spica

Latin · noun
Edited by: Kierán Meinhardt
Last edited: 2025-02-24
Meanings
Literal translation
ear of corn
Categories
star
Related Lemmata 3 ›

1. the Ear of Corn

1.a the Ear of Corn star

modern α Virginis

In Virginis signo parte X. oritur Spica.

‘At 10° of the sign of Virgo rises Spica.’

— Firmicus Maternus, Mathesis 8.11.3

Genre: astrological compendium Provenance: Sicily Date: ca. 334 CE

Firmicus Maternus. 1897. Ivlii Firmici Materni Matheseos Libri VIII, ed. W. Kroll, F. Skutsch. Stuttgart: B. G. Teubner. 2.305

In parte VIII. Virginis quicumque habuerint horoscopum, id est in ipsa Spica, erunt religiosi iusti

‘Whoever has the ascendant at 8° Virgo, i.e. exactly on Spica, will be religious and just’

— Firmicus Maternus, Mathesis 8.24.4

Genre: astrological compendium Provenance: Sicily Date: ca. 334 CE

Firmicus Maternus. 1897. Ivlii Firmici Materni Matheseos Libri VIII, ed. W. Kroll, F. Skutsch. Stuttgart: B. G. Teubner. 2.330

Cite this entry
APA (7th)
Meinhardt, K. (2025). spica (Lemma #1480). The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/1480/
Chicago (Author-Date)
Meinhardt, K. (2025). spica (Lemma #1480). The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/1480/
MLA (9th)
Meinhardt, K. (2025). spica (Lemma #1480). The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/1480/
Harvard
Meinhardt, K. (2025) spica (Lemma #1480), The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. Available at: https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/1480/ (Accessed: July 4, 2026).
BibTeX 
@misc{zodiac1480,
	note = {[Online; accessed 2026-07-04]},
	author = {Meinhardt, Kierán},
	year = {2025},
	title = {spica ({Lemma} #1480)},
	url = {https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/1480/},
	howpublished = {https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/1480/},
}