The constellation of the "Northern Crown" is easily recognizable on a spring evening, sandwiched as it is between Bootes and Hercules. It is an ancient constellation said to represent the crown given by Theseus to Ariadne after his defeat of the half man – half bull creature, the Minotaur. Theseus later deserted Ariadne, and she threw away the crown, only to have the gods place the emblem in the sky. It has been used as a pastoral sign, as the Greeks under the scholar Eratosthenes connected it with the laurel wreath.