distances astronomical information from ancient times contained in hundreds of detailed texts lists celestial bodies neatly arranged by their celestial order or by the gods or the months or the lands or the constellations with which they were associated one such text analyzed by Ernst F Widener has come to be called the great star list it listed in five columns tens of celestial bodies as related to one another to month's countries and deities another text listed correctly the main stars and the zodiacal constellations a text indexed