MINOAN EXACT SCIENCE: SACRAL ASTRONOMY
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Not only Minoan architecture and arts but also Crete-related myths and rites bear astronomical information
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Evidence for Minoan Astronomical Observations from the
We report the results of investigations made by the archaeoastronomical group at Uppsala University of the peak sanctuaries on Petsophas and Traostalos, in eastern Crete. The results indicate that the Minoans were conducting systematic observations of the sun, the moon and the stars-particularly Arcturus-at the two sites early in the Middle Minoan Period. We propose that there were practical as well as religious reasons for the Minoan interest in the motions of the heavenly bodies: for example the knowledge acquired from the observations contributed to navigation and made possible the regulation of a ritual lunisolar calendar. We supplement our earlier proposal of a Minoan goddess associated with the moon, with the suggestion of a god associated with the star later known as Arcturus. Foundation, the Axel & Margaret Ax:son Johnson Foundation, the Magn. Bergvall Foundation and the Helge Ax:son Johnson Foundation. We are also grateful to the Greek Archaeological Service and the British School at Athens for permission to study the site of Petsophas. We would like to thank as well C. Davaras, former ephor, and N. Papadakis, present ephor of antiquities at Ayios Nikolaos, J.A. MacGillivray, director of the current excavations at Palaikastro, Robin Hägg, Berit Wells, Bodil Nordström of the Swedish Institute and Maria Hielte of the Norwegian Institute at Athens, all of whom have been helpful in furthering our work. We are especially indebted to Maria Papathanassiou, Department of Mathematics at the University of Athens, and the members of the graduate seminar in Classical Archaeology and Ancient History at Uppsala University for their helpful comments and suggestions. We thank also Lennart Bondes-son, associate professor in mathematical statistics, Uppsala University, who conducted the statistical evaluation of our measurements. We are also grateful to Lars Bägerfeldt and Petter Lindahl for their generous help with the reproduction of our figures. Abbreviations Blomberg & M. Blomberg & G. Henriksson, 'Minos en-Henriksson 1996 neoros. Archaeoastronomical light on the priestly role of the king in Crete', in Religion and power in the ancient Greek world.
Evidence of Minoan astronomy and calendrical practices
Arxiv preprint arXiv:0910.4801, 2009
Archaeoastronomy: New trends in the field,with methods and results from studies in Minoan Crete
Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, 2001
We describe briefly new trends in archaeoastronomy and present results from our studies on Crete to show what this field can contribute to archaeological investigations in the Bronze Age Aegean. Our basic method is the study of orientations, but contemporary Linear A texts, finds from the sites, and later Mycenaean and Greek texts have proved to be important supplementary sources. In broadest terms the results show systematic observation of the heavenly bodies from the end of the early Minoan period (ca. 2000 BCE) and the use of the knowledge obtained to regulate a lunisolar calendar and to navigate.
At the Table of Zeus: Examining the Possibility of Astronomical Alignments in Minoan Habitation Sites
In studying the convoluted orbits of the stars my feet do not touch the earth, and seated at the table of Zeus himself, I am nurtured with celestial ambrosia." -Ptolemy (Aveni 1997: 193)
Minoan 'Horns of Consecration' Revisited: A Symbol of Sun Worship In Palatial and Post-Palatial Crete
In this article a previously proposed interpretation of Minoan 'horns of consecration' as a symbol of sun is reexamined. A clay model of 'horns of consecration' from the peak sanctuary of Petsophas, the results of astronomical research on Minoan peak sanctuaries, the idols of the so-called 'Goddess with Upraised Arms" and a clay model of 'horns of consecration' from the Mycenaean cemetery of Tanagra are put forward as evidence for a possible adoption -or a parallel development under the influence of adjacent cultures -by the Minoans (and by the Mycenaeans, at least after 1400 B.C.) of religious notions related to the Egyptian symbols of the 'mountain' and the 'horizon', both connected with the Sun in Egyptian cosmology and religion. It is concluded that the 'horns of consecration' may represent a practical device as well as an abstract symbol of the Sun, a symbol of catholic importance, which embraced many aspects of Minoan religious activities as represented on Minoan iconography.
Temples, Stars, and Ritual Landscapes: The Potential for Archaeoastronomy in Ancient Greece
The study of astronomical knowledge and observations in ancient cultures has enabled and enriched archaeological interpretations in contexts as diverse as pre-Columbian America, later prehistoric Europe, Egypt, Babylonia, and the Far East. The application of archaeoastronomy to the study of ancient Greek religion has been less successful and has been hampered by poor practice. Through a case study that investigates the astronomy in Alcman’s Partheneion and its possible relationship with the Artemis Orthia rites carried out at her sanctuary in Sparta, we aim to show that a robust and methodologically sound archaeoastronomical approach can contribute to a better understanding of the role of astronomy in Greek religious practice and perceptions of the cosmos.
The roles of observational astronomy in ancient Greece
2015
This paper offers an investigation into the interface between science, in the form of astronomy, and culture, in the form of religion and the calendar. Early societies made use of a variety of mechanisms to mark time, based on the cycles of the sun, moon and stars, whether separately or in combination. In this paper I provide a survey of the use of one of these cycles, namely that of the stars, in one ancient culture, that of the Greeks. I show how gradually the night sky was mapped out with a number of distinct constellations, the number increasing over time. The Greeks used the first and last visible risings and settings of these stars at dawn and dusk as ‘event markers’, in order to signal the appropriate time for pivotal activities, especially in the agricultural sphere, such as ploughing, sowing and harvesting. At the same time, Greek societies used the moon as the basis for their civil and religious calendar, and within the lunar months were situated regular festivals of an ag...
The Symbolism of the Scorpion in Minoan Religion: A Cosmological Approach on the Basis of Votive Offerings from the Minoan Peak Sanctuary at Ayios Yeoryios sto Vouno, Kythera
METAPHYSIS. Ritual, Myth and Symbolism in the Aegean Bronze Age
EVOLUTION OF ASTRONOMICAL FACILITIES AND PRACTICES IN ANCIENT THRACE
2018
Evolution of megalithic and rock-cut monuments used for astronomical observations and practices in ancient Thrace are presented in this work. Classificaton is made after independent archaeoastronomical research of the rock-cut monuments and cave sanctuaries. The discovery and the accumulation of "in situ" material allow to identify the signs of the formation of a number of their parameters-territorial, chronological, functional. One of the promising areas of research, for example, is to distinguish different rock shrines and megalithic complexes associated with long term astronomical observations and astronomical practices. Another area is the specification of the affiliation of individual objects to synchronously existed settlements and tribal communities. This way, reasons for their appearance, function and place in everyday life of citizens and society in Ancient Thrace can be justified. Here we consider examples of positional astronomical observations, projective systems, and monochrome paintings with calendar records. We present the concept of "dynamic structure of the rock-cut monument", which means that the site is characterized not only with space but also with time parameters as cyclicity and duration of existence connected with various cults and cult practices. The evolution of astronomical facilities and practices is shown by the suggested typology of the rock-cut monuments according to their locality, landscape of the environment, functional astronomical elements, and accuracy.
MINOAN EXACT SCIENCE: SACRAL ASTRONOMY
Iurii Mosenkis
Orientation of buildings
The studies of M. S. Blomberg, G. Henriksson and P. E. Blomberg on the Cretan buildings orientation show that Minoans had high level of astronomical development and recognized solstices and equinoxes. The precise orientation of Minoan buildings to positions of the sun marking the beginning of each solar month implies that the celestial sphere had important symbolic meaning in Minoan traditions and religion.
New palace at Phaistos was oriented to the highest peak of the mountain in the south behind which the bright star Canopus became visible in the southern sky as a result of precession. The heliacal rising of the star was three days before the autumn equinox following its long period of invisibility during the summer months. The orientations to Arcturus at four sites reveal also the Minoan use of this important calendar star for the agricultural year, as it was later used by the Greeks. Double Axe might be Orion-Sirius in the autumnal equinox.
Ceremonial rooms of the palace at Zakros was oriented to moonrise at the major southern standstill.
Reconstructed Minoan calendar was lunisolar and the New Year began at the appearance of the new crescent moon following the autumn equinox
http://minoanastronomy.mikrob.com/ .
Eight-year cycle and Venus cult
The most informative summary of recent ideas about Minoan calendar is presented by Marianna Ridderstad. ‘It is concluded that the Minoan society had religious beliefs and ritual practices, which were closely related to periodical celestial events’
Ridderstad, M. Evidence of Minoan astronomy and calendrical practices, p. 27. .
The evidence of enneoros (literally ‘of nine years’ or ‘of eight years’ in inclusive counting
E. g., inclusive counting is well known in classical Roman calendar. ) of Minos who speaks with Zeus in the sacral cave every nine of eight years
Hom. Od. xix 172-180; Plato, Laws i 624-625. See: Greswell, E., Origines calendariae hellenicae, Oxford, 1862, vol. 4, p. 400-414. may be interpreted in several ways:
a half of 18,61 lunar period which is investigated by Gerald Hawkins in relation to Stonehenge (9 year from the ‘high moon’ to the ‘low moon’ and vice versa)
Cf.: “In the Phrygian, Eleusinian-like mystery cult of Demeter and the moon god Men Askaenos, the initiation rites took place in a temple very much like the Knossian Throne Room… <…> …Minos then would have been the person to play the part of the lunar god in the sacred ceremonies of the sun goddess. <…> There is an arc resembling the moon sickle depicted on the Knossian throne seat…”, Ridderstad, p. 26. ;
8-year period of Venus which was very important as the coordination of the sun’s, the moon’s and Venus motions (8 solar years = 99 lunar months = 5 Venusian periods)
‘The name Pasiphae means ‘the all-shining’, which is an epithet for the moon goddess, which she was (Pausanias, Description of Greece 3:26:1). In one version of the Minotaur myth, Pasiphae was supposed to make offerings to Aphrodite (Hyginus, Fabulae 40), which may reflect her connection to Venus, as both the moon and Venus have an eight-year cycle’, Ridderstad, M. Evidence of Minoan astronomy and calendrical practices, p. 6. and sacralised in Egypt (as possible cause of preserving of Egyptian calendar without intercalations, according to Erich Zeren; cf. heb-sed after 30-years ruling of pharaoh as possible reflection of Saturnian period); cf. also the Sumero-Babylonian myth about the descending of Inanna-Ishtar, i.e. Venus, in the Underworld;
it is the classical Greek octaeteris (‘eight tears period’), i.e. the coincindance of eight solar years and 99 lunar months without calculations of the Venusian periods. The third interpretation is the most popular among the researchers.
The sending of human tribute to Minotaur every nine years
Plutarch, Theseus xv 1. is usually interpreted as the reflection of the same calendrical period.
Apollo as the solar god was also related to eight year cycle
‘Apollo was one of the deities associated with the eight-year cycle. Every eight years in Thebes, a festival of Apollo Ismenius was held, where representations of the sun, moon, and stars were carried in procession’, Ridderstad, M. Evidence of Minoan astronomy and calendrical practices, p. 8, after: Olcott, William Tyler, Sun Lore of All Ages (London, 1914). Available at:
http://www.sacredtexts.com/astro/slaa . The Semele myth was related to a half of the eight-year cycle: ‘Semele had 50 daughters, the Menae, who presided over the 50 lunar months, half of one octaeteris and one Olympiad (Pausanias, Description of Greece 5:1:4). Thus, in the Classical mythology it was the moon that governed the long calendrical cycles’
Ridderstad, M. Evidence of Minoan astronomy and calendrical practices, p. 8. .
