by Jude Cowell
Actually, there are multiple mysteries associated with Edgar Allan Poe. His tragic and untimely death at age 40 is but one. His is an unsolved cold case but we can consider astrological influences of his life and death so let's do that.
Poe: Inventor of Detective Fiction, Father of American Mystery Writers
Born on January 19, 1809 in Boston, there are various birth times proposed for author, poet, editor, and critic Edgar Allan Poe but below you see Poe's natal horoscope using the Starkman-rectified time of 2:52:54 LMT with 25Sco24 rising.
And yes, Scorpio does seem to be an appropriate Ascendant considering Poe's obsessive interests in writing tales of mystery, murder, crime, and gothic horror, along with the sign's Mars-Pluto association, a planetary pair which can contain a streak of violence if the conditions are right and the characters are so inclined - with force being an operative feature of the pair's powerful arsenal. Plus, the Scorpio connection with death and other 8th house matters mustn't be overlooked.
Poe natal (inner); Poe Death (outer):
First, let's direct our attention to a few factors such as wounding/wounded Chiron in Scorpio conjunct natal Ascendant (physical body). Voting planet Mercury @8Scorpio conjuncts his natal North Node (a karmic indicator; a meeting) while Mercury to natal Uranus suggests dealing with larger societal issues such as elections but with a quirky or unusual flavor to communications.
Also significant is the victim-savior axis of Virgo-Pisces and Poe's quadruple line-up in Pisces (9-17 degrees) opposed by transit Venus and Jupiter, both money planets. Chart-ruler Venus exactly opposes Poe's natal Venus which suggests a time of hostile disagreements and differing perspectives. And transit Jupiter opposing his Pluto more than hints at manipulation and a contest of wills by powerful, wealthy entities - perhaps including the politicians they enable.
Meanwhile, transit Neptune, planet of deception, subversion, and drunkenness conjuncts the separative South Node suggesting intrigue and loss within the Collective at that time. Additionally, Poe's natal Uranus-North-Node conjunction in 12th house denotes a connection with politics and/or radical reactionaries, plus, the 12th house of Secret Deals lends itself easily to politics. Then we can look toward his natal 8th cusp for Moon and Mars which snug around it at the time of his death, and indicate quarrels and angry emotional outbursts. Was a fiance somehow connected to his ending? Some sources have mentioned his fiance's mother who disapprved of Mr. Poe as her daughter's intended. Or so I've read. This may be only a rumor.
A Difficult Life of Loss and Grief
Now you're likely aware that E.A. Poe's life had been full of deaths - starting early on for he became an orphan at age 2. And fatal diseases such as tuberculosis were rampant in the 19th century, as we know. In fact, TB took away his wife Virginia on January 30, 1847.
As for Solar and Lunar Eclipses prior to his death, a Total 14 North Solar Eclipse on August 18, 1849 @25Leo06:13 is very telling. 14N themes include confusion, delusion, unexpected financial happenings, unrequited love, despair, a draining of energy - and a "peculiar turn of events" (B. Brady). Then on September 2, 1849, a Lunar Eclipse @10Pis04 landed directly upon Poe's natal Moon with physical implications - and across his natal MC-IC axis in his rectified chart (a clue that its timing may be accurate).
In addition, Edgar Allan Poe was born under the auspices of a 9 New North Solar Eclipse @25Sco38:21 - conjunct his Ascendant (was the eclipse a timer for rectification? More factors must connect as well) - with themes of sudden physical events and accidents, even violence (B. Brady). Its conjunction with (the speculative) natal Ascendant suggests potentials for discord in relationships and possibly physical congenital defects - and the 9NN caution to keep an eye out for safety is seriously undermined by overindulgence with alcoholic beverages - to dull the pain of his grievous losses, no doubt.
Edgar Allan Poe died at 5:00 am LMT in a Baltimore hospital on October 7, 1849 after being found in the street on October 3, 1849 - wearing another man's clothes. This lends a clue to the couping theory since victimized voters changed outfits so that they could vote multiple times in sneaky fashion. Then were elections being held in Baltimore, MD in 1849? Oh yes: on October 3rd, the day he was found in the street.
Yet we should mention that as an outspoken literary critic, making enemies could occur. In fact, a professional rival named Griswold held a grudge against Edgar and proceeded to damage Poe's reputation for years after his death. But the name that Poe cried out on the night before he died was "Reynolds," yet no person by that name has ever been discovered. Not so far, anyway. Perhaps a search in the politics of the era would dredge up a suspect.
And so in closing, R.I.P. Mr. Poe is definitely in order.
However, if you wish for more information, a handy Wiki bio page is available here, and the Biography channel provides a 43-minute documentary, Tragic Life of Edgar Allan Poe which may interest you.
Now in case you're wondering, the reason this post is published to Stars Over Washington is that Poe's mysterious death could likely relate to the practice of couping as noted above, a tactic used to capture and force a voter to cast multiple ballots for a certain candidate; injury, even murder, of the victim often followed.
And within the tragic mystery of Edgar Allan Poe, I believe it did.
