Former constellations

Former constellations are old historical Western constellations that for various reasons are no longer widely recognised or are not officially recognised by the International Astronomical Union. Prior to 1930, many of these defunct constellations were traditional in one or more countries or cultures. Some only lasted decades but others were referred to over many centuries. All are now recognised only for having classical or historical value. Many former constellations had complex Latinised names after objects, people, or mythological or zoological creatures. Others with unwieldy names were shortened for convenience. For example, Scutum Sobiescianum was reduced to Scutum, Mons Mensae to Mensa, and Apparatus Sculptoris to Sculptor.
Some of the Northern Sky's former constellations were placed in the less populated regions between the traditional brighter constellations just to fill gaps. In the Southern Sky, new constellations were often created from about the 15th century by voyagers who began journeying south of the Equator. European countries like England, France, the Netherlands, German or Italian states, etc., often supported and popularised their own constellation outlines. In some cases, different constellations occupied overlapping areas and included the same stars. These former constellations are often found in older books, star charts, or star catalogues.
The 88 modern constellation names and boundaries were standardised by Eugene Delporte for the IAU in 1930, under an international agreement, removing any possible astronomical ambiguities between astronomers from different countries. Nearly all former or defunct constellations differ in their designated boundaries inasmuch as they have outlines that do not follow the exact lines of right ascension and declination.

Noteworthy former constellations

Argo Navis

Argo Navis is the only constellation from Ptolemy's original list of 48 constellations that is no longer officially recognized. Due to its large size, it was split into three constellations by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille: Carina, Puppis, and Vela. The new constellations were introduced in the 1763 star catalog Coelum Australe Stelliferum, which was published soon after de Lacaille's death.

Quadrans Muralis

Quadrans Muralis was originally created in 1795, placed in the northern skies between the still-accepted constellations Boötes and Draco. The Quadrantids meteor shower is named after this former constellation.

Remnant nomenclature

53 Eridani A is named Sceptrum from the former constellation Sceptrum Brandenburgicum.

Following this precedent, the IAU Working Group on Star Names has named other stars after former constellations:

HD 85951 is named Felis from the former constellation Felis.
θ Aquilae A is named Antinous from the former constellation Antinous.
58 Hydrae is named Solitaire from the former constellation Turdus Solitarius.
44 Boötis A is named Quadrans from the former constellation Quadrans Muralis.
7 Andromedae is named Honores from the former constellation Honores Friderici.
102 Herculis is named Ramus from the former constellation Ramus Pomifer.
ι Trianguli Aa is named Triminus from the former constellation Triangulum Minus.
49 Cassiopeiae A and 2 Ursae Minoris are named Rangifer and Tarandus, from the former constellation Rangifer, also called Tarandus.
BE Camelopardalis is named Custos from the former constellation Custos Messium.

List of former constellations

The following table is compiled from historical and modern astronomical reference works, drawing especially on Richard Hinckley ''Allen’s Star-Names and Their Lore and Meaning, Ian Ridpath’s Star Tales, and later scholarly studies, including John C. Barentine’s The Lost Constellations.''