Olympic four-year period, or pentaeteris by inclusive counting, might be reflected on the Phaistos Disc as 49 signs of the outer circle of Side A.
According to E. Greswell, ‘as the life of the Mneuis… was limited to 30 years, and that of the Apis to 25, and that of the Ram to 19; so might that of his Minotaur be to eight years’
Greswell, E., Origines calendariae hellenicae, Oxford, 1862, vol. 4, p. 481. .
Clear information about the Minoan lunar cult is the mention about Pasiphae who hides in the statue of cow for her sacral marriage with divine bull: the mention reflects an observation of the full moon (the name of Pasiphae means ‘shining for all’ but may be interpreted as ‘full-shining’) in Taurus.
Aphrodite was worshiped as Aphrodite Ariadne in Amathus
Ridderstad, M. Evidence of Minoan astronomy and calendrical practices, p. 7. . If Ariadne (originally Ari-hagne ‘noble and pure’) is Venus
The Phoenician word adon ‘lord’ might influence the name of Ariadne, cf. the Sumerian name of Venus, Inanna ‘mistress of heaven’. , the marriage of her with Dionysus may be regarded as a conjunction between Venus and Vindemiatrix in Virgo, cf. the idea about Demeter and Persephone as Spica in Virgo and Venus. ‘…The heliacal rising of Spica near the autumn equinox and the conjunctions of Spica with Venus could be Demeter meeting Persephone after her annual visit to the netherworld’
Ridderstad, p. 25. .
According to the myth of Persephone, when the goddess appears, grain can grow again. We known two variants of the myth: Persephone spends in Hades four month or a half of year. Two astronomical fact is mixed in this myth: if the goddess is absent a half of year, she is Spica in Virgo (every zodiacal constellation is visible a half of year in morning and a half of year in evening); if the goddess is absent four months, she is Venus (the planet is visible during eight months as the Morning Star and the same period as the Evening Star). I am sure that the goddess of grain is Demeter (with Spica ‘ear of corn’ in Virgo; cf. Deo, another name of Demeter, from dea, zea ‘barley’), not Persephone. Perhaps, the mixing of Persephone with Demeter might be based on the interpretation of Persephone not only as Venus (which may be observed in Virgo every year) but also as Spica, the part of Virgo = Demeter
The conjunction of Venus with Spica occurred a few days before the autumn equinox in 1700-1600 BC. Minoan octaeteris might be calculated as ‘the period from one conjunction of Venus rising with Spica to another’, Ridderstad, p. 21-22. . Eleusinian epopteia might be a demonstration of the ear of corn
Hyppolytus, Refutatio haereseon, V, 8, 39. which imitated celestial image of rising Spica.
Demeter’s looking for Persephone during nine days like several days of Inanna-Ishtar’s descending in the Underworld reflects the short period of the Venus’ invisibility. The absence of Venus in the sky might be mythically interpreted as the descending of Inanna, Ishtar, Persephone, and influenced the story of Theotokos. The occultations of Spica by Venus might be also observed by the Minoans.
Minoan cult of Venus might be reflected in the feast of Thesmophoria
‘Besides the Eleusinian Mysteries, the other great festival related to Demeter in Classical times was Thesmophoria. Thesmophoria was celebrated about one lunar month after the Eleusinian mysteries, which corresponds to the present September-October. The mention of Hesperos, Venus as the evening star, appearing before Thesmophoria, shows that the start of the festival was originally connected to planet Venus in some way. This may reflect the Minoan observations of Venus rising close to the sun or Spica near an autumnal festival of the great goddess’, Ridderstad, p. 25. .
If Minoan year began at autumnal equinox
Blomberg, Mary, and Henriksson, Goran, "Archaeoastronomy: New trends in the field, with methods and results from studies in Minoan Crete", Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, Vol. 247 (2001) 609-19; Ridderstad, p. 19, 24. , Virgo was the constellation which rises in the morning during the first month of year. So, the Mother of the Beasts (Greek Potnia Theron)
See about the goddess: Al, B. Cretan Religion in Relation to Greek Religion, Mnemosyne, Third Series, Vol. 12, Fasc. 3 (1944), pp. 208-222, surrounded by Leo and modern Leo Minor (ancient Leopard?), might be the main constellation of the Zodiac.
The very important idea of M. Ridderstad is that the torch-bearer Iacchus (which precedes the Eleusinian mysteries of Demeter and Persephone) is Arcturus which rises ten days before Spica in Virgo
Ridderstar, p. 10-11. . Iacchus was regarded as a star: ‘Iacchos, Oh Iacchos, the light-bringing star of our nocturnal rite’
Aristophanes, Frogs, 341-342, transl. Matthew Dillon
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0032%3Acard%3D340 . The Minoan cult of Iacchus-Dionysus, the son of Semele, might be reflected in the Ugaritic epic (eagle-goddess Tsamala = Semele eats Akhit = Iacchus).
‘The cult of Phrygian Attis had a torch-bearer, which means that it also had a procession like the Eleusinian Mysteries. <…> It is therefore likely that in the origin of both the Eleusinian and the Phrygian cult there was an earlier Minoan cult of Demeter and her companion, and that both had preserved some key aspects of the Minoan rituals and symbols’
Ridderstad, p. 26. . Attis might be *Aktis earlier, like Attika was Aktika.
Several Minoan altars (Greek kernoi) were interpreted as lunisolar calendars
Herberger, Charles F., "The Mallia table: kernos or clock?" Archaeoastronomy, Vol. 6 (1983) 114; Hillbom, Niklas, Minoan games and game boards, Ph.D. thesis (Lund, 2005); Ridderstad, p. 14-15. . Minoan clay disc with 1, 15, 24, 38, and 61 holes in five concentric circles might be used as lunisolar calendar for three year and octaeteris
Ridderstad, p. 15-16. , cf. 38 years of the Romulus ruling and 61 fields of the Phaistos Disc; 119 signs on the Disc Side B coincides with the number of the days in four synodic lunar month (29,53*4).
Seven lines of labyrinth might reflect levels of the Venus trajectory, and Ariadne the ‘Lady of Labyrinth’ might be Venus.
Sacral star of Arcturus
Arcturus is the brightest star in the northern hemisphere and the fourth brightest in the night sky after Sirius, Canopus, and Alpha Centauri.
‘At two peak sanctuaries near Zakros, there are walls oriented such that they could have been used to facilitate observations of the heliacal rise and set and also the acronychal rise and cosmical set of the bright star Arcturus ca 1800 BC. … We argue from these results that the Minoans had begun systematic observations of the sun, the moon and the bright star Arcturus by the end of the Early Minoan Period (ca 2000 BC)’
Henriksson, G., Blomberg, M. Possible Minoan Contributions to Greek Astronomy, Joint European and National Astronomical Meeting, JENAM-97. 6th European and 3rd Hellenic Astronomical Conference, held in Thessaloniki, Greece, 2-5 July, 1997, Meeting Abstract, p. 332, online at: http://adsabs.harvard.edu//abs/1997jena.confE.332H See also: Henriksson, G., Blomberg, M. Evidence for Minoan astronomical observations from the peak sanctuaries on Petsophas and Traostalos, Opuscula Atheniensia 21 (1996) 99-114; Blomberg, M., and Henriksson, G. Archaeoastronomy: New trends in the field, with methods and results from studies in Minoan Crete, Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, 2001, Volume 247, Number 3, 609-619; Henriksson, G., and Blomberg, M. The evidence from Knossos on the Minoan calendar, Mediterranean Archaeology and Archaeometry, 2011, vol. 11, No. 1, p. 64 (59–68), online at: http://www.rhodes.aegean.gr/maa_journal/7_Blomberg.pdf .
‘The short axis of the building on Pyrgos is oriented to the heliacal set of Arcturus, one of the four brightest stars and an important calendar star in the Aegean from very early times. This is the third example from a Minoan peak sanctuary of the orientation to Arcturus, the other two being on Petsophas and Traostalos. At the beginning of the Middle Minoan period the heliacal set of the star as seen from Pyrgos would have occurred directly above the prominent peak of Kako Kefali, which thus served as a foresight in the same way that Modi did for the heliacal set of the same star as seen from the peak sanctuary on Traostalos’
Blomberg, M., Henriksson, G. The Minoan peak sanctuary on Pyrgos (Maleviziou), AJA 106 (2002), No 2, p. 302, online at: ftp://ftp.whoi.edu/pub/users/hanu/web_pdf/bal02_ashkelon.pdf.
‘Here on Petsophas the heliacal rising of Arcturus in the years when the sanctuary was in use, took place one moon month before the autumn equinox. This coincidence provided a simple method for regulating a lunisolar calendar that began in connection with the autumn equinox’
Blomberg, M., and Henriksson, G. Archaeoastronomy: New trends in the field, with methods and results from studies in Minoan Crete, Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, 2001, Volume 247, Number 3, 611.
Perhaps, Iacchus (from Egypt. akh ‘star’), standing for a torch-bearer, who led the procession of the Eleusinian mysteries, is the personification of Arcturus (which heliacal rise happened about ten days before the heliacal rise of Spica in autumn)
Ridderstad, Marianna, Evidence of Minoan astronomy and calendrical practices, p. 10-11, online at: http://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/0910/0910.4801.pdf . The Athenian festival Proerosia or Proarctouria before Thesmophoria was dedicated to Arcturus
Boutsikas, E., Astronomy and Ancient Greek cult, 2007, p. 170, online at: https://lra.le.ac.uk/bitstream/2381/7566/1/E.BoutsikasDoctoral%20Thesis.pdf .
The cult of Boötes is tracked in some ancient Greek texts. “Mad Odysseus” yoked a donkey or horse (Ursa Minor) and an ox (Ursa Major)
Two stars of Ursa Major were regarded as oxen (Hyg. Astron. II 2.2). “Aratos [581-585] refers to a lost tradition, in which Boötes drives a wagon drawn by oxen. […] Ἀρκτοφύλαξ was supposed to be the star Arcturus or the constellation Boötes and was used to locate the position of circumpolar stars” (Blomberg, P.E. 2003. The northernmost constellations in early Greek tradition, Calendars, Symbols, and Orientations: Legacies of Astronomy in Culture. Uppsala, p. 70). Compare with the similar fact in Romanian folk astronomy: “Usually, the Chariots <Ursa Major and Ursa Minor> are formed from the four Wheels and the Shaft; but some of the peasants imagine the four Wheels as the Chariot’s body, and the next two stars are the Oxen of the Chariot”; after the Ovid’s time, “the seven stars of Ursa Major were looked on as seven oxen grazing the sky’s fields. Thus, this constellation became Septem Triones for the Romans, and its guardian became the bear-watchman, Bootes”, see: Ottescu, I. Romanian peasants’ beliefs in stars and sky http://sarm.ro/ottescu/Chapter%201.pdf to his plough (Boötes)
Apollod. Epit. 3.7; Proclus in Epicorum Graecorum Fragmenta, ed. G. Kinkel, p. 18; Lucian, De domo 30; Philostratus, Her. xi.2; Tzetzes, Scholiast on Lycophron 818; Cicero, De officiis iii.26.97; Hyginus, Fab. 95; Serv. Verg. A. 2.81; Lactantius Placidus on Statius, Achill. i.93; Scriptores rerum mythicarum Latini, ed. Bode, i. pp. 12, 140ff. (First Vatican Mythographer 35; Second Vatican Mythographer 200).; compare with the Sumero-Babylonian interpretation of the constellation Boötes as a yoke (Sumerian ŠUDUN, Akkadian Nīru)
Куртик Г.Е. Звездное небо древней Месопотамии: Шумеро-аккадские названия созвездий и других светил, СПб.: Алетейя, 2007, с. 495–499. Boötes had been also identified with Mercury in Mesopotamian astronomy (Куртик, с. 497–498), and the Sumerian name of Mercury, GU.UD, may be also compared with Boötes < *Gwootes. . The stars of Greek Boötes were used as the ziqpu-stars in Sumero-Babylonian astronomy. The same stars are mentioned at the beginning of Mesopotamian lists of the ziqpu-stars
Куртик, с. 609. The location of some ziqpu-stars coincides with appearance of another celestial body, which may be invisible during the daytime due to meteorogical circumstances) on the south horizon. .
