English Naturalist John Hill Introduced 15 Constellations in 1754

Summary: Eighteenth-century English naturalist John Hill named 15 constellations in his 1754 astronomy dictionary, Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens.

Sir John Hill, ca. 1750-1759 mezzotint by Richard Houston (1721?-1775), after an India ink and wash drawing made from life in 1757 by Francis Cotes (1726-1770) and acquired by the British Museum in 1890: Public Domain Mark, via Wellcome Collection

Eighteenth-century English naturalist John Hill introduced 15 self-invented constellations in his astronomy dictionary, entitled Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens and published in 1754.

Hill discerned his constellatory discoveries in both the southern and northern celestial hemispheres. He assigned nine to southern skies and six to northern spaces.

Gryphites the Shellfish, Hirudo the Leech, Lumbricus the Earthworm, Manis the Pangolin, or Scaly Anteater, Patella the Limpet and Uranoscopus the Star-Gazer Fish constitute the six constellations designated as occupants of the northern celestial hemisphere. Leechy Hirudo inhabits the northern celestial hemisphere's first quadrant (NQ1). Vermicular Lumbricus and upward-visioned Uranoscopus reside in the second quadrant (NQ2). Clingingly limpetic Patella occurs in the third quadrant (NQ3). Molluscan Gryphites and pangolinic Manis populate the fourth quadrant (NQ4).

Hill's northern constellations nestle near established constellations that are accoladed with membership in the 88 constellations modernly approved by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Gryphites finds definition near Hercules the Hero and shelters among a plethora of neighbors, including Aquila the Eagle, Lyra the Lyre, Sagitta the Arrow and Serpens Cauda the Snake. Hirudo borrows stars from Orion the Hunter and claims Taurus the Bull as near neighbor. Lumbricus rests among Cancer the Crab, Canis Minor the Lesser Dog and Gemini the Twins. Manis populates space between Cepheus the King and Lacerta the Lizard. Patella poses near the shoulder of Ophiuchus the Serpent Bearer. Uranoscopus neighbors with Auriga the Charioteer, Gemini the Twins and Lynx the Cat.

The nine constellations assigned to the southern celestial hemisphere comprise Anguilla the Eel, Aranea the Spider, Bufo the Toad, Dentalium the Tooth Shell, Hippocampus the Sea Horse, Limax the Slug, Pinna Marina the Mussel, Scarabaeus the Rhinoceros Beetle and Testudo the Tortoise. Maritimely equine Hippocampus, sluggish Limax and chelonian Testudo dwell in the southern celestial hemisphere's first quadrant (SQ1). Spidery Aranea, toady Bufo and beetling Scarabaeus spread across the third quadrant (SQ3). Eely Anguilla, tusky Dentalium and Pinna Marina congregate in the fourth quadrant (SQ4).

Hill's southern constellatory inventions settle near today's familiar constellations. Anguilla slides among Aquila the Eagle, Capricorn the Sea Goat, Delphinus the Dolphin, Equuleus the Pony and Sagittarius the Archer. Aranea may weave a web among Corvus the Crow, Hydra the Sea Serpent and Virgo the Maiden. Bufo balances among Centaurus the Centaur, Hydra the Sea Serpent, Libra the Scales, Lupus the Wolf, Scorpius the Scorpion. Dentalium borrows stars from the shoulder of Aquarius the Water Bearer and also neighbors with Aquila the Eagle, Capricornus the Sea Goat and Delphinus the Dolphin. Hippocampus floats between Eridanus the Celestial River and Taurus the Bull. Limax snails among Eridanus the River, Lepus the Hare and Orion the Hunter. Pinna Marina harbors between Aquila the Eagle and Scutum the Shield. Scarabaeus settles among Libra the Balance, Ophiuchus the Serpent Bearer and Scorpius the Scorpion. Testudo approaches Aquarius the Water Bearer, Cetus the Whale and Pisces the Fishes.

Hill epitheted all 15 constellatory inventions identically. "A conſtellation offered to the aſtronomical world" initiated each constellation's description.

All 15 constellations have languished as extinct, forgotten and obsolete discoveries. Perhaps their creator humorously, rather than seriously, shared them, suggest English constellation history biographer Ian Ridpath (born May 1, 1947) and Obliquity's Harper and Stockman.

John Hill was baptized Nov. 17, 1714 O.S. (Old Style, Julian; Nov. 28, 1714, New Style, Gregorian), according to research by Hampshire County's Deputy Chief Archivist R. (Rosemary) C. Dunhill, as reported by J.R. (Jack Rodney) Laundon in "The date of birth of Sir John Hill (1714-1775)," published in the April 1981 issue of The Society for the History of Natural History's (SHNH) Archives of Natural History. Hill (1714-Nov. 21, 1775) is credited with a prolific authorship of 76 publications and of eight attributed works by British barrister George Fisher Russell Barker (Oct. 30, 1848-Jan. 7, 1927) in his profile of Hill for Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900.

