The Fixed Stars

Sulafat

Sulaphat, Gamma Lyrae

The tortoise, from the Arabic as-sulahfah. It stands at about 22° Capricorn (tropical).

The tortoise shell that became the first lyre, still humming at the frame's base.

Sulafat remembers the oldest story in this constellation, the tortoise shell that the infant Hermes strung with gut to make the first lyre, later given to Apollo and then to Orpheus. The name keeps the instrument's humble origin in view at the figure's base. The star itself carries little traditional astrological lore.

The name lore is genuine; no astrological delineation attaches to the star itself.