According to one of the suggestions, Odysseus was born in Boeotia
Istr. Alexandr.: Lycophr. Alexandra 783 and comment.; Plut. Graec. quest. 43. which is a possible homonym for Boötes. According to another one, he was named Οὖτις ‘nobody’ for his ὦτα ‘ears’
Ptol. Hephaest. (cf. Boötes as a possible name for bull’s ear). ‘Demeter, lady of the golden sword’
Hymn. Hom. 2 to Demeter, 4 (descendant of Minoan goddess holding double axe?) is Virgo near sword-shaped Boötes; cf. the Graeco-Roman goddess of Justice (Virgo) with the sword (Boötes) and scales (Libra).
Compare with 1) a mythological hero Χρυσάορος, Χρυσάωρ ‘Golden Sword’, who was born simultaneously with his brother Pegasus, and with 2) the Hindu lunar mansion, Nakshatra (Swati ‘sword = sword-shaped Arcturus’). The name Chrysaor may be interpreted as a name of red or golden (to be more exact, orange-yellow) Arcturus. According to the computer reconstruction of the Minoan sky above Phaistos 1601 BC
StarCalc 5.73 http://starcalc.en.softonic.com , the first morning rise of Square of Pegasus coincides with the first evening rise of Boötes in the second half of February, while the first evening rise of Pegasus does not coincide with the first morning rise of Boötes. Thereby, the motif of simultaneous birth of Pegasus and Chrysaor reflects a calendar ritual of observation of Square of Pegasus and Boötes in February. Probably, both constellations were considered the signs of spring. According to Hesiod, Chrysaor was born with a golden sword in his hand
Hesiod, Aegimius, fr. 295. . Compare Celtic Arthur with his sword as possible personification of sword-shaped Arcturus.
It is well known that the star division of a year is used by Homer (e.g. Sirius as a star of opora ‘later summer’
Iliad v. 5. See the same opinion of Aristotle (Meteorolog. ii. 5) contrasting with his other mention of the Orion’s morning rise as the beginning of the same season (Problem. xxv. 26, xxvi. 14). ) and Hesiod but their works do not contain any system of star seasons.
In Hesiod’s calendar of archaic period the first evening rise of Arcturus was the sign of the beginning of spring
Hesiod, Works and Days, 565–567. ; the first morning rise of the star indicated the period of vintage
Hesiod, Works and Days, 610. .
Here is a hypothetic reconstruction of the Hesiod’s star year:
spring from the evening rise of Arcturus
Op. 564, cf. the Pliny’s spring. ;
summer from the morning rise of the Pleiades
Op. 383, cf. the Hippocrates’ summer. ;
threshing time from the morning rise of the first star in Orion
Op. 595. ;
heat from the morning rise of Sirius
Op. 582. ;
navigation, the end of summer (theros) fifty days after the summer solstice
Op. 663. ;
vintage from the morning rise of Acturus and from culmination of Sirius and Orion
Op. 609. ;
ploughing (arotos) = winter, completion of the navigation season; from the morning set of the Pleiades
Op. 383, cf. Hippocrates’ arotos. , of the Hyades, and of Orion
Op. 615. See: Astronomia, in: A dictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities, ed. by W. Smith, W. Wayte, G. E. Marindin, 1890, http://www.perseus.tufts.edu ; Паннекук, А., История астрономии / Перевод Н.И.Невской, Москва, 1966, с. 105-106. .
According to Hippokrates, a year was divided into four seasons:
spring from the vernal equinox until the rise of the Pleiades,
summer from the Pleiades until the rise of Arcturus,
autumn from the rise of Arcturus until the set of the Pleiades,
winter from the set of the Pleiades to the vernal equinox.
Hippocrates also divided a year into seven seasons:
ear ‘spring’ from the vernal equinox,
theros ‘summer’ from the morning rise of the Pleiades,
opora from the morning rise of Sirius,
metoporon from the morning rise of Arcturus,
arotos from the morning set of the Pleiades,
kheimon ‘winter’ from the winter solstice,
phutalia from the last rise of Arcturus and appearance of swallows
Greswell, E., Origines calendariae hellenicae, Oxford, 1862, vol. 2, p. 656; Böckh A., Ueber die vierjährigen Sonnenkreise der Alten, vorzüglich den Eudoxischen, Berlin, 1863, S. 76–77; Lehoux, Daryn, Astronomy, weather, and calendars in the ancient world: Parapegmata and related texts in Classical and Near-Eastern Cocieties, Cambridge, 2007, pp. 205-206. The mentioning of swallows reminds of Swallow as the Babylonian constellation. .
According to Pliny, a year was divided into four seasons by astronomical and weather events:
west wind (between the winter solstice and the vernal equinox) is the beginning of spring;
morning rise of the Pleiades (between the vernal equinox and the summer solstice) is the beginning of summer;
set of Lyra (between the summer solstice and the autumnal equinox) is the beginning of autumn;
the morning set of the Pleiades (between the autumnal equinox and the winter solstice) is the beginning of winter
Lehoux, Daryn, Astronomy, weather, and calendars in the ancient world: Parapegmata and related texts in Classical and Near-Eastern Cocieties, Cambridge, 2007, p. 254. .
Varro divided a year into eight seasons:
from the West Wind to the vernal equinox;
from the vernal equinox to the rise of the Pleiades;
from the rise of the Pleiades to the summer solstice;
from the summer solstice to the rise of Sirius;
from the rise of Sirius to the autumnal equinox;
from the autumnal equinox to the set of the Pleiades;
from the set of the Pleiades to the winter solstice;
from the winter solstice to the west wind
Lehoux, Daryn, Astronomy, weather, and calendars in the ancient world: Parapegmata and related texts in Classical and Near-Eastern Cocieties, Cambridge, 2007, p. 208. .
Arcturus might have been used as ‘the star of spring’ (from the first evening rise, according to Hesiod) and as the ‘star of autumn’ (from the first morning rise, according to Hippocrates).
Thucydides can date by the rise of the star Arcturus without having to wade into the confusion of disconnected city-state lunisolar calendars
Thucydides, II 78.2..
So, Arcturus may be regarded as an important sacral and calendrical star at least in the period from the Minoan Age up to the Classical Greece.
Minotaur-Theseus myth and Hercules-Perseus-based calendar
Blomberg and Henriksson (2001; 2005) measured the axis orientation of symmetry of the main cult room in the west wing of the palace at Mallia to be (az 107.6 deg), and argued, that the sun rose between the mountains one lunar month after the autumn equinox in 2000 BCE, marking the time of the beginning of Minoan agricultural year
Ridderstad, p. 20. .
The heliacal rise of Hercules occurred around one month after the autumnal equinox. So, Minoan calendar, as it was reflected in the orientation of the palace at Mallia, may be regarded as Hercules-based one. Minotaur staying on one knee can be seen on many ancient depictions
http://www.theoi.com/Ther/Minotauros.html .
Minotaur
PM I, p. 358.
His position may be compared with the form of the constellation of Hercules, Ancient Greek En gonasin (Ἐγγόνασιν or ἐν γόνασιν) ‘Kneeler’
Богданов К.А. Комментарий, in Арат Солийский. Явления / Пер. с древнегреч., вступ. статья и комментарий К.А. Богданова, СПб.: Алетейя, 2000, с. 218. . Hercules (= Minotaur) culminates, when Perseus (= Theseus) rises; Hercules sets, when Perseus culminates. The proper name of Minotaur, Asterion ‘starry one’, may be regarded as an evidence of his starry nature. Depictions of Minotaur surrounded by several stars are present on ancient Greek coins. Argus-like Minotaur and other starry Minotaur Asterios are depicted in A. Cook’s Zeus.
The rise and set of Hercules may have been the heart of the Minoan constellational calendar used in mythology. This constellation, being observed during the first evening appearance of stars, rose at the vernal equinox, culminated at the summer solstice and set at the winter solstice. Perseus began to rise at the summer solstice, when Hercules culminated, and culminated at the winter solstice when Hercules set in the evening.
The Hercules-based constellational calendar may be related to the very ancient observations: the North Pole was located near τ Hercules around vii millennium BC, when the hill of Cretan Knossos was inhabited and Aegean sailors transported obsidian from Melos.
Minotaur in the center of Labyrinth (e. g., see Roman mosaic in Rhaetia, Switzerland
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labyrinth ) may depict the location of Hercules at the zenith.
The calendar of Plutarchus
Theseus. was definitely based on the morning observations of the constellation of Perseus. Interval between the start of Theseus’ sailing from Athens (the 6th of Mounichion ≈ the first new moon after the vernal equinox plus six days)
6th of Mounichion ≈ the vernal equinox (April 4 in 2001 BC, March 31 in 1501 BC) + 1–14 days to the new moon + 6 = April 11–24 (the middle date is April 18) in 2001 BC and April 7–20 (the middle date is April 14) in 1501 BC (cf. 13 century BC as traditional dating of Theseus’ life). and the end of it (the 7th of Pyanepsion ≈ the first new moon after the autumnal equinox plus seven days) reflects the interval between the morning rise and the morning set of Perseus. The black sail of the ship hoisted at the beginning and at the end of the journey stands for the same astronomical event: the invisible (‘dark’) moon before appearance of the new moon. The culmination of Perseus (i.e., the victory of Theseus) occurs in the middle of period between the morning rise and the morning set of the constellation, i. e. at the summer solstice when Hercules (Minotaur) sets.
The killing of Minotaur by Theseus may be regarded as a shift from the Hercules-based ‘monoconstellational’ calendar towards the Perseus-based one. Theseus was known as the creator of the Athenian calendar.
Pasiphae, Circea, Aeëtes and seasonal markers
According to Hesychius, Talos is Helios. Copper giant Talos (Τάλως)
Greek χαλκεϊος τριγίγας ‘copper thrice giant’: Argonautica Orphica 1350-1352. The cult of Talos is attested in Phaisos: Андреев Ю.В. От Евразии к Европе. – СПб, 2002. – С. 524; Лосев А.Ф. Мифология греков и римлян. – М., 1996. – С. 148. Winged ΤΑΛΩΝ armed with a stone is depicted on the silver didrachm from Phaistos (ca. 300/280-270 BC). circles Crete thrice yearly
Plato, Minos 320c. . This motif may be regarded as a metaphoric description of three-seasonal year. Cretan three-seasonal year and its reflections in Greek mythology are researched by R. Graves. Year with three seasons is well known in ancient Egypt. The beginning of Egyptian year was marked by heliacal rising of Sirius.
Perhaps, the stellar designations of three-seasonal year may be reconstructed basing on the myth about Pasiphae, Circea, and Aeëtes. These characters are the children of Helios (‘sun’) and Perse (‘moon’? cf. Parsiphai as the combination of Pasiphae and Persephone in an Eteocretan inscription).
