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Babylonian astronomy Babylonian astronomy was the study or recording of celestial objects during the early history of Mesopotamia. The numeral system used, sexagesimal, was based on 60, as opposed to ten in the modern decimal system. This system simplified the ca ...
collated earlier observations and divinations into sets of Babylonian star catalogues, during and after the
Kassite The Kassites () were a people of the ancient Near East. They controlled Babylonia after the fall of the Old Babylonian Empire from until (short chronology). The Kassites gained control of Babylonia after the Hittite sack of Babylon in 1531 B ...
rule over
Babylonia Babylonia (; , ) was an Ancient history, ancient Akkadian language, Akkadian-speaking state and cultural area based in the city of Babylon in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq and parts of Kuwait, Syria and Iran). It emerged as a ...
. These
star catalogues A star catalogue is an astronomical catalogue that lists stars. In astronomy, many stars are referred to simply by catalogue numbers. There are a great many different star catalogues which have been produced for different purposes over the year ...
, written in
cuneiform Cuneiform is a Logogram, logo-Syllabary, syllabic writing system that was used to write several languages of the Ancient Near East. The script was in active use from the early Bronze Age until the beginning of the Common Era. Cuneiform script ...
script, contained lists of constellations, individual stars, and planets. The constellations were probably collected from various other sources. The earliest catalogue, ''Three Stars Each'', mentions stars of Akkad, of Amurru, of
Elam Elam () was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of Iran, stretching from the lowlands of what is now Khuzestan and Ilam Province as well as a small part of modern-day southern Iraq. The modern name ''Elam'' stems fr ...
and others. Various sources have theorized a
Sumer Sumer () is the earliest known civilization, located in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (now south-central Iraq), emerging during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age, early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. ...
ian origin for these Babylonian constellations, but an
Elam Elam () was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of Iran, stretching from the lowlands of what is now Khuzestan and Ilam Province as well as a small part of modern-day southern Iraq. The modern name ''Elam'' stems fr ...
ite origin has also been proposed. A connection to the star symbology of Kassite
kudurru A kudurru was a type of stone document used as a boundary stone and as a record of land grants to vassals by the Kassites and later dynasties in ancient Babylonia between the 16th and 7th centuries BC. The original kudurru would typically be stor ...
border stones has also been claimed, but whether such kudurrus really represented constellations and astronomical information aside from the use of the symbols remains unclear. Star catalogues after ''Three Stars Each'' include the '' MUL.APIN'' list named after the first Babylonian constellation ', "the Plough", which is the current
Triangulum Triangulum is a small constellation in the northern sky. Its name is Latin for "triangle", derived from its three brightest stars, which form a long and narrow triangle. Known to the ancient Babylonians and Greeks, Triangulum was one of the 48 ...
constellation plus
Gamma Andromedae Gamma Andromedae is a multiple star system in the northern constellation of Andromeda. It is the third-brightest star in the constellation, after Alpheratz and Mirach. Its identifier is a Bayer designation that is Latinized from γ ...
. It lists, among others, 17 or 18 constellations in the
zodiac The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north and south celestial latitude of the ecliptic – the apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. Within this zodiac ...
. Later catalogues reduce the zodiacal set of constellations to 12, which were borrowed by the
Egyptians Egyptians (, ; , ; ) are an ethnic group native to the Nile, Nile Valley in Egypt. Egyptian identity is closely tied to Geography of Egypt, geography. The population is concentrated in the Nile Valley, a small strip of cultivable land stretchi ...
and the
Greeks Greeks or Hellenes (; , ) are an ethnic group and nation native to Greece, Greek Cypriots, Cyprus, Greeks in Albania, southern Albania, Greeks in Turkey#History, Anatolia, parts of Greeks in Italy, Italy and Egyptian Greeks, Egypt, and to a l ...
, still surviving among the
modern constellations In contemporary astronomy, 88 constellations are recognized by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Each constellation is a region of the sky bordered by arcs of right ascension and declination, together covering the entire celestial sph ...
