A theatre of spectacular astronomical phenomena, the heavenly vault fired the imagination of the ancients, who peopled the heavens with mythical figures, heroes, giants, monsters and fabulous beasts. The vault of heaven borne by Atlas on his back, the sun's daily journey through the sky, Phaëton's fall to Earth and the vitality of Mithras in his multiple guises are only a small part of the enormous legacy of beliefs, ranging from the dawn of Greek civilisation to Imperial Rome, that have come down to us via the Greek and Latin authors.