The name of Circea (Greek Kirke) might be interpreted, among other variants, as an anagram of the name of Cancer constellation (Greek Karkinos) while the name of Aeëtes (Greek Αἰήτης) – as an anagram of the name of the constellation Aquila (Greek Ἀετός) which rises with Scorpio. The name of the third child, Pasiphae, may be an anagram of the name of Cassiopeia constellation which rises with Aquarius and Pisces. The interval between the risings of Cassiopeia (or/and Andromeda, ‘queen of men’)
Ancient constellation of Cassiopeia might be bigger than modern one, and its rising might continue more. and Cancer is around four months; the intervals from the rising of Cancer to the rising of Aquila and from the rising of Aquila to the rising of Cassiopeia are also around four months. The mother of Pasiphae, Circea and Aeëtes is Perse whose name may be related to the name of Perseus, i. e. the spring equinox near Perseus about mid-second millennium BCE. The marriage of Helios and Perse may symbolize the sun near Perseus as beginning of year. An alternative interpretation: Perse is the moon, and the ancient Greeks observed the sun and the moon in these cardinal constellations. Perhaps, the similar constellational calendar is symbolized by Moses (possibly linked with Perseus), Joshua (possibly linked with the constellation of Cancer), and Aaron (possibly linked with Ophiuchus or/and Scorpio).
If Minoan three-seasonal year was identical with Egyptian one (as the Phaistos Disc might show), each marker of the season was observed when the constellation completely rose. E. g., the first heliacal rising of Sirius (the beginning of the Egyptian season) coincides with the complete rising of Cancer (the beginning of the Minoan season).
Compare with the view of C. Flammarion in his Les Etoiles:
Let us note that Aldebaran in Taurus, Antares in the Scorpion, Regulus in Leo and Fomalhaut in Piscis Austrinus are almost at right-angles to one another, and divide the sky into four equal parts. These four stars, bright and remarkable, sometimes called royal stars, were venerated by the Persians around 2500 B.C. as the sky’s four guardians. Then, Aldebaran, or the Bull’s Eye, was at the vernal equinox as the guardian of the east; Antares, or the Scorpion’s Heart, was at the autumnal equinox and was the guardian of the west; Regulus, the Lion’s Heart, was at a little distance from the summer solstice point; Fomalhaut was at a short distance from the winter solstice point. These last two indicated south and north for the Persians. No doubt Chou-king, China’s historical recorder, spoke of these stars when he reported that the Emperor Yao in 2357 B.C. ordered the astronomers Hi and Ho to observe the star Niao of spring, the star Ho of summer, the star Hiu of autumn, and the star Mao of winter, verifying at the same time the Sun’s shadow.
The translation after: Ottescu, I. Romanian peasants’ beliefs in stars and sky http://sarm.ro/ottescu/Chapter%201.pdf
Calendrical instruments
Minoan Lunisolar Disc with Ships
See the image: PM II, pt. 1, fig. 111. includes 13 lunar months (13 external spirals) and 4 main solar points (four τροπίς ‘ship’ as a homonym for τροπή ‘solar point’, literally ‘the turn’, and 4 crosses with 3 months between them). Every spiral includes 19 sections (Metonic cicle?), the circle consists 81 dots (three sidereal month?)
According to Minas Tsikritsis, the Minoan Age object (which I names Calendrical Disc with Corners) discovered in 1898 (Paleokastro site, in the Sitia district of western Crete), preceded the heralded ‘Antikythera Mechanism’ by 1,400 years, and was the first analog and ‘portable computer’ in history. The mechanism used as calculator of solar and lunar eclipses, sundial, and as an instrument calculating the geographical latitude
Researcher cites ancient Minoan-era ‘computer’ http://crisisboom.com/2011/04/07/ancient-minoan-computer/ . A method of the latitude identification using the northern stars was described by Strabo.
The instrument includes: eight dots on each of 25 outer corners; 50 squares on the outer circle and 11*4 lines on the inner circle; 8 and 7 squares on the horizontal spokes, 7+7 squares on upper vertical spoke and 8+7 squares on lower vertical spoke. The number of squares on the vertical spokes, 8 + 7 + 7 + 7 = 29, may symbolize synodic month divided into four phases or weeks. The number of the squares on horizontal and vertical spokes (15 + 14 + 15 = 44) consists one and a half synodic month and resemble full and crescent moon (= one and a half synodic month) on the Nebra Disc and three tributes to Minotaur (seven boys and seven girls in each tribute) in the Theseus myth. 50 squares on the outer circle resemble 50 signs on the outer circle of the Phaistos Disc and might be interpreted as 50 month in the four-year cycle. 200 dots on the corners may symbolize 25 eight-year (lunisolar and Venusian) cycles (octaeteris or enneoros in inclusive counting) or 99*2 month in two octaeteris.
On Calendrical Disc with Solar Barge, the central cross with four dots (which resemble Crux) might symbolize the places of the sunrise and sunset at solstices and equinoxes. 27 dots of outer circle may represent the days of lunar month while 18 dots of inner circle – the days of 2/3 of lunar month. The position of arc is the same as on the Nebra Disc, and the number of dots near the arc (eight) is the same too.
Cycladic Solar Pan
Cycladic ‘frying pan’ (Early Cycladic II period; National Museum, Athens
See the image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dandiffendale/3056587533/ ) with the Sun with 29 rays in the centre surrounded by four spirals and four fish (Linear A, B mi as fish-shaped syllabic sign and Greek maine ‘fish’) between them may be also lunisolar calendar.
IN SEARCH OF MINOAN STAR CATALOGUE
Double Axe and Ursa Major
Double axe, or labrys, was the main symbol of Minoan Crete. Many different hypotheses on the origin and meaning of the symbol may be suggested. E. g., it may be combination of depictions of waxing and waning moon. Labrys may also stand for Ursa Major, which looks like double axe. This constellation is visible during the whole year; many peoples use the constellation as a stellar clock.
Four double axes constitue a figure of cross on the Minoan vase
Dempsey, J., Calendar house http://ancientlights.org/CalendarHouse/ch7.html . This figure may reflect four position of Ursa Major used as a night clock.
The Greek word labyrinthos is regarded as a derivation from the name for double axe, labrys. Based on this etymology and Minoan painting, the palace of Minos is considered ‘the house of double axe’. The name of labyrinth is attested in Linear B as da-pu2-ri-to = daphurinthos. If labrys really stands for Ursa Major, then the name of labyrinth may be compared, in addition to many other hypotheses, with the Egyptian name of Ursa Major, Taweret, ‘she, who is great’. Taweret is the wife of Apep (snake) and is depicted with a crocodile (Draco) on her back. The form of the constellation of Draco resembles labyrinth. The name of Taweret (Greek Thoeris) may be also compared with the name of Troy; Troy is another possible symbol of Ursa Major, according to proposed astronomical interpretation of epic symbols.
If the celestial prototype of labrys is identified correctly, Minos may be associated with Cepheus near Ursa Major. Cepheus, the king in the myth of Perseus, and Zeus may be also related with this constellation.
Theseus leaves for Crete with the third tribute for Minotaur. Each tribute contains seven boys and seven girls; three tributes contain 42 persons in total. These teens may stand for days in lunar calendar. There are 42 days from the rise of Cepheus (Minos, who ordered the Athenians to pay tributes regularly) till the rise of Perseus (Theseus).
The ‘Minoans’, i. e. the Minoan Greeks, might regard three neighbour constellations, Cepheus, Ursa Major, and Draco, as Minos, double axe, and labyrinth, respectively.
So, Minos’ wife Pasiphae may stand for Cassiopeia, queen in the myth of Perseus. However, it not exclude the incorporation of lunar symbols in the image of Pasiphae.
The Ancient Egyptians regarded some circumpolar constellations as the Heaven’s Adzes
Belmonte, J.A. The Ramesside star clocks and the ancient Egyptian constellations, Calendars, Symbols, and Orientations: Legacies of Astronomy in Culture. Proceedings of the 9th annual meeting of the European Society for Astronomy in Culture (SEAC). Uppsala, 2003, p. 63. . One of them, Mshtiw (bull’s thigh), might be regarded by the Minoan Greeks as related to the image of Minotaurus. The constellation of Draco looks like an adze and, perhaps, is symbolically described in Odyssey as σκέπαρνον, ‘adze’
Od. v 237. (the description of Odysseus’ preparation for raft sailing from Callypso, like the prediction of Tiresius, may be interpreted as metaphorical descriptions of the sky). Adze = Draco may be hypothetically found on the Phaistos Disc.
Constellations in Minoan art
The astronomical interpretation of Minoan seals, frescoes, and figurines is proposed by many researchers. ‘In Minoan art, symbols for celestial objects were depicted frequently and often in a religious context. The most common were various solar and stellar symbols. The palace of Knossos was amply decorated with these symbols’
Ridderstad, M. Evidence of Minoan astronomy and calendrical practices, p. 1
http://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/0910/0910.4801.pdf . ‘Celestial bodies, or objects and symbols that can be interpreted as those, are a frequent motif in Minoan engraved and clay seals, moulds, rings, jewellery, garments, pottery, wallboards, ceiling boards, decorative inlays, frescoes, and reliefs’
Ridderstad, p. 11. . ‘The find of the Minoan constellations illuminates a great part of the prior knowledge the bronze age inhabitants of Crete applied to the world for calendrical purposes, navigation, agriculture, superstition, religion and story-telling; they can thus offer a window into the workings of the Minoan mind’ (Dr. Evangelos Kyriakidis)
Archaeologist to reconstruct the Minoan sky http://www.kent.ac.uk/news/stories/minoanrings/2008 .
P. Blomberg identifies some Minoan constellations among the Cretan figurines
Blomberg P. An attempt to reconstruct the Minoan star map, Astronomy of ancient societies / T.M. Potyomkina, V.N. Obridko (eds.), Moscow, 2002, p. 95–97., E. Kyriakidis found the images of Orion, Hyades, Hydra, Ursa Major (as a leg, like in Egyptian astronomy), Boötes, and Corona Borealis
Kyriakidis, E. (2005) The Unidentified Floating Objects on Late Minoan Seal Iconography. American Journal of Archaeology, 109, pp. 137-154.
http://www.ajaonline.org/pdfs/109.2/AJA1092_Kyriakidis.pdf. D. Trifiletti proposed an astronomical interpretation (including the images of Leo and Hydra) of the ‘Ring of Nestor’
Trifiletti, D. The ring of Nestor: Evidence of Minoan astronomy?
http://apexinstitute.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=lkgGClIZD1Y%3D&tabid=61&mid=445&forcedownload=true The image of the “Ring of Nestor” see: PM III, p. 153. . Minoan ‘acrobat’, bull, doves, and the Snake Goddess may be identified with Perseus, Taurus, the Pleiades, and Ophiuchus
Glyn-Jones, W., The constellation art of Knossos,
http://ancientworldblog.blogspot.com/2005/03/constellation-art-of-knossos-by.htm ; OSullivan, M. Changing Zodiac Signs: The Serpent Bearer, Ophiuchus, Precession, and return of the Great Goddess http://www.upfirst.com/changingzodiacsigns.htm . Spica and Arcturus were the sacral stars for the Minoans
Ridderstad, Marianna, Evidence of Minoan astronomy and calendrical practices, p. 10-11 http://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/0910/0910.4801.pdf . Ursa Minor and Draco might be depicted by the Minoans (like by the Egyptians) as two beasts
Dempsey, J., Calendar house http://ancientlights.org./CalendarHouse/ch6.html .