.


''Three Stars Each''

The first formal compendia of star lists are the ''Three Stars Each'' texts appearing from about the twelfth century BC. They represent a tripartite division of the heavens: the northern hemisphere belonged to
Enlil Enlil, later known as Elil and Ellil, is an List of Mesopotamian deities, ancient Mesopotamian god associated with wind, air, earth, and storms. He is first attested as the chief deity of the Sumerian pantheon, but he was later worshipped by t ...
, the equator belonged to Anu, and the southern hemisphere belonged to
Enki Enki ( ) is the Sumerian god of water, knowledge ('' gestú''), crafts (''gašam''), and creation (''nudimmud''), and one of the Anunnaki. He was later known as Ea () or Ae p. 324, note 27. in Akkadian (Assyrian-Babylonian) religion, and ...
. The boundaries were at 17 degrees North and South, so that the Sun spent exactly three consecutive months in each third. The enumeration of stars in the ''Three Stars Each'' catalogues includes 36 stars, three for each month. The determiner glyph for "constellation" or "star" in these lists is MUL (), originally a pictograph of three stars, as it were a triplet of AN signs; e. g. the
Pleiades The Pleiades (), also known as Seven Sisters and Messier 45 (M45), is an Asterism (astronomy), asterism of an open cluster, open star cluster containing young Stellar classification#Class B, B-type stars in the northwest of the constellation Tau ...
are referred to as a "star cluster" or "star of stars" in the lists, written as MUL.MUL, or MULMUL ().


MUL.APIN

The second formal compendium of stars in Babylonian astronomy is the MUL.APIN, a pair of tablets named for their ''incipit'', corresponding to the first constellation of the year, "The Plough", identified with
Triangulum Triangulum is a small constellation in the northern sky. Its name is Latin for "triangle", derived from its three brightest stars, which form a long and narrow triangle. Known to the ancient Babylonians and Greeks, Triangulum was one of the 48 ...
plus
Gamma Andromedae Gamma Andromedae is a multiple star system in the northern constellation of Andromeda. It is the third-brightest star in the constellation, after Alpheratz and Mirach. Its identifier is a Bayer designation that is Latinized from γ ...
. The list is a direct descendant of the ''Three Stars Each'' list, reworked around 1000 BC on the basis of more accurate observations. They include more constellations, including most circumpolar ones, and more of the zodiacal ones. The Babylonian star catalogues entered
Greek astronomy Ancient Greek astronomy is the astronomy written in the Greek language during classical antiquity. Greek astronomy is understood to include the Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek, Hellenistic period, Hellenistic, Roman Empire, Greco-Roman, and Late an ...
in the 4th century BC, via
Eudoxus of Cnidus Eudoxus of Cnidus (; , ''Eúdoxos ho Knídios''; ) was an Ancient Greece, ancient Greek Ancient Greek astronomy, astronomer, Greek mathematics, mathematician, doctor, and lawmaker. He was a student of Archytas and Plato. All of his original work ...
and others. A few of the
constellation name A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object. The first constellations were likely defin ...
s in use in modern astronomy can be traced to Babylonian sources via Greek astronomy. Among the most ancient constellations are those that marked the four cardinal points of the year in the
Middle Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...
, i.e. *
Taurus Taurus is Latin for 'bull' and may refer to: * Taurus (astrology), the astrological sign ** Vṛṣabha, in vedic astrology * Taurus (constellation), one of the constellations of the zodiac * Taurus (mythology), one of two Greek mythological ch ...
"The Bull", from (𒀯𒄞𒀭𒈾) ''MULGU4.AN.NA'' "The Steer of Heaven", marking vernal equinox * Leo "The Lion", from (𒀯𒌨) ''MULUR.GU.LA'' "The Lion", marking
summer solstice The summer solstice or estival solstice occurs when one of Earth's poles has its maximum tilt toward the Sun. It happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere ( Northern and Southern). The summer solstice is the day with the longest peri ...
