Mark Geller-Giusto Traina, "Tigranu, the Crown Prince of Armenia“: Evidence from the Babylonian Astronomical Diaries, Klio 95 (2013), 447–454 (original) (raw)
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Review of: A.J. Sachs, H. Hunger, Astronomical Diaries and Related Texts from Babylonia. Volume III. Diaries from 164 B.C. to 61 B.C.Vienna 1996. Review of the historical sections. Demetrius I's accession (162/1 BC), Alexander Balas and Demetrius I (150 BC), Demetrius IÍ's accession and Egypt (145 BC), The Parthian conquest of Babylonia (April-July 141 BC), Antiochus VI and Tryphon (Jan. 140), Demetrius II's attack on Parthia (July/August 138 BC), The death of Mithradates I (now to be corrected to 132 BC - cf. comments at BCHP 18 (www.livius.org > Mesopotamia) with ref. to work of G.R.F. Assar), Marat Sea, the physical condition of Babylon and other Babylonian cities in the Parthian period, Chronological table 162-138 BC.
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We present preliminary findings of a study of astronomical phenomena observed and extant in written sources from Georgia and Armenia. By way of background , we discuss prior research by Georgian and, to a lesser extent, Armenian scholars on the practice of astronomy in medieval Georgia and Armenia. To date, we have assembled numerous regional accounts of naked eye observations of comets, meteor showers, solar and lunar eclipses, and other Solar System phenomena. We show how the primary accounts prove useful to Applied Historical Astronomy--a field to which one of the authors (FRS) has made many contributions over the past four decades.
ARMENIAN ARCHAEOASTRONOMY AND ASTRONOMY IN CULTURE
2016
A review is given on archaeoastronomy in Armenia and astronomical knowledge reflected in the Armenian culture. Astronomy in Armenia was popular since ancient times and Armenia is rich in its astronomical heritage, such as the names of the constellations, ancient observatories, Armenian rock art (numerous petroglyphs of astronomical content), ancient and medieval Armenian calendars, astronomical terms and names used in Armenian language since II-I millennia B.C., records of astronomical events by ancient Armenians (e.g. Halley's comet in 87 B.C., supernovae explosion in 1054), the astronomical heritage of the Armenian medieval great thinker Anania Shirakatsi's (612-685), medieval sky maps and astronomical devices by Ghukas (Luca) Vanandetsi (XVII-XVIII centuries) and Mkhitar Sebastatsi (1676-1749), etc. For systemization and further regular studies, we have created a webpage devoted to Armenian archaeoastronomical matters at Armenian Astronomical Society (ArAS) website. Issues on astronomy in culture include astronomy in ancient Armenian cultures, ethnoastronomy, astronomy in Armenian religion and mythology, astronomy and astrology, astronomy in folklore and poetry, astronomy in arts, astrolinguistics and astroheraldry. A similar webpage for Astronomy in Armenian Culture is being created at ArAS website and a permanent section "Archaeoastronomy and Astronomy in Culture" has been created in ArAS Electronic Newsletter. Several meetings on this topic have been organized in Armenia during 2007-2014, including the archaeoastronomical meetings in 2012 and 2014, and a number of books have been published. Several institutions are related to these studies coordinated by Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory (BAO) and researchers from the fields of astronomy, history, archaeology, literature, linguistics, etc. are involved.
Ancient Armenia: Evidence and Models, "Electrum" 28, 2021, 13–20
The history of the kingdom of Greater Armenia (after 188 BCE-428 CE) has been generally interpreted from two different standpoints, an 'inner' and an 'outer' one. Greater Armenia as a marginal entity or a sidekick of Rome during the endless war with Iran, and even Iranian scholars neglected or diminished the role of Armenia in the balance of power. This paper discussed some methodological issues.