Minoan Snake-Goddess may be considered as the image of Virgo and Spica and/or Ophiuchus; the sacral knots and bees – as Orion (cf. the knot of Orion in the Bible, Job 38:31); the gates – as Libra; the ships – as Argo
See about the Mediterranean origin of Argo: Rogers, J. H., Origins of the ancient constellations II: Mediterranean tradition, Journal of the British Astronomical Association, vol. 108, no. 2, p. 87. . Minoan double axe may be regarded not only as Orion but also as Ursa Major. The double axe near the Poppy Goddess in the center of Isopata ring
http://www.rosetta.bham.ac.uk/issue6/bronze-age-rings/ may be compared with the axe of Clytemnestra and interpreted as Ursa Major near Virgo.
Several groups of constellations may be found in Minoan art.
Houses with zigzags and snakes
PM I, p. 674. seem to be house-shaped Cepheus, zigzag-shaped Cassiopeia, Lacerta, and Draco.
Two men, seven globes, and a he-goat on the steatite jewelry
Evans, A. J., Cretan pictographs and prae-Phoenician script, L.; N. Y., 1895, p. 71. are Gemini, The Seven (the Pleiades), and Capricorn.
A bull with one acrobat over him and another one behind him
PM I, p. 694. are Taurus, Perseus, and Aries. The third acrobat on the Minoan fresco ‘Toreador’ who stands in front of the bull (while two other acrobats occupy the same positions as described above) may be Gemini.
The image of ritual sacrifice of a bull
PM IV, pt. 1, p. 40. Compare the minoan image of a bull over the sacrificial …: PM IV, pt. 1, p. 41. (like Mithraic rite) may be a depiction of Perseus and Taurus. The Mycenaean relief with a bull and a tree
PM III, p. 197. may be a depiction of Taurus and the Milky Way.
A deer, two dogs, and an arrowhead
CMS-II4-202-1 (MM II-SM III)
http://www.arachne.uni-koeln.de/browser/index.php?view[layout]=siegel_item&objektsiegel[item]=2389&objektsiegel[thumb_item]=0 are Monoceros, Canis Major and Canis Minor, and Columba or rather Cancer (cf. arrow between Scylla and Charybdis in Odyssey).
A goddess with a lion
PM I, p. 505. may be Leo and Virgo while the mountain goddess with a man, two lions, and horned tower near them
PM III, p. 463. are Orion, Leo, Leo Minor, Virgo, and Libra; cf. also the goddess with two lions on the Mycenaean gem
Evans A. The Mycenaean Tree and Pillar Cult, and Its Mediterranaen Relations, L., 1901, p. 66. . The goddess with the ear of corn, a line under her feet and horns and some other objects aside
Crystal Lentoid from Idaean Cave (PM I, p. 222). are Virgo (with Spica on the left), Corvus, Crater, and Hydra (below).
Two groups of constellations are depicted on the Ivory Half Cylinder from Knossos
PM I, p. 197. : a man, a woman, a dog, and jugs are Virgo, Orion, Canis Major (or/and Canis Minor?), and Lepus; a dog, an archer, a tree or branch, and a he-goat are Lupus, Sagittarius, Aquila, and Capricorn.
The double axe over the bull’s head
PM IV, p. 344. is Orion near Taurus
See also: Scherer, A. 1953. Gestirnnamen bei den indogermanischen Völkern, Heidelberg, S. 188. , so not only Ursa Major may be associated with the double axe symbol. Two bulls near a tree from Mycenae
Evans, A. The Mycenaean Tree and Pillar Cult, and Its Medirerranean Relations, L., 1901, p. 58. may be Taurus and Monoceros near the Milky Way.
The goddess holding an oar in a ship looks as a hippocamp with two horned objects in the ship
http://freepages.history.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~catshaman/15Sailors/05sailors12.htm may be interpreted as Virgo, Corvus (oar), Sextans and Crater (horned objects), and Hydra (hippocamp-shaped ship).
A he-goat and a tree
PM I, p. 275. may be Aquila and Capricornus. The Minoan starry goat
PM I, p. 358. is Capricornus; cf. Asterios ‘starry’ as a proper name of Minotaur.
‘Non-Ptolemaic’ constellations in Sphaera Barbarica, Lunar Zodiac, and Dodekaoros
Sphaera Barbarica
It is very important, that Ptolemy’s catalogue of the constellations represents one particular tradition; another concepts should be taken into consideration as well.
Firstly, it is Sphaera Barbarica by Teucer, which includes some constellations being absent in Ptolemy’s catalogue
Boll, F. 1903, Sphaera, Leipzig, S. 16-21 etc. .
‘The Hellenistic astrologer Teucrus of Babylon lived between the 1st-century BCE and the 1st-century CE. <…> The Sphaera Barbarica is thought to have originated in Asia Minor. (Aby Warburg proposed that the Sphaera Barbarica was devised in Asia Minor.) From there it eventually (1) passed to Egypt, and (2) passed eastward to the Orient (India and then the Islamic Persian Empire) and eventually became incorporated in the Kitab al-mudkhal al-kabir ila 'ilm ahkam an-nujjum (Latin title: Introductorium maius) by the Islamic scholar Abū Ma'shar. (The Sphaera Barbarica of Teucrus was translated into Pahlavi for the first time circa the 3rd-century CE.) This astrological tradition finally reached Latin Europe via the Arab-Islamic world toward the end of the Middle Ages (via Spain into France).’
Thompson, G. D. Sphaera Barbarica and Sphaera Graecanica, online at:
http://members.westnet.com.au/gary-david-thompson/page11-14.html
Possible place and time of Teucer’s observations are Antioch on the Orontes, 36oN 36oE, 1 BC.
Teucer’s ‘parapegm’ may be interpreted as follows.
Aries:
the 1st decan: Athene ‘Andromeda’, Cetus’ tail, one third part of Triangulum, Cynocephalus ‘Camelopardalis?’, Torch-bearer ‘Perseus’ or less Arcturus, Cat’s head ‘Microscopium?’;
the 2nd decan: Andromede, the middle part of Cetus, Gorgo ‘part of Perseus’, Perseus’ sickle ‘part of Perseus or less Auriga’, a half of Triangulum, the middle part of Cat;
the 3rd decan: Cassiepeia on her throne, Perseus, Cetus’ head, rest part of Triangulum, Cat’s tail’, etc.
‘Non-Ptolemaic’ Teucer’s constellations may be interpreted as Ptolemaic, but mentioned under alternative names. E.g.,
Ophis ‘snake’ which rises with Gemini, may be Lynx or Eridanus (cobra-shaped Orion is mentioned separatly);
Κάνθαρος ‘scarabaeus’, which rises with Cancer, is Lepus;
Three Charites, which rise with Cancer, may be three-branched Monoceros.
Skaphos (the 1st and 2nd decan of Leo) is Argo;
‘Small Man’, which rises with Leo, may be Canes Venatici;
Phrygian flutes, which rise with the second decan of Leo, are Sextans;
Arotron ‘plough’ (the 2nd and 3rd decan of Virgo) may be Coma Berenices (cf. Sumerian APIN ‘plough, Triangulum’);
Ariadne’s Wreath (the 3rd decan of Libra) is Corona Borealis;
Asclepius, which rises with the second decan of Scorpius is Ophiuchus which rises with the third decan of Scorpius. In other words, some constellations might be included into Sphaera under different names.
Hawk, which rises with Sagittarius, is Aquila (Hawk begins to rise from his head during the first decan while the head of Cygnus, another bird among constellations, rises later).
Pelagos ‘sea’, which rises with Sagittarius, may be a result of misreading of Pelargos ‘stork, Cygnus’ (according to Teucer, a Big Bird, or Cygnus, also rises with Aquarius); another variant of the text of Teucer contains the word pelargos itself
Boll, F. 1903, Sphaera, Leipzig, S. 29. .
‘Eileithyia on the throne’ is Cassiopeia under different name (she is named ‘woman on a throne’, according to another variant of the text
Boll, F. 1903, Sphaera, Leipzig, S. 29. ).
Big Fish, which rises with Capricornus, is Telescopium (cf. ‘Big Fish’ on the Greek vessel in the same position, under Odysseus = Sagittarius and Cyclops = Scorpius).
Trokhos ‘Wheel’, which rises with Capricornus is Corona Australis (cf. Wheel = Corona Australis on the Phaistos Disc).
Nereus, which rises with Capricornus, may be compared to Phorcys in Odyssey and identified with Telescopium.
Hippocrator, which rises with Aquarius may stand for Bellerophon = Perseus, or a part of Pegasus; cf. Syrian Horse, which rises with Aries
Boll, F. 1903, Sphaera, Leipzig, S. 57. and may be compared with Perseus (= Bellerophon on Pegasus), and Aramaic prš ‘horseman, cavalry-man’.
Deer, which rises with three decans of Pisces, is horned Camelopardalis.
Crocodile which rises with three decans of Pisces may be Cetus (sea monster) or less Telescopium.
Zeus, which rises with Pisces
Boll, F. 1903, Sphaera, Leipzig, S. 58. , may be compared with Cepheus, which rises with Aries
Boll, F. 1903, Sphaera, Leipzig, S. 57. in the same text.
Note: Teucer describes not only morning but also evening rise of constellations without special destinction. Some examples of constellations which rise in evening are:
Skeptron (the 2nd decan of Taurus) like Cadiceus among lunar mansions (see below) is Scorpius, cf. Akkadian zuqaqipu ‘Scorpio’;
Trokhos ‘wheel’ (the 1st decan of Gemini) is Corona Australis;
Snake which rises with three decans of Gemini may be not only Lynx or Eridanus (which rise in the morning this month) but also Serpens or Lacerta (which rise in the evening);
Lyra and Heracles (the 2nd decan of Gemini) are Lyra and Hercules;
‘the Snake on the Tree which was hunted by Heracles’ (the 2nd decan of Gemini) is Serpens near Hercules;
Apollo, Lyra, and Dolphin (the 3rd decan of Gemini) are Sagittarius, Lyra, and Delphinus;
Satyros (the 1st decan of Cancer) may be Capricornus, cf. Pan and Aegipan ‘Capricornus’;
‘the goddes on her throne’ (1st decan of Virgo) is Cassiopeia;
He-goat (three decans of Libra) is Capra in Auriga, cf. Auriga as paranatellom of the 2nd decan of Libra;
Tauros ‘bull’ (three decans of Scorpius) is Taurus;
Kuon (the 1st decan of Sagittarius) and Argus (the 2nd decan of Sagittarius and the 1st decan of Capricornus) are Canis Major;
En Gonasin ‘Kneeler’ (the 3rd decan of Pisces) is Hercules.
So, the conclusion of Aby Warburg about Sphaera Barbarica
This work is nothing more than a description of the fixed-star heaven, which with the addition of star names from Egypt, Babylonia, and Asia Minor, surpasses the star catalog of Aratus almost three times over
Cted after: Thompson, G. D. Sphaera Barbarica and Sphaera Graecanica, online at:
http://members.westnet.com.au/gary-david-thompson/page11-14.html
may be disputed. Perhaps, the constellations of Teucer are neither Babylonian, nor Egyptian, but reinterpreted Greek constellations with some possible additions like Telescopium. Some of them are considered to exist under different names. The size of Teucer’s catalogue caused by 1) the usage of synonyms and 2) the description of morning and evening constellations, i.e., each constellation is described twice.
Lunar Zodiac
Secondly, it is the lunar zodiac in the magical Papyrus 121, preserved in the British Museum and dated to the 4th century AD
Weinstock, S. Lunar mansions and early calendars, The Journal of Hellenic Studies, Vol. 69 (1949), p. 60; cf. p. 52. , which contains aforesaid lunar mansions:
(*ὕς ‘swine’,)
The reconstruction of this single mansion is based on the F. Boll’s list (see below) while the S. Weinstock’s list consists of 27 mansions (not 28).