*
Scorpius Scorpius is a zodiac constellation located in the Southern celestial hemisphere, where it sits near the center of the Milky Way, between Libra to the west and Sagittarius to the east. Scorpius is an ancient constellation whose recognition pred ...
"The Scorpion", from (𒀯𒄈𒋰) ''MULGIR.TAB'' "The Scorpion", marking autumn equinox *
Capricornus Capricornus is one of the constellations of the zodiac. Its name is Latin for "horned goat" or "goat Horn (anatomy), horn" or "having horns like a goat's", and it is commonly represented in the form of a sea goat: a mythical creature that is hal ...
"Goat-Horned", from (𒀯𒋦𒈧𒄩) ''MULSUḪUR.MAŠ'' "The Goat-Fish", marking
winter solstice The winter solstice, or hibernal solstice, occurs when either of Earth's geographical pole, poles reaches its maximum axial tilt, tilt away from the Sun. This happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (Northern Hemisphere, Northern and So ...
. It is a
mythological hybrid Hybrid beasts are creatures composed of parts from different animals, including humans, appearing in the folklore of a variety of cultures as legendary creatures. In burial sites Remains similar to those of mythological hybrids have been found ...
depicted on boundary stones from before 2000 BC as a symbol of Ea. There are other constellation names which can be traced to Bronze Age origins, including
Gemini Gemini most often refers to: * Gemini (constellation), one of the constellations of the zodiac * Gemini (astrology), an astrological sign Gemini may also refer to: Science and technology Space * Gemini in Chinese astronomy, the Gemini constellat ...
"The Twins", from (𒀯𒈦𒋰𒁀𒃲𒃲) ''MULMAŠ.TAB.BA.GAL.GAL'' "The Great Twins",
Cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...
"The Crab", from (𒀯𒀠𒇻) ''MULAL.LUL'' "The Crayfish", among others. The MUL.APIN gives *a catalogue of 71 stars and constellations of the "Three Ways" of the ''Three Stars Each'' tradition. The star names (prefixed with MUL 𒀯) are listed with the associated deity (prefix
DINGIR ''Dingir'' ⟨⟩, usually transliterated DIĜIR, () is a Sumerian word for 'god' or 'goddess'. Its cuneiform sign is most commonly employed as the determinative for religious names and related concepts, in which case it is not pronounced and ...
𒀭) and often some other brief epithet. *dates of
heliacal rising The heliacal rising ( ) of a star or a planet occurs annually when it becomes visible above the eastern horizon at dawn just before sunrise (thus becoming "the Morning Star (disambiguation)#Astronomy, morning star"). A heliacal rising marks the ti ...
s *pairs of constellations which rise and set simultaneously *time-intervals between dates of heliacal risings *pairs of constellations which are simultaneously at the zenith and at the horizon *the path of the moon and planets. *a solar calendar *the planets and the durations of their solar conjunctions *stellar risings and planetary positions for predicting weather and for adjusting the calendar *telling time by length of the
gnomon A gnomon (; ) is the part of a sundial that casts a shadow. The term is used for a variety of purposes in mathematics and other fields, typically to measure directions, position, or time. History A painted stick dating from 2300 BC that was ...
shadow *length of night watches during the year *omens connected with the appearance of stars, planets, MUL.U.RI.RI (comets?), and winds.


Zodiacal constellations

The path of the Moon as given in MUL.APIN consists of 17 or 18 stations, recognizable as the direct predecessors of the 12 sign zodiac. At the beginning of the list with MUL.MUL, the
Pleiades The Pleiades (), also known as Seven Sisters and Messier 45 (M45), is an Asterism (astronomy), asterism of an open cluster, open star cluster containing young Stellar classification#Class B, B-type stars in the northwest of the constellation Tau ...
