What is a pyxis?
A pyxis (πυξίς, plural pyxides) is a shape of vessel from the classical world, usually a cylindrical box with a separate lid.
How did the Athenian pyxis get its name?
The name derived from Corinthian boxes made of wood from the tree puksos ( boxwood ), that also came with covers. The shape of the vessel can be traced in pottery back to the Protogeometric period in Athens, however the Athenian pyxis has various shapes itself. At first, the two varieties of pyxis included the pointed and...
What does the constellation Pyxis represent?
It represents a mariner’s compass. Pyxis was one of the constellations created by the French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in the 18th century. Lacaille named the constellation Pyxis Nautica, but the name was later simplified to Pyxis.
How did Pyxis Nautica get its name?
Lacaille named the constellation Pyxis Nautica, but the name was later simplified to Pyxis. Pyxis lies near the former constellation Argo Navis, which represented the Argonauts’ ship, but was eventually broken into several smaller constellations.
What are ancient Greek pots called?
The best-known type of Ancient Greek vase is the storage or transport vessel called the amphora, though other types include the pithos, pelike, hydria, and pyxis.
When was pyxis made?
950–75. This exquisitely carved cylindrical box is believed to be one of the most accomplished works of a master from the palace of the Umayyad caliph 'Abd al-Rahman III (r. 912–61), who ruled most of the Iberian peninsula.
What are the two types of Greek pottery?
There are four main types of Greek pottery: Geometric, Corinthian, Athenian Black-figure, and Athenian red-figure pottery.
Is pyxis a constellation?
Pyxis is a small and faint constellation in the southern sky. Abbreviated from Pyxis Nautica, its name is Latin for a mariner's compass (contrasting with Circinus, which represents a draftsman's compasses).
What is on the ivory pyxis?
The Pyxis of al-Mughira is decorated with four eight-lobed medallions which are surrounded by figures and animals that include falconers, wrestlers, griffons, peacocks, birds, goats and animals to be hunted.
Why are Greek vases black and orange?
The bright colours and deep blacks of Attic red- and black-figure vases were achieved through a process in which the atmosphere inside the kiln went through a cycle of oxidizing, reducing, and reoxidizing. During the oxidizing phase, the ferric oxide inside the Attic clay achieves a bright red-to-orange colour.
What is the most famous Greek vase?
the aryballos vaseCorinth was particularly famous for the aryballos vase, a small vessel used to hold essential oil or perfume. One of the most exquisite examples is the so-called Macmillan aryballos.
What were Grecian urns used for?
Grecian urns were pieces of art that were useful as well as beautiful. Urns were very common in ancient Greece as they were used to store food, water, and wine in. Urns also held things like cosmetics, perfumes, and spices, or were used to transport things in. Any old pot would serve these functions.
History
Pyxis is positioned just south of the star Alphard in the constellation Hydra midway between Virgo and Cancer. Although it is completely visible from latitudes south of 53 degrees north, its best evening-sky visibility is during February and March in the southern hemisphere.
Characteristics
Covering 220.8 square degrees and hence 0.535% of the sky, Pyxis ranks 65th of the 88 modern constellations by area. Its position in the Southern Celestial Hemisphere means that the whole constellation is visible to observers south of 52°N. It is most visible in the evening sky in February and March.
Features
Lacaille gave Bayer designations to ten stars now named Alpha to Lambda Pyxidis, skipping the Greek letters iota and kappa. Although a nautical element, the constellation was not an integral part of the old Argo Navis and hence did not share in the original Bayer designations of that constellation, which were split between Carina, Vela and Puppis.
Facts, location and map
Pyxis is the 65th constellation in size, occupying an area of 221 square degrees. It is located in the second quadrant of the southern hemisphere (SQ2) and can be seen at latitudes between +50° and -90°. The neighboring constellations are Antlia, Hydra, Puppis and Vela.
Story
The constellation Pyxis was created by the French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in 1751-52 during his exploration of the southern skies. He named the constellation la Boussole and later Latinized the name to Pixis Nautica. The constellation appeared under this name in the second edition of Lacaille’s chart in 1763.
Pyxis stars
Alpha Pyxidis is a giant star of the spectral type B1.5III. It has an apparent magnitude of 3.67 and is approximately 880 light years distant. The star is classified as a Beta Cephei variable, which means that variations in its brightness are a result of pulsations of the star’s surface.
Deep sky objects in Pyxis
NGC 2818 is a planetary nebula in Pyxis, created when a star in its final stages ejected its outer layers, which now appear as glowing gases. The remnant of the central star’s core remains as a white dwarf.