βοῦς ‘ox’
Also the constellation Taurus, Max. 162. LSJ ,
γύψ ‘vulture’,
ταῦρος ‘bull, Taurus’,
κάνθαρος ‘scarabaeus’ (scarabaeus-shaped Lepus or rather Ophiuchus),
ἱέραξ ‘hawk or falcon’ (Aquila),
καρκίνος ‘crawfish, Cancer’,
κύων ‘dog, Canis Minor or Major’,
λύκος ‘wolf’,
δράκων ‘dragon’ (Cetus),
ἵππος ‘horse, Pegasus’,
χίμαιρα ‘Chimera, i.e. some constellation near Perseus = Bellerophon’,
θέρμουθις ‘Egyptian asp’ (Lynx? Eridanus? cobra-shaped Orion?),
αἴξ ‘she-goat, Capra’ (modern Capella in Auriga),
τράγος ‘he-goat, a constellation of the δωδεκάωρος’
Teucer in Cat. Cod. Astr. 7.204, 8(4).198, Id. in Boll Sphaera 48. Δωδεκάωρος, ἡ, is a circle plate displaying 12 animal figures embodying the double hours of the Chaldaean νυχθήμερον, Teucerin Cat. Cod. Astr. 7.195, al. (LSJ). (Taurus or less Monoceros),
κυνοκέφαλος ‘ape’ (Gemini resembles a monkey head),
αἴλουρος ‘cat’ (a Greek interpretalion of Sumerian AL.LUL ‘crawfish, Cancer’?),
λέων ‘lion, Leo’,
πάρδαλις ‘leopard’ (Camelopardalis or rather Leo Minor, cf. the goddess with a lion and a leopard),
μυγαλός ‘shrewmouse’ (Leo Minor?),
ἔλαφος ‘deer’ (Sextans, Crater, or Coma Berenices),
πολύμορφος παρθένος ‘girl, Virgo’,
λαμπάς ‘torch’ (Boötes with Arcturus)
See: Ridderstad, M. ,
ἀστραπή ‘lighting’ (Serpens?),
στέλμα ‘crown’ (Corona Borealis),
κηρύκειον ‘herald’s wand’ (caduceus-shaped Scorpius)
Geminus’ Κηρυκεῖον is interpreted as Corona Australis (Ramsay, W. Astronomia, in: Smith, W. A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, John Murray, London, 1875, pp. 153) but I can’t accept this interpretation. ,
παῖς ‘child’ (Scutum?),
κλείς ‘key’ (Aquila?).
One particular variant of the catalogue of the lunar mansions was the object of interest of Franz Boll
Boll, F. Der ostasiatische Tierzyklus im Hellenismus. Vortrag gehalten am 9 April 1912 auf dem XVI. Internationalen Orientalisten-Kongress zu Athen, T'oung Pao, Second Series, Vol. 13, No. 5 (1912), p. 711. . He suggests the following order of constellations:
Schwein
Cf. the Minoan image of spear-holded man (Sagittarius), tree-branched plant (Aquila), and a boar (Centaurus), PM I, p. 718. , Rind, Geier, Stier, Käfer (κάνθαρος), Sperber, Krebs, Hund, Wolf, Drache, Pferd, Chimaira, Thermuthis (Schlange), Bär, Bock, Kynokephalos (Affe), Katze, Löwe, Pardel, Wiesel, Hirsch, Vielgestaltige Jungfrau, Lampe (λαμπάς), Blitz, Kranz (στέλμα), Heroldstab (κηρύκειον), Knabe, Schlüssel.
The order of constellations may be mixed in both lists of the lunar mansions. E.g., morning and evening constellations may be mistakenly included in one list (cf. Dodekaoros).
Dodekaoros
Thirdly, it is so called Dodekaoros. The name of Dodekaoros, i.e. ‘twelve hours’, reflects the Babylonian unit of measurement, double hours.
Teucer’s images of paranatellonta of zodiacal constellations are related to astrological Dodekaoros. One example of Dodekaoros is the ‘Zodiac of Cairo’ or the ‘Daressy Zodiac’, dated from the Roman Imperial Period.
See the image: Thompson, Gary D., Greek Constellations 14: Sphaera Barbarica and Sphaera Graecanica, online at: http://members.westnet.com.au/Gary-David-Thompson/page11-14.html See also Dendera Round Zodiac: the image: www.okemboha.mysteria.cz/7dil.htm ; White, Gavin, A new interpretation of the Dendera zodiac (from his Babylonian Star-Lore, An Illustrated Guide to the Star-lore and Constellations of Ancient Babylonia), http://www.solaria-publications.com
‘Depicted on the Daressy Zodiac are the Greek zodiacal signs and associated animals according to a doctrine called "Dodekaoros." (The astrological doctrine of Dodekaoros is known to us from the writings of the astrologer Teucrus (circa 1st-century BCE) and the Byzantine astrologer Rhetorios (circa 600 CE).) There are 2 concentric bands enclosing a central area. Depicted in the central area are busts of the sun (Sol) as Apollo and the moon (Luna) as Phoebe (with a bow); and a snake(?). The outer band has the clockwise depiction of the signs of the Greek zodiac. The inner band has 12 animals depicted. Twelve radial lines divide the bands into 12 individual sectors. In his book Sphaera (1903) the German philologist Franz Boll showed that the inner band contains representations of animals that are associated with the zodiacal signs according to an astrological doctrine called "Dodekaoros."
The pairs pictorially depicted (juxtapositioned) on the Daressy Zodiac are:
Aries (ram (with belt): cat (sitting),
Taurus (bull): dog, (or jackal)
Gemini (twins (man and woman): serpent,
Cancer (crab): scarabaeus/crab,
Leo (lion): donkey/ass,
Virgo (virgin): lion (walking),
Libra (balance (borne by a man): goat (or gazelle),
Scorpio (scorpion): bull/ox,
Sagittarius (archer (centaur)): falcon,
Capricorn (goatfish): baboon/ape,
Aquarius (waterman): ibis,
Pisces (fishes): crocodile’
Thompson, G. D. Sphaera Barbarica and Sphaera Graecanica, online at:
http://members.westnet.com.au/gary-david-thompson/page11-14.html
The Greek names of the animals of Dodekaoros are
After: Chavannes, E. Le Cycle Turc des Douze Animaux, T'oung Pao, Second Series, Vol. 7, No. 1 (1906), p. 120, with the images of Chinese zodiacs. :
Another example of Dodekaoros is Bianchini's planisphere, 2nd century A.D. Paris, Musée du Louvre, inv. Ma 540.
‘Discovered in Rome in the 18th century, this plate displays the surviving fragments of a planisphere incorporating the so-called "Barbaric Sphere", which depicts the Greek, Egyptian and Mesopotamian constellations. In the centre we see the constellations of Ursa Major, Ursa Minor and Draco. The four circles contain images of the Chaldean zodiac, two Greek zodiacs, an area with numbers that indicate the planets' influence on the individual signs of the zodiac, and lastly, the Egyptian Decans (the gods who preside over the 10-day sequence), each with his name. The outer circle shows the faces of the Greek Decans, or personifications of the seven planetary deities’
http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/galileopalazzostrozzi/object/BianchinisPlanisphere.html See also: Maunder, A. S. D. The origin of the symbols of the planets, The Observatory, Vol. 57, p. 238-247 (1934)
http://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-iarticle_query?1934Obs....57..238M&data_type=PDF_HIGH&whole_paper=YES&type=PRINTER&filetype=.pdf .
‘ ‘Planisphaerium Bianchini’ or ‘Tabula Bianchini’, a marble astrological table. It is dated not earlier than the 2nd-century CE by Wilhelm Froehner (1869) but is noe thought to likely date to the 3rd-century CE. The illustration above was included as 1 of 22 engravings (plates) in l'Origine de tous les cultes ou religion universelle by Charles-François Dupuis (1795) with the title/description ‘Planisphere astrologique de style Egyptian’. The centre of the system is drawn on the pole of the ecliptic (with the constellation Draco or Dragon), not on the pole of the equator (with the constellation Ursa Major) because the Sun's passage through the sky along the ecliptic is the relevant path for the system of astrology. The separation of the 2 bear constellations is accurately represented in the central roundel. Around the central roundel are a series of concentric bands (rings). From the centre outwards the bands contain: (1) the dodekaoros (i.e., the Egyptian zodiacal signs), (2) and (3) the Greek zodiacal signs repeated in 2 identical bands, (4) the 36 decans (i.e., the guardians of each third of each sign, of Egyptian origin like the dodekaoros), and (5) the planetary deities corresponding to each decan’
Thompson, Gary D., Greek Constellations 14: Sphaera Barbarica and Sphaera Graecanica
http://members.westnet.com.au/Gary-David-Thompson/page11-14.html , with the image. .
Taking into consideration all ideas mentioned above, some comments on Dodekaoros may be proposed.
Dog or Jackal correlated with Taurus may be Lupus which rises when Taurus sets;
Serpent correlated with Gemini may be Serpens in Ophiuchus which rises when Gemini sets;
Scarabaeus correlated with Cancer may be scarabaeus-shaped Lepus wich rises with Cancer;
Donkey correlated with Leo may be Aselli, asterism in Cancer;
Lion correlated with Virgo may be not only Leo but also Leo Minor (possible, leoparg in ancient iconography of mountain goddess);
Goat or Gazelle correlated with Libra may be Capra in Auriga which rises when Libra sets;
Bull correlated with Scorpius may be Taurus which rises when Scorpius sets;
Falcon correlated with Sagittarius may be Aquila which rises with Sagittarius;
Baboon correlated with Capricornus may be Gemini looks like the head of baboon: Gemini rises when Capricornus sets;
Ibis correlated with Aquarius may be Corvus: Aquarius rises when Corvus sets;
Crocodile correlated with Pisces may be Cetus which rises with Pisces or less Hydra which sets when Piscer rises.
Only Cat correlated with Aries (cf. the same correlation in the Sphaera Barbarica) is remained without possible identification.
So, the main principle of nomination of the beast in Dodecaoros is astrological aspect of opposition: rising Lupus – setting Taurus; rising Serpens – Setting Gemini; rising Capra – setting Auriga; rising Taurus – setting Scorpius; rising Gemini – setting Capricornus; rising Aquarius – setting Corvus. The second principle is paranatellonta: Lepus (Scarabaeus) rises with Cancer; Aselli (Donkey) rises before Leo; Aquila (Falcon) rises with Sagittarius; Cetus (Crocodile) rises with Pisces.
Dodekaoros of Antiochus of Athens (ii c. AD) includes snake or dragon (spring, Gemini), hawk (summer, Sagittarius), crocodile (autumn, Pisces), and child on the lotus (winter, Virgo),
Подосинов с. 77. i.e. snake-shaped Eridanus near Gemini (which rises in morning at spring), Aquila near Sagittarius (which rises in evening at summer), water monster Cetus near Pisces (which rises in evening at autumn), and Spica or Arcturus near Virgo regarded as her child (which rises in evening at winter; cf. Isis and Horus as Harpocrates = new-born sun, Theotokos and Jesus Christ).
Compare with four forms of Apollo: infans child on the lotus (nord), hawk (south), crocodile with serpent’s tail (west), winged dragon with a crown (east),
PGM ii 105–115 (iv–v cc. AD); Подосинов с. 77–78. or ibis (east), cynocephalus (west), serpent (nord), and wolf (south)
PGM viii 6–11; Подосинов с. 78.
