Sheep god of fertility). Other deities occasionally shown with ram features include the goddess Ishtar, the Phoenician god Baal-Hamon, and the Babylonian god Ea-Oannes. In Madagascar, sheep were not eaten as they were believed to be incarnations of the souls of ancestors. There are many ancient Greek references to sheep: that of Chrysomallos, the golden-fleeced ram, continuing to be told through into the modern era. Astrologically, Aries, the ram, is the first sign of the classical Greek zodiac, and the sheep is the eighth of the twelve animals associated with the 12-year cycle of in the Chinese zodiac, related to the
Zodiac Man Zodiac Man Sometimes depicted in writings and drawings from ancient classical, medieval and modern times, the Zodiac Man (Homo Sigorum, or 'Man of Signs') represents a roughly consistent correlation of zodiacal names with body parts. The Zodiac Man appeared most frequently in calendars, devotional Books of Hours and treatises on philosophy, astrology and medicine in the Medieval era. Before the emergence of scientific empiricism in the 17th century, medieval physicians looked to the skies for guidance. Having observed that the overhead moon brought high tides, they theorised the dangers of letting blood from a body part whose Zodiacal sign was