Melete is asteroid #56, of the unusual type P and of the main region of the Asteroid Main Belt. Melete was discovered, from his balcony in Paris, by the German-French astronomer Hermann Mayer Salomon Goldschmidt, who lived from 1802 until 1866 and discovered fourteen asteroids, that are all named now. Among them also asteroid #44 or Nysa. Melete was originally confused with Daphne, that is asteroid #41, due to incorrect calculation of Daphne’s orbit. This was only corrected when Daphne got rediscovered in 1871, while Melete was discovered in 1857.

Melete is named after the muse Melete (Μελέτη) from Greek mythology. Muses have no own tales. The Olympic Muses have a description of their appearance, but the earlier muses lack even this. Melete is a muse as well as a titan. Melete is the muse of practice, of thought, and of meditation. Her name means ponder or contemplation. This is already everything, which can be said for sure about the muse Melete.

Melete is besides the Olympic Muses the only muse, who is an astrological force. This could make her more important, but other muses are still able to catch up. Contemplation and practice are the means to develop every skill. So Melete isn’t like other muses responsible for any certain field or subject, but shows the way and willingness to develop skills. Because not more is known about Melete, so this is also the only way to interpret Melete in astrological charts until more is known on asteroid astrology. That Melete was confused with Daphne could be relevant, but doesn’t need to be because it had no consequences.