The hypothesis of Franz Boll about the relations between above-mentioned lists of lunar mansions and Chinese zodiac (Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig) seems to be very interesting
“Accepting Boll's conclusions (as they are generally accepted by experts), we must also conclude that the Greek original of the Chinese animal set was used in hellenised Egypt not only (as suggested by the Orphic analogy) in a Lunarium of the common type but in one combined with the mansions as in the text of the Cromwellianus or in the writings περὶ καταρχῶν”, Weinstock, S. Lunar mansions and early calendars, The Journal of Hellenic Studies, Vol. 69 (1949), p. 64. According to the S. Weinstock’s reconstruction, the lunar mansions are of Babylonian origin and are accepted by the Greeks and the Indians and then via the Greeks by the Arabians, the Indians (repeatedly), and the Chineses. See also: Иванов, В.В. Названия лет в двенадцатиричном годовом цикле, Календарно-хронологическая культура и проблемы ее изучения: к 870-летию «Учения» Кирика Новгородца: материалы научной конференции (отв. ред. Р.А. Симонов), М., 2006, с. 114–116, online at: http://hbar.phys.msu.ru/gorm/chrono/kirik.pdf (Sanskrit aśva- horse, paśu- ‘sheep’, makkara ‘ape’, kukkuta ‘cock’, śvāna ‘dog’, sukhara ‘pig’, mandilya ‘rat’, gova ‘cow, bull’, vyāghra ‘tiger’, śaśa ‘hare’, nāga ‘dragon’, ahi ‘serpent’). “As a matter of speculation it may be suggested as quite possible that the Egyptians observed the course of the moon amongst the dekanal stars and so arrived at a twenty seven or twenty eight day grouping, but as yet there is no evidence of this”, Chatley, H. The lunar mansions in Egypt, Isis, Vol. 31, No. 2 (Apr., 1940), p. 397. . Turkic calendar of the Proto-Bulgarians includes the following beasts: mouse, cow, wolf, hare, ?, snake, horse, sheep, ?, hen, dog, swine
Николов, Н., Време: перипетиите на календара
http://www.euro2001.net/issues/3_1997/7BR97F11.htm . Possible intermediate link between Crete and China was Seima-Turbino trans-cultural phenomenon.
So, non-Ptolemaic tradition of constellational astronomy is not of Egyptian or Sumero-Babylonian origin. It does reflect poetic, metaphorical, as it were, non-barbarian names of constellations.
Cretan Syllabary and Constellations
The syllabary of Cretan Linear A and B scripts may be also interpreted astronomically, and the signs with the same consonant (including “zero-consonant”, i.e. only vowel signs) denote the constellations which are located closely. The astronomical origin of the Linear B signs may be reconstructed as follows:
a (Greek aksine ‘axe’) – Ursa Major,
e (Greek hedos ‘temple’) – Cepheus,
i (Greek ios ‘arrow’) – Draco’s head (lesser Sagitta or Ursa Minor),
o (throne-shaped sign) – Cassiopeia,
u (Greek hunnis ‘plough’) – Ursa Minor;
ka (wheel) – Corona Borealis,
ke (insect?) – Ophiuchus,
ki – Draco (?),
ko (nail, Greek gomphos ‘nail’, or rather koruna ‘mace’) – Boötes,
ku (bird, Greek kuknos ‘swan, the constellation of Cygnus’) – Cygnus;
ma (cat’s head) – Cat linked to Aries in Dodekaoros head-shaped Equuleus,
me (goat’s sound) = Capella wave-shaped Aquarius (Greek aig- ‘goat’ and ‘wave’),
mi (fish) = Piscis Austrinus (Greek maine; Harappan sign ‘fish’ which is read as Dravidian min ‘fish’);
mo = Grus,
mu (Greek mukomai) = Microscopium (regarded as a bull’s head?);
da = Andromeda or Taurus or less Perseus;
na – Aries,
ne – Cetus,
ni – Taurus or Monoceros,
no – palm-shaped Gemini,
nu – Orion;
sa (Greek sepia, *sapia) – Cancer (‘crawfish’ in Sumero-Babylonian astronomy),
se – Monoceros or Canis Major,
si (Greek sitos ‘bread’) – Virgo or only Spica (si-to-po-ti-ni-ja ‘Lady of bread’ in Linear B),
so (axe, from Akkadian šukurru ‘axe’) – Boötes,
su – Hercules,
*82 (swa) = Vulpecula;
ra (Greek lewon from Akkadian labu ‘lion’) – Leo,
ra2 (rya) = Hydra,
ra3 (rai) = Crater,
ro2 (ryo) = Corvus,
re = Sextans or Pyxis,
ri – Lupus,
ro – Serpens,
ru – Lyra;
ta (scale, Greek talanton ‘scale’) – Libra,
te – Scorpius,
ti (arrow, cf. Sumerian ti ‘arrow’) – Sagittarius and/or Sagitta,
twe = Arcus (bow) in Sagittarius,
to – Aquila,
tu – Capricornus or Delphinus;
ja – Pegasus or rather Centaurus,
je – Pisces or rather Ara,
jo – Perseus or Cetus rather Indus,
*65 (ju) = Sculptor or rather Phoenix;
wa (wanakterion ‘palace’) – house-shaped Auriga,
we (worm, Greek welmis ‘worm’) – worm-shaped Vulpecula,
wi – Scutum,
wo – Sagittarius or Ara;
qa – Norma,
qe – Corona Australis;
za – Crux;
ze – Circinus or Musca,
*22 (zi) – animal-shaped Ara Musca or Circinus,
zo – Triangulum Australis or Norma,
*79 (zu) = Pavo;
pa = Virgo,
pu2 (phu) = part of Virgo (Vindemiatrix?),
pe = Telescopium,
pi = boat-shaped Capricornus,
po = Aquarius or the northern part of Aquarius,
pu = Pisces.
a2 (ha, i.e. hamaxa ‘vehicle, Ursa Major’) is possible alternative designation of Ursa Major, cf. a (axine ‘axe, Ursa Major’),
nwa is possible alternative designation of Monoceros near no ‘hand, Gemini’,
two is possible alternative designation of Scutum, cf. wi.
More rare constellations (i.e. the constellations which are visible several days a year because they are southern ones) such as signs belonged to z-series are designed by more rare signs.
Thus, the ‘Minoans’, i. e. the Minoan Greeks, reflected the constellations in their script. E.g., vowel-series (a, e, i, o, u) reflected the northern (circumpolar) constellations while M-series (ma, me, mi, mo, mu) reflected the constellations of the beginning of year. The first morning rise of Equuleus coincided with winter solstice about 1600 BC. This constellation regarded as the cosmogonic “golden egg”, i.e. the egg-shaped constellation which is related to the location of the “new born” sun at winter solstice. Perhaps, this Minoan image of Equuleus as a cat related to the Egyptian motif of Re as the cat killing the snake Apep (Apep is Hydra which sets when Equuleus rises). The Minoan sign ma is comparable with Egyptian mja ‘cat’.
P-series denotes the constellations which were located on the horizon several days before the spring equinox when the year of the Phaistos Disc began.
So, order of the letters in alphabets may reflect the order of rising of constellations.
Phoenician Alphabet as a Star Calendar
Phoenician alphabet might be initially syllabic and strongly influenced by Minoan syllabary.
The catalogue of the Phoenician constellations may be reconstructed basing not only on the Proenician mythology (and its remains in Greek mythology) but also on the Phoenician alphabet.
The forms, names, and the order of letters (originally hieroglyphs or mixed hieroglyphical and alphabetical signs?) in the Phoenician alphabet is of clear astronomical origin.
Aleph ‘bull’
The “hieroglyphic meaning” of the letters after: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenician_alphabet , with many references. The images of the letters are taken from the same site using the links to each letter (cf. Akkadian Alpu ‘bull, Hyades in Taurus’, Greek ἄλφα ‘Phoenician for βοὸς κεφαλή’, Hsch.): Taurus form and name,
Beth ‘house’: Gemini form,
Gaml ‘throwing stick’: javelin-shaped Cancer,
Dalt ‘door’: triangle-shaped Sextans,
He ‘window’: Virgo form,
Wau ‘hook’: hook-shaped Coma Berenices,
Zayin ‘sword, weapon’: sword-shaped Boötes (cf. Egyptian ankh ‘the life, to live’ and Cretan syllabic sign za based on Greek zao ‘to live’ as a translation of this Egyptian hieroglyph),
Het ‘wall’: Vela,
Tet ‘wheel’: wheel-shaped Corona Borealis,
Yod ‘hand’: hand-shaped Hercules,
Kaf ‘palm of a hand’: palm-shaped Ophiuchus,
Lamd ‘goad’: Scorpius,
Mem ‘water’ – to wave-shaped Vulpecula,
Nun ‘serpent’: Serpens in Ophiuchus,
Samk ‘fish’: fish-shaped Telescopium (cf. with Sphaera Barbarica),
Ain ‘eye’ – to round Corona Australis,
Pe ‘mouth’: Delphinus looks like lips (cf. Sumerian KA, Akkadian pû ‘mouth, Delphinus’),
Sade ‘hunt’: Sagittarius,
Qof ‘needle head’: spear-shaped Sagitta,
Rosh ‘head’: head-shaped Equuleus,
Shin ‘tooth’: teeth-shaped Lacerta or Cassiopeia,
Tau ‘mark’: Perseus.
The number of letters (cf. with 27 signs in the Ugaritic alphabet) may be compared with the number of 27 lunar mansions or, if the number was originally 24, with the half-month periods
Compare: Thompson, G.D. The astronomical origins of the alphabet http://members.westnet.com.au/gary-david-thompson/page7.html#alphabet .
So, Phoenician alphabet may be regarded as a “moving catalogue of the constellations”, the constellational callendar, or annual moving sky map. The same astronomical information may be discovered in other scripts.
