One of the few first magnitude stars in the sky, the bright red Aldebaran?, sits in the middle of this constellation. Behind it lie the Hyades, the nearest distinct open cluster, that with it form a V in the sky marking the bull's head. The horns stretch off to the west, marked by Elnath (Beta Tauri, traditionally shared with Auriga) and Zeta Tauri. In the east of the constellation lies one of the best known open clusters, easily visible to the eye, the Pleiades?. Another well-known telescopic object is the [Crab Nebula]?, a dim supernova remnant just northeast of Zeta.
In some cosmologies, Taurus is associated with the classical element Earth, and thus called an Earth Sign (with Virgo and Capricorn). Its polar opposite is Scorpio.