A Case Example from Ludwig Rudolph

Astrologer Ludwig Rudolph of the Hamburg School, in his 1957 Lexicon of Planetary Pictures, mentioned the chart of a young woman who suffered a lethal accident while a friend gave her a ride on his motor scooter. Unfortunately, the scooter ran off the road into a wall. Her friend, the driver, was seriously injured but the woman in question died instantly, having suffered a skull fracture. The birth data of the woman were given as: 24 February 1939, 4:15 AM CET, Rellingen, Deutschland. Here is the chart:

Birth chart of woman who died suddenly of a skull fracture in a motor scooter accident on November 3, 1957. She was 18.7 years old at the time of her demise.

Can we see the possibility of a fatal travel accident in “natal promise” of the birth chart?

The Ascendant in Pisces makes Jupiter the ruler of the Ascendant and thus the signifier of her body and her life. Jupiter in Pisces in the 2nd closely square Mars in Sagittarius in the 12th, an unfortunate house associated with misfortune and undoing. Mars is the contrary-to-sect malefic in this chart and is a symbol of force, speed, injuries and accidents. Mars also rules the cusp of the Placidus 3rd house of local travel, which contains Saturn in its fall in Aries so that the fallen Saturn in the 3rd is disposed by Mars in the 12th, which in turn squares the 1st-ruler Jupiter. Mars also rules the cusp of the Placidus 11th of friends, one of whom was driving the scooter involved in the accident. In addition, Uranus (sudden disruptive events) occupies the 4th of conditions at the end of life and closely squares the cusp of the Placidus 8th of death. Furthermore, the Sun (ruler of the 8th of death and occupant of the 3rd of local travel) lies at the midpoint of the Ascendant (body, life force) and Uranus (sudden disruptive events), which occupies the 4th of conditions at the end of life. The potential for a serious travel accident is clearly indicated in the birth chart.

Next let’s look at the Wynn Key Return for the date of the accident: November 3, 1957. The Wynn Key Return shows the transiting planets at the time of the event but calculates the angles of the chart based on a Wynn’s method of progressing the MC of the annual solar return in effect for the period.

Wynn Key Return for the date and place of the fatal motor scooter accident.

Superimposing the Wynn Key Return around the natal chart, we see the following:

Wynn Key Return superimposed around the birth chart.

Things that stand out in the Wynn Key Return are:

Transiting Venus, ruler of the natal 4th of the end of life, conjunct the natal Ascendant.

Transiting Saturn conjunct the natal 12th cusp and natal Mars in the 12th and closely square natal Asc-ruler Jupiter.

Transiting Sun conjunct transiting North Lunar Node, and both conjunct the natal North Lunar Node.

Transiting MC conjunct natal Uranus in the 4th house.

Transiting Mars in the natal 9th square the transiting Vertex in the natal 1st.

Transiting Uranus (sudden unexpected events) conjunct the natal Vertex and the natal Placidus 8th house cusp of death.

She was 18.7 years old at the time of the accident. At this age her profected Ascendant (one sign per year method) is Gemini, making Mercury the Lord of the year. Gemini rules her Placidus 6th and 7th houses. Mercury also rules Virgo, which is intercepted in the 8th of death, making Mercury a co-ruler of the 8th. Let’s look at her solar return superimposed on her natal chart.

1957 Solar Return at birthplace superimposed on birth chart.

In the solar return chart for 1957, Gemini occupies the cusp of the 12th house of misfortune and undoing. The Lord of the year, natal 8th ruler and return 12th ruler Mercury, lies at 15 Aquarius in close square to Mars in the return and Uranus in the 4th house of the birth chart.

There is much to learn by studying these classic charts from the literature of astrology. The data for this chart was obtained from a YouTube video posted by My Astro World, and I am grateful for their making this information available.