Auriga (constellation) Auriga stood for a goat-herd or shepherd. It was formed from most of the stars of the modern constellation; all of the bright stars were included except for Elnath, traditionally assigned to both Taurus and Auriga. Later, Bedouin astronomers created constellations that were groups of animals, where each star represented one animal. The stars of Auriga comprised a herd of goats, an association also present in Greek mythology. The association with goats carried into the Greek astronomical tradition, though it later became associated with a charioteer along with the shepherd. In Greek mythology, Auriga is often identified as the mythological
Porphyrius the Charioteer his history, is collected from these statues. They are described in detail by a selection of epigrams from the Greek anthology, and by The Chronicle of John Malalas. Although his precise age is not known, Porphyrius was described as a mature youth, as a youngish man, and as a youth with the first down on his cheeks. Porphyrius was unique in that, at a young age, he was not only victorious in his many races, but he was the youngest charioteer to have a monument built honoring him. Traditionally a charioteer would have a statue built after his retirement (usually