Research
Whole Sign Houses and Exact Angles Are Different Layers
Why Stelliums uses Whole Sign Houses for topical places while still preserving the exact Ascendant and Midheaven.
Using Whole Sign Houses does not require discarding exact astronomical angles. In Stelliums, the zodiacal sign containing the Ascendant establishes the first Whole Sign house, while the exact Ascendant longitude remains a calculated angle. The exact Midheaven is also preserved even when it falls outside the tenth Whole Sign house.
Topical structure versus exact degree
The Whole Sign house sequence answers which zodiacal sign constitutes each topical place. The exact Ascendant and Midheaven answer different astronomical questions. Treating these as separate layers prevents the house system from erasing angle data.
Why this matters in software
A chart database should preserve the underlying longitudes even when the user interface emphasizes Whole Sign houses. This allows future governed techniques to use exact angles without forcing a migration away from the Hellenistic house framework.
Sources
2Firmicus Maternus, Mathesis
Firmicus Maternus · Mathesis · Ascendants and topical places
Open sourceVettius Valens, Anthologies
Vettius Valens · Anthologies · Places and angular structure
Open sourceMethod note
Stelliums separates cited historical or scholarly material, computational rules, and interpretation. A published article does not silently change calculation logic; engine and rules changes remain independently versioned.