Archaeoastronomy and Bedouin Star-Lore in the Rock Art of the Negev Desert (original) (raw)

The archaeological record of the Late Neolithic – Chalcolithic – Early Bronze Age periods in the Negev exhibits prevalent east to west orientations, which is understood in the literature as an expression of the preoccupations with afterlife beliefs, mortuary cult and ancestor worship. These archaeological remains are often described as astronomical alignments and are related to the setting sun on the day of the summer solstice. They are attributed to an emerging pastoralist elite. Orientation seems to be also the central theme in the oral traditions of contemporary pastoralists. While the material remains express orientation in space, the oral traditions, which are illustrated at their best in star-lore, express an orientation in time: the cyclic renewal of seasons is observed in the east to west passage of stars and asterisms. The seasons and the constellations, which define them, are related to equinoxes. As material and spiritual expressions of the beliefs that characterize pastoral nomads, the archaeological record and star-lore seem to be closely related. However, due to polar shift and the precession of the equinoxes, contemporary star-lore orientates itself differently from its Chalcolithic – Early Bronze Age forerunner, and it cannot reflect the orientation exhibited by tumuli fields, walls, masseboth and other remains, except in a very approximate way. A significant pre-cession of equinoxes occurred in the early phases of the Middle Bronze Age. The event left a deep mark on cultures worldwide and it was paralleled by a shift in symbolism. In the Negev it also meant a deterioration of the climate. Nomadic mythology and star-lore had to re-orientate themselves, to adjust to the new coordinates, which superseded an apparently perfect previous order. The majority of the rock art corpus in the Negev is dated roughly to the period that preceded the shift. However, a few of the engravings dated to the Early Bronze Age become meaningful only when related to the changes, which occurred during and after the precession of the equinoxes. Other engravings reflect precisely Chalcolithic – Early Bronze Age realities, but their symbolic implications outlived the astronomic context in which they were conceived and they are actual even in our days.