image of John Hill, after 1757 portrait by English portrait painter and pastellist Francis Cotes (May 20, 1726-July 19, 1770), engraved by Giovanni Vendramini (1769-Feb. 8, 1839); T.G. Hill, "John Hill 1716-1775," Makers of British Botany (1913), Plate X, opposite page 84: Not in copyright, via Biodiversity Heritage Library

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Sir John Hill, ca. 1750-1759 mezzotint by Richard Houston (1721?-1775), after an India ink and wash drawing made from life in 1757 by Francis Cotes (1726-1770) and acquired by the British Museum in 1890: Public Domain Mark, via Wellcome Collection @ https://wellcomecollection.org/works/zbkv7zbn/images?id=ufu5sgx3; Public Domain Mark, via Wellcome Collection @ https://wellcomecollection.org/works/zbkv7zbn

image of John Hill, after 1757 portrait by English portrait painter and pastellist Francis Cotes (May 20, 1726-July 19, 1770), engraved by Giovanni Vendramini (1769-Feb. 8, 1839); T.G. Hill, "John Hill 1716-1775," Makers of British Botany (1913), Plate X, opposite page 84: Not in copyright, via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/1073690

For further information:

Barker, George Fisher Russell. "Hill, John (1716?-1775)." Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, vol. 26: 397-401.
Available via Wikisource @ https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Dictionary_of_National_Biography,_1885-1900/Hill,_John_(1716%3F-1775)

Fisher, Mark. "Celestial Quadrant." Glyph Web Sites > eSky: The Electronic Sky > Concepts > C.
Available via eSky @ https://www.glyphweb.com/esky/concepts/celestialquadrant.html

Fisher, Mark. "Celestial Quadrant NQ1." Glyph Web Sites > eSky: The Electronic Sky > Concepts > C.
Available via eSky @ https://www.glyphweb.com/esky/concepts/quadrant-nq1.html

Fisher, Mark. "Celestial Quadrant NQ2." Glyph Web Sites > eSky: The Electronic Sky > Concepts > C.
Available via eSky @ https://www.glyphweb.com/esky/concepts/quadrant-nq2.html

Fisher, Mark. "Celestial Quadrant NQ3." Glyph Web Sites > eSky: The Electronic Sky > Concepts > C.
Available via eSky @ https://www.glyphweb.com/esky/concepts/quadrant-nq3.html

Fisher, Mark. "Celestial Quadrant NQ4." Glyph Web Sites > eSky: The Electronic Sky > Concepts > C.
Available via eSky @ https://www.glyphweb.com/esky/concepts/quadrant-nq4.html

Hill, John. "Anguilla, the Eel." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n31/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Aranea." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n46/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Bufo." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n88/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Dentalium." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n185/mode/1up

Hill, John. Exotic Botany Illustrated, in Thirty-Five Figures of Elegant Chinese and American Shrubs and Plants, Many of Them New, Explaining the Sexual System; and Tending to Give Some New Lights Into the Vegetable Philosophy. Second edition. London: Printed for the Author, M.DCC.LXXII [1772].
Available via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/53026313

Hill, John. "Gryphites." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n224/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Hippocampus." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n240/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Hirudo." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n241/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Limax." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n293/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Lumbricus." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n302/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Manis." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n310/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Patella." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n414/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Pinna Marina." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n432/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Scarabaeus." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n519/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Testudo." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/27/mode/1up

Hill, John. "Uranoscopus." Urania, or, A Compleat View of the Heavens, Containing the Antient and Modern Astronomy, in Form of a Dictionary. London: T. Gardner, M.DCC.LIV [1754].
Available via Google Books @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/lzigAAAAMAAJ?hl=en
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_lzigAAAAMAAJ/page/n612/mode/1up

Hill, T.G. "John Hill 1716-1775." Pages 84-107. In: F.W. (Francis Wall) Oliver, ed., Makers of British Botany; A Collection of Biographies by Living Botanists. Cambridge [UK]: University Press, 1913.
Available via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/1073689

Laundon, J.R. (Jack Rodney). "The date of birth of Sir John Hill (1714-1775)." Archives of Natural History, vol. 10 (April 1981): 65-66.
Available via Edinburgh University Press (EUP) @ https://www.euppublishing.com/doi/10.3366/anh.1981.10.1.65

Oliver, F.W. (Francis Wall), ed. Makers of British Botany; A Collection of Biographies by Living Botanists. Cambridge [UK]: University Press, 1913.
Available via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/1073430

Ridpath, Ian. "Chapter Four: Obsolete Constellations." Star Tales.
Available @ http://www.ianridpath.com/startales/startales4.html

Stoppa, Felice. "John Hill: Urania: A Compleat View of the Heavens; containing the Ancient and Modern Astronomy, in form of a Dictionary, London 1754." Atlas Coelestis.
Available @ http://www.atlascoelestis.com/Hill.htm

Woodruff, Lorande Loss. "The Versatile Sir John Hill, M.D." The American Naturalist, vol. LX [60], no. 670 (September-October 1926): 417-442.
Available via The University of Chicago Press Journals @ https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/toc/an/1926/60/670
Available via The University of Chicago Press Journals @ https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/pdf/10.1086/280114