Further Astronomical Fine-tuning of the Old Assyrian and Old Babylonian Chronologies (2017)
2017
Recently much progress has been made in the absolute dating of the old Assyrian and old Babylonian chronologies by combining a new critical edition of the old Assyrian eponym lists found at Kültepe-Kaneš (revised eponym list) with radiocarbon and astronomical dating techniques. this has led to narrowing down the absolute dating of the old Babylonian chronology to the two middle chronologies (Ammī-ṣaduqa year 1 = 1646 or 1638 BC) and to reducing the candidates for the solar eclipse recorded in the Mari eponym chronicle (rel 127) to three eclipses (in 1845 BC, 1838 BC, and 1833 BC). in this paper i use the results of a recent study of the intercalation of the old Assyrian calendar at Kaneš (REL 81-110) to further refine the absolute dating of the chronology of the first half of the second millennium BC. the new evidence suggests that astronomical intercalation criteria like the heliacal rising of the bright star Sirius may have played an important role in establishing the intercalation pattern of the old Assyrian calendar. using the REL to create three different solutions of the old Assyrian calendar at Kaneš (rel 81-110), one for each candidate solar eclipse, i propose that the observed intercalation pattern provides an additional independent argument in support of the low middle chronology. According to the absolute dating of the old Assyrian chronology proposed here Šamšī-Adad was born in 1839 BC (REL 126), in the year preceding the partial solar eclipse of 24 march 1838 BC (REL 127) and he died in December 1767 BC (REL 197), during the eighteenth year of the reign of king Hammurabi of Babylon. this chronology proposal implies that the beginning of the reign of the old Assyrian king Erišum (REL 1) may be dated to 1964 BC.
BM 30617: An astronomical diary from the reign of Antiochus and his son Antiochus
Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies
This is the first publication of the astronomical diary BM 30617 from Babylon. This clay tablet shows an example of “preliminary diaries”, which record primary observations of the sky and, if any, the Euphrates for one month or less. The cuneiform text of BM 30617 shows the primary day-by-day observations of the sky over the first four days of the Babylonian month IX (Kislīm). The recorded phenomena are dated to an unknown year during the joint kingship of Antiochus and his son (or stepson), also named Antiochus, of the Seleucid dynasty. Some clues in the diary, however, help us to narrow down the candidates for the year to which our month IX belongs.
Hunara: Journal of Ancient Iranian Arts and History, 2024
The history of Armenia during the destruction of the Achaemenid Kingdom is fragmentarily presented in extant sources, which do not allow forming a complete picture of the history of Armenia. In this regard, Arrian’s account of the 2nd century AD refers to the participation of Armenians in the Battle of Gaugamela, which took place in 331 BC. This data has sparked controversy in Armenology, and it is not an isolated exception. The mention of Armenian involvement in the Battle of Gaugamela is important in the sense that after two hundred years of Achaemenid rule, Armenia regained its independence and conducted independent politics in international relations. The Arrian’s account is also important in identifying Orontes and Mithraustes, who led the Armenians.
Bulletin Of The Institute Of Oriental Studies (BIOS), 2023
This article re-examines the circumstances, reasons and date of taking Tigranes II the Great into hostage by the Parthians from a new perspective. In the light of in-formation from late Babylonian cuneiform, Greco-Roman, ancient Armenian and ancient Georgian sources, the prevailing scholarly opinion that the surrender of Prince Tigranes as a hostage was due to the demands of the Parthian side following the Armenian military defeat by Parthian King Mithridates II is challenged and refuted. A new interpretation of events logically connects the accounts of Justin [25:322] and Strabo [42:336-340] regarding taking Tigranes II the Great hostage, which is confirmed by the late Babylonian cuneiform tablet, with information from Strabo [43:224-225] of successful Armenian resistance against repeated Parthian aggression.
Adontz, Armenia and Iran in Late Antiquity
Travaux et Mémoires 26 , 2022
BHG Bibliotheca hagiographica graeca, 3 e éd. mise à jour et considérablement augmentée, Bruxelles 1957. BHO Bibliotheca hagiographica orientalis. Bruxelles. BMGS Byzantine and modern Greek studies. Leeds. BSl. Byzantinoslavica : revue internationale des études byzantines. Praha. BSOAS Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African studies. London. Byz. Byzantion : revue internationale des études byzantines. Wetteren-Leuven.