Name	Genitive	Meaning	Date created	Created by	Notable stars	Position	Depiction
Anguilla	Anguillae	Eel	1754	John Hill	ε Equulei, ε, κ Delphini, 66 Aquilae, υ Sagittarii, α, δ, ε Scuti	between Equuleus, Delphinus, Aquila and Serpens	-
Anser Americanus	Anseris Americani	American Goose	1870s		List	Where Tucana is now	-
Antinous	Antinoi	Antinous		Emperor Hadrian	δ, η, θ, ι, κ, λ and ν Aquilae	Southern Aquila
Apes	Apium	Bees	1612	Petrus Plancius	33, 35 Arietis, Lilli Borea and Bharani	between Perseus and Aries	-
Apis	Apis	Bee	1598	Petrus Plancius	List	where Musca is now
Aranea	Araneae	Long-Legged Spider	1754	John Hill	53, 55, 57, 61, 63, 68, 69, 75, 83, 87, y Virginis and HD 120544	between Virgo and Corvus	-
Argo Navis	Argus Navis	The Ship Argo		Claudius Ptolemy	List	where Carina, Puppis and Vela reside now
Asselli and Praesepe	Assellorum, Praesepis	Dionysus's Asses and Manger		Aratus	Asellus Borealis and Asellus Australis	middle part of Cancer	-
Asterion and Chara	Asterii, Charae	Northern and Southern Dogs in Canes Venatici	1690	Johannes Hevelius.	Cor Caroli and β Canum Venaticorum	where Canes Venatici is now	-
Battery of Volta		Battery	1807	Thomas Young	1 and 9 Pegasi	between Delphinus and Pegasus
Bufo	Bufonis	Toad	1754	John Hill	58 Hydrae, Sigma Librae	tail of Hydra
Cancer Minor	Cancri Minoris	Lesser Crab	1613	Petrus Plancius	68, 74, 81, 85 Geminorum and HIP 36616	south-western Gemini
Capra and Haedi	Caprae, Haedorum	Goat Amalthea and the Kids		Aratus	ζ and η Aurigae	eastern Auriga	-
Caesaris Thronus	Caesaris Throni	Throne of Caesar	44 BC	Augustus Caesar		North of Cancer	-
Cerberus	Cerberi	Cerberus	1690	Johannes Hevelius	93, 95, 102 ‍and ‍109 Herculis	eastern Hercules
Cor Caroli Regis Martyris	Cordis Caroli	Charles's Heart	1673	Charles Scarborough	Cor Caroli	central Canes Venatici	-
Corona Firmiana	Coronae Firmianae	Corona Borealis renamed to honor Count Leopold Anton von Firmian	1730	Corbinianus Thomas	List	where Corona Borealis is now
Custos Messium	Custodis Messium	Keeper of harvests	1775	Jérôme Lalande	23, 47, 49, 50 Cassiopeiae, γ, CS Camelopardalis	between Cassiopeia and Camelopardalis
Deltoton	Deltoti	Delta	1540	Petrus Apianus	Mothallah, β and γ Trianguli	Triangulum	-
Dentalium	Dentalii	Tooth Shell	1754	John Hill	69, 71 Aquilae, 4, 11, 12, 15, 16 and 21 Aquarii	between Aquila and Aquarius
Duae Alae	Duarum Alarum	Two Wings	1532	Petrus Apianus		Between Cygnus and Draco	-
Felis	Felis	Cat	1799	Jérôme Lalande	G, I Hydrae, Felis, HD 82573 and HD 78702	southern Hydra
Frederici Honores	Frederici Honorum	Frederick's Honors	1787	Johann Elert Bode	ι, κ, λ, ο, and ψ Andromedae	Northeastern Andromeda
Gallus	Galli	Rooster	1613	Petrus Plancius	η [Canis Majoris], τ Canis Majoris, and HD 56342	Northern Puppis
Gladii Electorales Saxonici	Gladiorum Electoralium Saxonicorum	Crossed Swords of the Electorate of Saxony	1684	Gottfried Kirch		Between Boötes, Leo, Scutum, and Virgo
Globus Aerostaticus	Globi Aerostatici	Hot air balloon	1798	Jérôme Lalande
Gryphites	Gryphitis	Gryphaea shellfish	1754	John Hill	-	-	-
Hippocampus	Hippocampi	Sea Horse	1754	John Hill		Between Eridanus, Taurus, and Cetus
Hirudo	Hirudinis	Leech	1754	John Hill		Northern Orion
Jordanus	Jordani	River Jordan	1613	Petrus Plancius
Leo Palatinus	Leonis Palatini	Lion to honor the Elector Palatine Charles Theodore and his wife Elisabeth Auguste	1785	Karl-Joseph König
Lilium	Lilii	Fleur de Lys	1679	Augustin Royer/P. Anthelme
Limax	Limacis	Slug	1754	John Hill
Linum Piscium	Lini Piscium	The line connecting the fish	1590	Thomas Hood
Lochium Funis	Lochii Funis	Log line	1801	Johann Elert Bode
Lumbricus	Lumbrici	Earthworm	1754	John Hill
Machina Electrica	Machinae Electricae	Electricity generator	1800	Johann Elert Bode
Malus	Mali	Mast	1844	John Herschel	List	Where Pyxis is now	-
Manis	Manis	Pangolin	1754	John Hill		Between Andromeda, Lacerta, and Cygnus
Marmor Sculptile	Marmoris Sculptilis	Bust of Columbus	1810	William Croswell
Mons Maenalus	Montis Maenali	Mount Mainalo	1690	Johannes Hevelius		Southern Boötes
Musca Borealis	Muscae Borealis	Northern Fly	1690	Johannes Hevelius
Noctua	Noctuae	Owl	1822	Alexander Jamieson
Norma Nilotica	Normae Niloticae	Nilometer	1822	Alexander Jamieson		Western edge of Aquarius
