The Zodiac Man
The Zodiac Man, or melothesia: each sign’s part of the body from Aries at the head to Pisces at the feet, with the decans and their rulers. A historical map, not medical advice.
The Zodiac Man, or melothesia, is the old picture of the body ruled sign by sign, from Aries at the head to Pisces at the feet. It appears in Manilius’s Astronomica in the first century and in medieval almanacs and books of hours, where physicians used it when timing treatment. This plate shows the traditional correspondences as history. It is not medical advice.
How to read the wheel
The twelve signs run counter-clockwise from Aries at the left, as every wheel on this site does, coloured by element. Inside them sit the thirty-six decans, ten degrees each, with the planet the Chaldean order gives each one, and each sign’s traditional ruler. Lines run from each sign to the part of the body it was said to govern.
The order is simple to remember: the signs walk down the body. Aries takes the head, Taurus the neck and throat, Gemini the shoulders and arms, and so on to Pisces at the feet.
Where it comes from
Manilius set out the correspondence in the second book of his Astronomica, and it became the standard scheme of medieval astrology. Medieval almanacs printed the figure, often called Homo signorum, so a physician could see which part of the body the Moon was passing through on a given day.
What the plate does not claim
It is a historical map of a tradition and makes no medical claim. For anything about your health, see a qualified clinician.
Related
Common questions
Why does Aries rule the head?
Because the scheme lays the zodiac along the body in order, beginning at the top. Aries, the first sign, takes the head, and Pisces, the last, takes the feet.
What are the decans?
Each sign is divided into three parts of ten degrees, the decans or faces. In the Chaldean scheme shown here each face is given a planet in a fixed repeating order, beginning with Mars in the first face of Aries.
Is this medical astrology advice?
No. The plate shows what old physicians believed, as history. It is not guidance about any treatment.
