- MINTAKA (Delta Orionis). Orion is defined by his great belt, three bright second magnitude stars in a row that the ancient Arabs called “the string of pearls,” which is the meaning of the name of the middle star, Alnilam. The two flanking stars, eastern Alnitak and western Mintaka, both come from Arabic phrases that mean “the belt of the Central One,” the Central One the Arabic personification of our Orion, a woman lost to history.
- Sheratan (stars.astro.illinois.edu)
SHERATAN (Beta Arietis). The most prominent part of Aries, the Ram, historically the “first” constellation of the Zodiac (as it held the Vernal Equinox in ancient times), is a thin flat triangle of stars that Bayer lettered (from east to west) Alpha (Hamal), Beta (our Sheratan), and Gamma (Mesarthim).