the-astrology-book

Broken Signs (Mutilated Signs; Imperfect Signs)
BROKEN SIGNS (MUTILATED SIGNS; IMPERFECT SIGNS)
The archaic term “broken signs” (also called mutilated signs or, in more recent works,
imperfect signs) refers to certain signs that, when on the ascendant and afflicted, are
said to result in a twisted body or twisted limbs. The broken signs are variously listed,
usually including Leo and Pisces, sometimes Scorpio or Virgo, and occasionally Capricorn
and Cancer. Modern astrologers have abandoned this classification. Almost any
severely afflicted planet in any sign when placed in the first house (the house of the
physical body) could result in physical difficulties. The antonym term is whole sign
(perfect sign).
BROUGHTON, LUKE DENNIS
Luke Dennis Broughton, a leader in the astrology revival of the late nineteenth century,
was born on April 20, 1828, in Leeds, England. At a time when astrology was
unpopular, his family continued to practice it. This custom originated with his grandfather,
a doctor who used Nicolas Culpepper’s herbal compendium (Culpepper’s English
Physician and Herbal Remedies, originally published in 1652), which correlated astrological
signs with medicinal herbs. Luke Broughton’s father, also a physician, followed
in his father’s footsteps, and Luke, in turn, followed his father. Mark Broughton,
Luke’s older brother, headed an astrological society in Leeds and published an
almanac as well as an ephemeris (a table indicating planetary positions). After arriving
in America, Mark Broughton initiated an astrological periodical, Broughton’s
Monthly Horoscope.
Luke Broughton married at age 24 and moved to the United States two years
later. He intended to follow his family’s medical occupation. Settling in Philadelphia,
he worked as a weaver and later as a laboratory technician while as a student at Eclectic
Medical College. (Eclecticism was a school of medicine based on such natural
remedies as Culpepper’s herbs.) After his brother’s magazine ceased publication in
1860, Luke initiated Broughton’s Planet Reader and Astrological Journal, which was published
until 1869.
Antiastrology laws were passed in Philadelphia not long after Luke Broughton
began his journal. It is not known whether these laws were prompted, in whole or in
part, by Broughton’s public astrology activity. In 1863, he moved his medical office to
New York City, where he continued to practice astrology. After the Civil War,
Broughton began renting a lecture hall and speaking regularly on astrology. Experiencing
marked success in his lectures, he opened an office devoted completely to
astrology and began dividing his time between medicine and the science of the stars.
Broughton also trained astrologers, and most of the important astrologers of the early
twentieth century were his students. He also distributed British astrological literature,
including the technical works necessary for erecting astrological charts. He wrote
Remarks on Astrology and Astromedical Botany (1880) as well as several texts, including
Planetary Influence (1893) and The Elements of Astrology (1898).
As evidenced by the antiastrology laws adopted in Philadelphia, the astrological
revival brought controversy in its wake, and Broughton situated himself in the
[98] THE ASTROLOGY BOOK