royal star

Noun

royal star (plural royal stars)

1. One of a set of four first-magnitude stars, Aldebaran, Regulus, Antares and Fomalhaut, regarded by ancient Persians as the guardians of the sky.
   • At the earlier period the Summer solstice was in the centre of Leo, the Autumnal equinox in the centre of Scorpio, and the Winter solstice in the centre of Aquarius - corresponding roughly, Mr. Maunder points out, to the positions of the four "Royal Stars," Aldebaran, Regulus, Antares and Fomalhaut.1920, Edward Carpenter, Pagan and Christian Creeds, New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., published 1921, page 41
   • These constellations each contained first-magnitude stars (Aldebaran, Regulus, Antares and Fomalhaut), which were close to the cardinal points and became known as the Royal Stars in later Persia. [...] The four royal stars may be symbolised in Persepolis, in a vast bas-relief of a king slaying a...1998, John H. Roger, “Origins of the ancient constellations: I. The Mesopotamian traditions”, in Journal of the British Astronomy Association, volume 108, number 1, page 24, column 2