astrology Encyclopedia. Detroit: Gale Research, 1994.