2021, A. KARNAVA, «Celestial bodies in the sky and on the earth in the Aegean Bronze Age», H. MELLER, A. REICHENBERGER, R. RISCH (EDS.), Zeit ist Macht. Wer macht Zeit?/Time is power. Who makes time? 13. Mittledeutscher Archäologentag/13th Archaeological Conference of central Germany, 181-195. (original) (raw)

Astronomical and mathematical knowledge and calendars during the early Helladic Era in aegean “frying pan” vessels

Mediterranean Archaeology and Archaeometry

Analysis of the symbols engraved on prehistoric unknown use terracotae, the so called frying pan vessels (Teganoschema), reveal a symbolic writing that depicts astronomical phenomena, that are complex calendars based on the Sun and the Moon and all then known planets. The frying pan vessels are mainly found in Cyclades, and around the Aegean, Crete, Attica, and Thessaly. They are artifacts of the Cycladic civilization of the Early Helladic Era. They have been found mainly in graves and settlements. The first findings came to light during the late nineteenth century in the islands of Cyclades and their possible use is still causing strong scientific interest, as it is unknown. Until now, archaeologists could not determine their use and the meaning of their representations. It was believed that these vessels were used in funeral rituals, therefore depicted patterns like the sun and the sea may be associated with beliefs about the afterlife. We have studied the morphology and the representations of the Cycladic frying pan vessels that are found in museums and in literature dating from the middle of the 4th millennium.

The Swan Chariot of a Solar Deity: Greek Narratives and Prehistoric Iconography

Literary testimonies for the Greek concept of Apollo's swan chariot and the accompanying set of ideas were often discussed alongside some comparable Central and North European iconographic representations. This study approaches the problem by collating, with a help of structural analysis, a number of highly specific complex prehistoric iconographic arrangements (most notably the Dupljaja chariot), which suggest a similar concept was indeed current in the tradition of some European pre-literate societies. The principles employed here in the iconographic analysis of complex symbolic structures, offered a sound methodological basis for comparing literary with iconographic sources. It is concluded that their underlying muthos represents an account of the annual solar movement in terms of anthropomorphic causation.

Divine power from abroad. Some new thoughts about the foreign influences on the Aegean Bronze Age religious iconography.

"Divine power from abroad. Some new thoughts about the foreign influences on the Aegean Bronze Age religious iconography." In Metaphysis. Ritual, Myth and Symbolism in the Aegean Bronze Age. Proceedings of the 15th Aegean Conference, Vienna, Institute for Oriental and European Archaeology (OREA), Department Aegean and Anatolia, Austrian Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Classical Archaeology, University of Vienna, 22-25 April 2014, edited by E. Alram-Stern et al., 263-74. Aegaeum 39. Leuven – Liège: Peeters.

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.

When the Sun Meets Okeanos: The Glitter Path as an Eschatological Route, from the Late Bronze Age to Archaic Greece

Journal of Skyscape Archaeology, 2020

In the Aegean, a landscape of small islands and peninsulas means that views of the Sun rising or setting over the sea are commonplace. Yet this everyday occurrence can produce a dazzling spectacle known as the "glitter path"-a line of bright sunlight reflected on the water, linking the seashore and the horizon. This paper explores how this phenomenon was elaborated as a form of seascape by the Aegean Greeks from Late Bronze Age (LBA) III through to the Archaic period, examining how it was incorporated into their worldview as something natural assimilated into the cultural. The diachronic perspective focuses on elements of continuity and discontinuity regarding beliefs about the world beyond. First, funerary pottery iconography from LB III (ca. 1400-1100 BC) is examined: in particular, a close relationship between the Sun and the sea can be inferred from imagery on Octopus Style funerary jars, where abstract representations of glitter paths seem to appear in the shape of hybrid octopuses. The evidence suggests that the octopus was depicted as the light-bearer within the darkness of the sea, with marked eyes to emphasise vision. The second part of the study gathers proof of allusions to the phenomenon of the glitter path in early Greek poetry as suggested by the descriptions of the door of Hades and gates of the Sun in the first literary documents produced in Greece from the eighth century BC, most notably in the works of Homer and Hesiod, but also in the poetry of Pindar, Mimnermus and Stesichorus.

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 Land of the Solstices: Myth, geography and astronomy in ancient Greece

BAR International Series, 2021

Following the recent upsurge of interest in ancient geography and astronomy, together with the ever-present fascination with myth, this book offers a fresh study of what is commonly but erroneously known as ‘solar myth’. This subject has been at the margins of scholarly interest, mainly due to the now-outdated theories of myth that used solar phenomena as an interpretative key to explain the majority of traditional narratives. This book offers a more rigorous methodology and more selective interpretation applicable to a group of particular myths, those referencing solar phenomena. The class of ‘solar’ myths discussed in this book is thus formed out of traditional narratives that either explicitly include references to solar movement or the recognition of such references does not require strained interpretations. Reviews: Marinus Anthony Van Der Sluijs, Concepts of Sun and Earth in the Ancient World - (T.) Bilić The Land of the Solstices. Myth, Geography and Astronomy in Ancient Greece. (BAR International Series 3039.) Pp. xiv + 198, ills. Oxford: BAR Publishing, 2021. Paper, £49. ISBN: 978-1-4073-5862-8. The Classical Review, First View, pp. 1 - 3 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0009840X21003607 Juan Antonio Belmonte, Myth and meteorology - The Land of the Solstices: Myth, Geography and Astronomy in Ancient Greece. Tomislav Bilić (BAR Publishing, Oxford, 2021). Pp. xiii + 198. £49. ISBN 9781407358628 (paper), Journal for the History of Astronomy 53.2, 2022, 233−234. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/00218286221080452 Anthony F. Aveni, The Land of the Solstices: Myth, Geography, and Astronomy in Ancient Greece by Tomislav Bilíc, Oxford, BAR Publishing, 2021, 212 pp., £49 (paperback), ISBN 978-1-407-35862, Time and Mind, 15.2, 2022, 263−264. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1751696X.2022.2122357 Robert Hannah, Tomislav Bilić, Land of the Solstices: Myth, Geography and Astronomy in Ancient Greece. BAR International Series 3039. Oxford: BAR Publishing, 2021. 212 pp. ISBN: 9781407358628. £49.00. Journal of Skyscape Archaeology 8.2, 2022, 309–314. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1558/jsa.25604