Possible Pre-Classical Greek Parallels of Egyptian and Arabic Constellations
According to Gary D. Thompson,
It has proved extremely difficult to identify the ancient Egyptian constellations/asterisms with their modern Western constellation equivalents. There is still unresolved controversy over the identification of the constellation figures displayed on Egyptian tomb ceilings. The most recent and the most satisfactory likely identifications of ancient Egyptian constellations (with modern Western constellations) is set out in Table 6.1 (Pages 162-163) in Lull, José. and Belmonte, Antonio. (2009). "The constellations of ancient Egypt." In: Belmonte, Juan. and Shaltout, Mosalam. (Editors). In Search of Cosmic Order: Selected Essays on Egyptian Archaeoastronomy. Identifications are made for 32 ancient Egyptian constellations. (José Lull is an Egyptologist and amateur astronomer and Juan Belmonte is an astrophysicist working in archaeoastronomy and an amateur Egyptologist.) In Table 6.2 (Page 163) Lull and Belmonte set out 9 further constellation identifications that are subject to disagreement. The 41 constellations (note that due to font limitations the transliterated constellation names are mostly approximate only) are:
Ancient Egyptian Constellation Name (Transliteration and Translation) / Identification With Modern Western Constellations
1) spdt = Triangle Sirius & its companions
2) s3h = Sah Parts of Orion (Head at the Belt)
3) ‛rt = Jaw Hyades Cluster, with Aldebaran
4) h3w = Myriad or Flock The Pleiades Cluster
5) kd = The Circle or Sheepfold Head of Cetus
6) sb3 n s‛r = Star of fire Capella
7) 3pd = The Bird Triangulum & Perseus
8) ‛ryt = (The 2) Jaw(s) Cassiopeia
9) nht = The Giant From Aquila to the Square of Pegasus
10) tms n hntt = The Red One of the Prow Antares
11) srt = The Sheep or Goat Capricornus, perhaps extending to the area of Grus
12) wi3 = The Boat Sagittarius
13) sb3w ‛š3w = Many Stars Coma Berenices
14) rrt (3st d3mt) = The Female Hippopotamus Big area near the Pole covering from Lyra to Boötes
15) Crocodile on back of rrt Area of Serpens Caput
16) t٤ nfr = Beautiful Child Spica
17) mnit = Mooring Post Area of Boötes, including Arcturus
18) mshtyw = The Bull's Foreleg The Plough
19) ٤n(w) = Anu, an avatar of Horus From Lynx to Venatici
20) ipds = Its Own Count or Bright Star β Centauri
21) sbšn = Sage's Star α Centauri
22) wš3ty bk3ty = Twins and Two Ladies Southern Cross
23) d3t = The Ferryboat Area of Argo Navis
24) htp rdwy = Lying on His Feet Hydra
25) m3i = The (Divine) Lion Leo
26) hkw n s‛k = The Plunderer Leo Minor
27) sb3w nw mw = Stars of Water The Praesepe Cluster (M44)
28) tpy-‛ sb3wy = Predecessor of the Two Stars Alhena, in Gemini
29) sb3wy = Pair of Stars Castor and Pollux
30) štwy = The Two Tortoises Procyon and Gomeisa
31) knmt = Cow? Canis Major & Puppis
32) nwt = The Goddess Nut The Milky Way
33) [none] = Standing man of celestial diagram Gemini (Lull) / It may be identical to the giant (Belmonte)
34) [none] = Triangular shape of celestial diagram An astronomical instrument similar to a gnomon (Lull) / The constellation mnit of Ramesside clocks (Belmonte)
35) mnitwy = The Mooring Posts One of them is the mnit of Ramesside clocks (Lull) / The posts held by the Hippopotamus - in Ursa Minor and Draco - they might represent the Celestial and Ecliptic Poles (Belmonte)
36) srkt = Selkis Goddess Ursa Minor (Lull) / Virgo (Belmonte)
37) kdty = The 2 Nets Between Sagittarius and Scorpius, Corona Australis could be one of them (Lull) / One of them might be Corona Australis (Belmonte)
38) hnwy = 2 Khanuwy Fishes Region of λ Scorpius (Lull) / α Sagittarius & β Sagittarius (Belmonte)
39) tm3t = The Wings In Corvus and Crater (Lull) / In the area of Argo Navis (Belmonte)
40) 3hwy = The Two Spirits Square of Pegasus (Lull) / Pisces (Belmonte)
41) b3wy = The Two Souls Alferatz and Algenib, in the Square of Pegasus (Lull) / No identification (Belmonte).
Thompson, G. D. Early Egyptian constellation, online at: http://members.westnet.com.au/gary-david-thompson/page11-19.html
Some comments to this list may be proposed.
The name of kd (No. 5: The Circle of Sheepfold = Head of Cetus) is similar to Greek Ketos ‘Cetus’ of unknown origin.
The constellation nht (No. 9: The Giant = From Aquila to the Square of Pegasus) resembles 1) Sumero-Babylonian image of Aquarius as a giant an 2) Laestrygonian giants (from Aquarius to Taurus) in Odyssea.
The constellation wš3ty bk3ty (No. 22: Twins and Two Ladies = Southern Cross) resemble the inages of Nausicae and her girl-friends as Southern Cross in Odyssea.
The constellation d3t (No. 23: The Ferryboat = Area of Argo Navis) resembles Argo.
The constellation hnwy (No. 38: 2 Khanuwy Fishes = Region of λ Scorpius (Lull) / α Sagittarius & β Sagittarius (Belmonte)) may be fish-shaped Telescopium (located between Scorpius and Sagittarius) regarded as a fish in Greek iconography.
Some Sumero-Babylonian parallels of Egyptian constellations may be also proposed.
The name of the constellation tm3t (No. 39: The Wings = In Corvus and Crater (Lull) / In the area of Argo Navis (Belmonte)) resemble Babylonian Tiamat ‘Hydra’ (near Corvus and Crater), the name related to Akkad. tâmtu ‘sea’.
According to Abū al-Rayḥān Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad al-Bīrūnī
Бируни. Краткое вразумление начаткам науки о звездах, in: Бируни, Избранные труды, Ташкент: Фан, 1975, т. 6, вступит. статья, перевод и примеч. Б.А. Розенфельда и А. Ахмедова, с. 71-74 (text), 278-281 (comments). Cf.: Evershed, M. A. Arab astronomy, The Observatory, Aug. 1935, No. 735, pp. 237–242. , the Arabic nomads used own images and names of constellations. Some of these names are comparable with pre-Classical Greek ones.
Two Calves in Ursa Minor and Two Bulls between Draco’s head and Two Calves may be compared with Ursa Major and Ursa Minor as “Minoan” oxen.
Outstretched Arm (heads of Gemini) resembles Gemini as a fist on the Phaistos Disc and in the image of Polydeucus (one among Gemini) as a boxer.
Several stars of Canis Major interpreted as the Virgins
Samaha, A. H. M. Arabic names of stars, Helwan Observatory, Bulletin No. 39, p. 8–9. resemble the “non-Ptolemaic” constellation of three maidens.
NEOLITHIC ROOTS OF MINOAN SKY MAP
Neolithic Zodiac and Mountain Mother
Several Balkan Neolithic artifacts are interpreted as possible astronomical objects. Pre-historical calendars are found in Balkan Peninsula. The famous example is the lunar calendar with the month divided into decades from Slatino (Bulgaria)
Nikolov, N, Kharlampiev, V., Zvezdochety.., p. 39. Стойчев, Тодор. Археоастрономия. Праисторически свидетелства за измерване на времето от България. София, 1998. Compare: Tchohadjiev S. L’Astronomie a l’âge du cuivre, Dossiers d’histoire et archéologie, CXXXVII, 1989. . ‘Egyptian-like’ calendar from Slatino consists three seasons, 30-day months, and five additional days
Бурганський Г., Фурдуй Р. Загадки давнини, К., 1988, с. 77–78. . Balkan astronomical knowledge might be depicted on the Tartaria tablets
Kaulins, A. Balkan Danube script (Transilvania): Planisphere of the heavens ca. 4000 BC www.megaliths.net/danubescript.png , on the disk from Karanovo (regarded as the celestial map)
Flavin, Richard D., The Karanovo zodiac, Epigraphic Society Occasional Papers, Vol. 20, 1991 (released 1992), pp. 37-42, http://www.flavinscorner.com/karanovo.htm ; Flavin, Richard D., The Karanovo Zodiac and Old European Linear, Epigraphic Society Occasional Papers, 1998, Vol. 23, pp. 86-92, http://www.flavinscorner.com/kz2.htm , on the vessel from Gradeshnitsa
Николов В. Към интерпретацията на керамичната “плочка” със знаци от Градешница // Изкуство. - 1990. - 2, 47, с. 47-49, on the Eneolithic globe and other artifacts from Slatino
Чохаджиев С. Археологически данни за календар от началото на каменно-медната епоха // Археология. - 1984. - 2-3, с. 1-7; Tchohadjiev S. L’astronomie a l’age du cuivre. Dossiers histoire et archeologie, 1989. – 137 р.; Tchohadjiev S., Koleva V., Kolev D. A Copper age “Celestial Globe”, Paper presented at the Fourth “Oxford” Conference on Archaeoastronomy. - Stara Zagora, Bulgaria, in Oxford IV, Abstracts of Contributions, Oxford, 1993; Чохаджиев С. Слатино – праисторически селища. - Велико-Търново, 1997; В. Колева, Д. Колев, С. Чохаджиев. Энеолитическая модель небесной сферы из Западной Болгарии // История и культура Востока Азии. Том I, Новосибирск: Институт археологии и этнографии СО РАН, 2002
http://www.sati.archaeology.nsc.ru/Home/pub/Data/LARYCH/?html=koleva.htm&id=1330 .
According to some researchers of XIX c. and modern astronomer A. Gurstein, zodiac may have Paleolithic origin.
The Cretan and Anatolian images of the Mountain Goddess (Greek Meter Ideia ‘Mother of (the mountain) Ida’, Meter Oreia ‘Mountain Mother’, Meter Theron ‘Mother of Beasts’)
Ἡ Πότνια Θηρῶν, ‘Mistress of the Animals’ is a term first used (once) by Homer (Iliad xxi 470). See, e.g., Василева М. Гора, бог и имя: о некоторых фрако-фригийских параллелях, Вестник древней истории, 1990, № 3, с. 94-100; Munn, Mark, "Kybele as Kubaba in a Lydo-Phrygian Context": Emory University cross-cultural conference "Hittites, Greeks and Their Neighbors in Central Anatolia", 2004 (Abstracts). may be related to the location of Virgo as the highest constellation among other ones, i. e. Virgo as the place of summer solstice during VI-V millennia BC. Virgo as Mother of Beasts was regarded as main constellation in the ζῳδιακὸς κύκλος ‘circle of beasts’. However, the beast around Great Mother Goddess might be Leo and Leo Minor (leopard in ancient iconography), not all zodiacal images.
Greek Κυβέλη or Κυβέκη or Κυβήβη is related to 1) Old Phrygian Matar Kubileya / Kubeleya (perhaps ‘Mountain Mother’) and 2) Sumerian Kupapa with pre-Sumerian phonetic structure (‘banana’ substrate).
The cult of Mountain Mother or Mother of Beasts (perhaps, of Mesopotamian origin) coincides with the Proto-Indo-European cult of the Twins. The Age of Gemini (VI-V millennia BC) coincides with the Proto-Indo-European period. In the Neolithic and Proto-Indo-European zodiac, Gemini and Virgo were constellations of the vernal equinox and summer solstice respectively.
Tartaria Tablets: a deep precursor
The first astronomical interpretation of the Tartaria tablets (dated to around 5300 BC)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%C4%83rt%C4%83ria_tablets The date after: Haarmann, Harald: "Geschichte der Schrift", C.H. Beck, 2002, p. 20. was proposed by Andis Kaulins
http://ancientegyptweblog.blogspot.com/2005_02_01_archive.html , but I couldn’t accept his identification of the constellations.
In my opinion, the round Tartarian tablet reflects evening sky around the first morning rising of the Pleiades which coincided with the spring equinox in the 6th millennium BC.
NE: Hercules and Corona Borealis.
NW: Ursa Major (cf. the constellation in another tablet), Boötes, Virgo or/and Coma Berenices, Leo, Cancer (round-shaped in ancient astronomy).
SW: Vela and Crater.
SE: Arcus (Bow in Sagittarius) or Scorpio, Lupus, Centaurus, and Ara.
The tablet and the Phaistos Disc reflect the same principle of calendrical dating: the combination of constellations on the east and west horizons might be visible only one or several days.
The vertical line is the meridian of summer solstice. The point of the solstice is located between Leo and Corona Borealis, i.e. in the stars of Virgo near Libra. The horizontal line is celestial equator while the hole is the North Pole.
Another Tartarian tablet consist the depiction of morning sky around the first morning rising of the Pleiades.
NE: Ursa Major.
NW: Ophiuchus. SW: Sagittarius, Capricorn.
SW: Vela and Crater.
SE: Pisces (or Perseus), the Square of Pegasus, Aquarius.
The hole is the North Pole.
The third tablet shows Aquarius (cf. it on the second table) and Capricorn in the spring equinox morning.
Thus, the Tartaria tablets reflect the morning (before the disappearance of the stars) and evening (after the appearance of the stars) sky maps at the beginning of year, i.e. at the time of the first morning rising of the Pleiades.
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