Nubecula Major and Nubecula Minor	Nubeculae Majoris, Nubeculae Minoris	Magellanic Clouds	1603	Johann Bayer	-	-	-
Officina Typographica	Officinae Typographicae	Printshop	1801	Johann Elert Bode
Patella	Patellae	Limpet	1754	John Hill	-	-	-
Phaethon	Phaethontis	Phaethon		Aratus/Hyginus
Phoenicopterus	Phoenicopteri	Flamingo		Petrus Plancius/Paulus Merula	List	where Grus is now	-
Pinna Marina	Pinnae Marinae	Mussel	1754	John Hill
Piscis Notus	Piscis Noti	Southern Fish		Aratus	List	where Piscis Austrinus is now	-
Plaustrum	Plaustri	Chariot with 3 horses	1524	Petrus Apianus	List	Big Dipper
Pluteum	Plutei	Parapet	1881	Richard Andree	List	where Pictor is now	-
Polophylax	Polophylacis	Guardian of the Pole	1592	Petrus Plancius
Pomum Imperiale	Pomi Imperialis	Leopold's orb	1688	Gottfried Kirch
Psalterium Georgii	Psalterii Georgii	George's Psaltery	1781	Maximilian Hell
Quadrans Muralis	Quadrantis Muralis	Mural Quadrant	1795	Jérôme Lalande
Quadratum	Quadrati	Rhombus	1706	Carel Allard
Quinque Dromedarii	Quinque Dromedariorum	Five Camels	1532	Petrus Apianus	β, γ, μ, ν and ξ Draconis	Southern Draco	-
Ramus Pomifer	Rami Pomiferi	Apple-bearing Branch	1690	Johannes Hevelius
Robur Carolinum	Roboris Carolini	Charles' Oak	1679	Edmund Halley
Rosa	Rosae	Rose	1536	Petrus Apianus
Sagitta Australis	Sagittae Australis	Southern Arrow	1613	Petrus Plancius
Scarabaeus	Scarabaei	Rhinoceros Beetle	1754	John Hill
Sceptrum Brandenburgicum	Sceptri Brandenburgici	Scepter of Brandenburg	1688	Gottfried Kirch
Sceptrum et Manus Iustitiae	Sceptri et Manus Iustitiae	Scepter and Hand of Justice	1679	Augustin Royer	ι, κ, λ, ο, and ψ Andromedae	Northeastern Andromeda, where Honores Fredirici was
Sciurus Volans	Sciuri Volantis	Flying Squirrel	1810	William Croswell
Sextans Uraniae	Sextantis Uraniae	Urania's Sextant	1690	Johannes Hevelius
Siren, Ceneus and Lang		Siren, Lapith Caeneus and Lang		Unknown/Willem Jansz Blaeu		where Chamaeleon, Musca, Tucana and Triangulum Australe now are
Solarium	Solarii	Sundial	1822	Alexander Jamieson		Replacement for Reticulum
Sudarium Veronicae	Sudarii Veronicae	Sudarium of Veronica	1643	Antoine Marie Schyrle de Rheita	ο Leonis, ρ Leonis, β Sextantis, and ι Hydrae	-	-
Tarabellum and Vexillum	Tarabelli, Vexilli	Drill and flag-like Standard		Michael Scot		Between Leo, and Virgo	-
Tarandus or Rangifer	Tarandi, Rangiferi	Reindeer	1736	Pierre Charles Lemonnier		Between Cassiopeia, and Camelopardalis	-
Taurus Poniatovii	Tauri Poniatovii	Poniatowski's Bull	1777	Marcin Poczobut	-	-	-
Telescopium Herschelii	Telescopii Herschelii	Herschel's Telescope	1781	Maximilian Hell	-	-	-
Turris Eiffel	Turris	Eiffel Tower	1922	Ezequiel de Moraes Leme	η Centauri, κ Centauri, β Lupi, δ Lupi, and ε Lupi,	Between Centaurus and Lupus	-
Testudo	Testudinis	Tortoise	1754	John Hill	13 Ceti, 14 Ceti, 20 Ceti, 42 Ceti, 27 Piscium, and 29 Piscium	Between Cetus and Pisces	-
Tigris	Tigridis	Tigris River	1613	Petrus Plancius	-	-	-
Triangulum Majus	Trianguli Majoris	Large Triangle	1690	Johannes Hevelius	List	where Triangulum is now	-
Triangulum Minus	Trianguli Minoris	Small Triangle	1690	Johannes Hevelius	-	-	-
Triangulus Antarcticus	Trianguli Antarctici	Obsolete name for Triangulum Australe	1589	Petrus Plancius	-	-	-
Tubus Herschelii Minor	Tubi Herschelii Minoris	Herschel's Reflector	1781	Maximilian Hell	-	-	-
Turdus Solitarius	Turdi Solitarii	Solitary Thrush. Named in honor of the Rodrigues solitaire, an extinct flightless bird related to the dodo.	1776	Pierre Charles Lemonnier	-	-	-
Uranoscopus	Uranoscopi	Star-Gazer fish	1754	John Hill	-	-	-
Urna	Urnae	Urn of Aquarius	1596	Zacharias Bornmann	-	-	-
Vespa	Vespae	Wasp	1624	Jakob Bartsch	-	-	-
Xiphias	Xiphiae	Swordfish	1627	Johannes Kepler	List	Where Dorado is now	-
Triangula, Triangulum, Catuli, Corona, Corolla, Piscis, Camelus, Vulpes, Equus, Delphin, Ursa Minor, Canis, Felis, Leaena and Cervus	Triangulae, Trianguli, Catulorum, Coronae, Corollae, Piscis, Cameli, Vulpis, Equi, Delphinis, Ursae Minoris, Canis, Felis, Leaenae, Cervi	Obsolete names for Triangulum Boreale, Triangulum Australe, Canes Venatici, Corona Borealis, Corona Australis, Piscis Australis, Cameleopardalis, Vulpecula et Anser, Equuleus, Delphinus, Ursa Major, Ursa Minor, Canis Major, Canis Minor, Leo Minor and Monoceros	1873	Richard Proctor	-	-	-