Sceptrum et Manus Iustitiae
Encyclopedia
Sceptrum et Manus Iustitiae (Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 for scepter and hand of justice) was a constellation
Constellation
In modern astronomy, a constellation is an internationally defined area of the celestial sphere. These areas are grouped around asterisms, patterns formed by prominent stars within apparent proximity to one another on Earth's night sky....

 created by Augustin Royer
Augustin Royer
Augustin Royer was a French architect who lived in the time of Louis XIV.In 1679 he published a star map; in addition to the 48 constellations of Ptolemy, and the additions of more recent astronomers such as Plancius, he added two constellations of his own, in honour of his patron, Louis XIV;...

 in 1679 to honor king Louis XIV
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...

 of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. It was formed from stars of what is today the constellations Lacerta
Lacerta
Lacerta is one of the 88 modern constellations defined by the International Astronomical Union. Its name is Latin for lizard. A small, faint constellation, it was created in 1687 by the astronomer Johannes Hevelius. Its brightest stars form a "W" shape similar to that of Cassiopeia, and it is thus...

 and western Andromeda
Andromeda (constellation)
Andromeda is a constellation in the northern sky. It is named after Andromeda, the princess in the Greek legend of Perseus who was chained to a rock to be eaten by the sea monster Cetus...

.
Due to the awkward name the constellation was modified and name changed a couple of times, for example some old star maps show Sceptrum Imperiale, Stellio and Scettro, while Johannes Hevelius
Johannes Hevelius
Johannes Hevelius Some sources refer to Hevelius as Polish:Some sources refer to Hevelius as German:*Encyplopedia Britannica * of the Royal Society was a councilor and mayor of Danzig , Pomeranian Voivodeship, in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth...

'es star map divides the area between the new Lacerta and as a chain end fettering Andromeda. The connection with the later constellation Frederici Honores
Frederici Honores
Frederici Honores or Honores Friderici or Gloria Frederica was a constellation created by Johann Bode in 1787 to honor Frederick the Great, the king of Prussia who had died in the previous year. It was located in a region between the constellations Cepheus, Andromeda, Cassiopeia and Cygnus...

, that occupied the chain end of Andromeda, is unclear, except that both represent a regal spire attributed to varying regents.
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