Photo taken from Center of Women's Studies and Policies
Art created by Mark Tomczak, from "Cool Chicks from History"
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Very little is known about Aglaonike (200 BCE?). However, historians consider her to be one of the earliest woman astronomers. In ancient Greece, she was mostly known for her ability to predict eclipses. She knew the periods of the full moon and the cycles of the eclipses, but she faced doubt and rejection because she was a woman.
Attaining this knowledge meant that she had the power to control people through their fear of the unknown. She was thought to “draw down the moon”, meaning she knew how to correctly predict lunar eclipses. Contemporary authors often label her as a “witch” because of these powers and this convention dates back to ancient Greece.. Female astrologers were often regarded as witches at that time. Aglaonike is mentioned in Pluto, Apollonius of Rhodes and Plutarch. Pluto described her as a sorceress. Apollonius believed that she may be the daughter of Hegetor of Thessaly. Plutarch referenced her as a sorceress who inspired a Greek proverb: “Yes as the moon obeys Aglaonice”. However, Plutarch also made an example out of her with the "warning women of the time of her deceiving kind.". He tells women in his writing that studying philosophy and astronomy is a way to avoid foolish nonsense and he laughs at the idea of the moon disappearing at will. |