Ephemeris of Selected Astrological Data by Nostradamus
(written no later than 1557)
The dates Nostradamus used were in the Julian calendar, before the world had converted to the Gregorian calendar which we use today. There is approximately two weeks difference between them.
His data is in red. Contained within parentheses are the modern digital-computer-calculated astrological data (Solar Fire) for comparison to demonstrate his accuracy. Both are dated in the same Old Style Julian calendar.
Calculations are plus or minus one day or degree due to rounding – e.g. 22.5° Aquarius = 23°, January 1 at 11 pm is only a few hours away from January 2 at 2 am.
…having computed and calculated the present prophecies, all according to the order of the signs of the Zodiac which contains the Ecliptic, all by Astronomical doctrine modified by my psychic abilities. After a while, I found the year when:
Retrograde periods and signs of the zodiac:
Saturn will go retrograde April 7 and go direct August 25 in Capricorn (April 7, August 26 Capricorn)
Jupiter retrograde June 14 and go direct October 7 in Aquarius (June 12, October 9 Aquarius)
Mars April 17, direct June 22 in Scorpio (April 11, direct June 23 Scorpio)
Venus April 9, direct May 22 in Pisces (April 10, May 23 Pisces)
Mercury retrograde February 3, direct February 24 (Retrograde January 29, direct February 20)
retrograde June 1, direct June 24 (May 30, direct June 23)
retrograde September 25, direct October 16 (September 26, direct October 16).
For the first day of the same year, he specified in which zodiacal sign the Moon would be found. For the first month, he listed the signs that Mercury would move through. These are the fastest astrological “planets”, like the second hand on the clock’s face, used to make his dating more specific.
Moon in Aquarius (January 1: 20° Aquarius)
Mercury for one month in Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces (January 1: 28° Capricorn, January 3: 1° Aquarius, January 31: 3° Pisces)
Then he wrote about a few aspects which also occurred during the first month of this undisclosed year:
… the Dragon’s head in Libra: its tail in opposition, following a conjunction of Jupiter to Mercury, with Mars square Mercury
(January 6: North Node at 4° Libra, trine Jupiter exactly conjunct Mercury at 6° Aquarius square Mars at 7° Scorpio)
…and the head of the Dragon will mean, with a conjunction of the Sun to Jupiter, a peaceful year here without a visible eclipse.
(January 20: North Node 2° Libra – a sign of peace, trine the Sun conjunct Jupiter at 10° Aquarius – lucky)
As you can see, he was not exactly correct (if Solar Fire’s calculations are), but only off a day or two in a few of these very difficult calculations.
[Leoni, pgs 339-341:41]