, corresponds to the situation in the Early to Middle
Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...
when the Sun at vernal equinox was close to the
Pleiades The Pleiades (), also known as Seven Sisters and Messier 45 (M45), is an Asterism (astronomy), asterism of an open cluster, open star cluster containing young Stellar classification#Class B, B-type stars in the northwest of the constellation Tau ...
in
Taurus Taurus is Latin for 'bull' and may refer to: * Taurus (astrology), the astrological sign ** Vṛṣabha, in vedic astrology * Taurus (constellation), one of the constellations of the zodiac * Taurus (mythology), one of two Greek mythological ch ...
(closest in the 23rd century BCE), and not yet in
Aries Aries may refer to: *Aries (astrology), an astrological sign *Aries (constellation), a constellation in the zodiac Arts, entertainment and media * ''Aries'' (album), by Luis Miguel, 1993 * ''Aries'' (EP), by Alice Chater, 2020 * "Aries" (song), ...
. The "Tail" and the "Great Swallow" (items 15 and 16 above) have also been read as a single constellation the "Tail of the Swallow" (Pisces). This is the source of the uncertainty over the number of constellations — 17 or 18 — in the Babylonian "zodiac". All constellations of the
Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...
12-sign
zodiac The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north and south celestial latitude of the ecliptic – the apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. Within this zodiac ...
are present among them, most of them with names that clearly identify them, while some reached Greek astronomy with altered names; thus "Furrow" became Virgo, "Pabilsag" Sagittarius, "Great One" Aquarius, "Swallow Tail" Pisces and "Farm Worker" was reinterpreted as Aries. Virgo, and her main star
Spica Spica is the brightest object in the constellation of Virgo and one of the 20 brightest stars in the night sky. It has the Bayer designation α Virginis, which is Latinised to Alpha Virginis and abbreviated Alpha Vir or α Vir. Analys ...
, have Babylonian precedents. The MUL.APIN associates ''Absin'' "The Furrow" with the Sumerian goddess
Shala Shala (Šala) was a Mesopotamian goddess of weather and grain and the wife of the weather god Adad. It is assumed that she originated in northern Mesopotamia and that her name might have Hurrian origin. She was worshiped especially in Karka ...
, and on boundary stones of the
Kassite The Kassites () were a people of the ancient Near East. They controlled Babylonia after the fall of the Old Babylonian Empire from until (short chronology). The Kassites gained control of Babylonia after the Hittite sack of Babylon in 1531 B ...
era Shala is conventionally depicted as holding a length of grain. Regarding Sagittarius, Pabilsag is a comparatively obscure Sumerian god, later identified with
Ninurta Ninurta (: , possible meaning "Lord fBarley"), also known as Ninĝirsu (: , meaning "Lord fGirsu"), is an List of Mesopotamian deities, ancient Mesopotamian god associated with farming, healing, hunting, law, scribes, and war who was f ...
. Another name for the constellation was ''Nebu'' "The Soldier". Aquarius "The Water-Pourer" represents Ea (a water god), dubbed "The Great One" in the MUL.APIN. It contained the
winter solstice The winter solstice, or hibernal solstice, occurs when either of Earth's geographical pole, poles reaches its maximum axial tilt, tilt away from the Sun. This happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (Northern Hemisphere, Northern and So ...
in the Early
Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...
. In Greek astronomy, he became represented as simply a single vase from which a stream poured down to
Piscis Austrinus Piscis Austrinus is a constellation in the southern celestial hemisphere. The name is Latin for "the southern fish", in contrast with the larger constellation Pisces, which represents a pair of fish. Before the 20th century, it was also known as ...
. The name in the Hindu zodiac is likewise ''kumbha'' "water-pitcher", showing that the zodiac reached India via Greek intermediaries. The current definition of
Pisces Pisces may refer to: *Pisces (astrology), an astrological sign Astronomy *Pisces (constellation), a constellation ** Pisces Overdensity, an overdensity of stars in the Milky Way's halo that is situated in the Pisces constellation ** Pisces II, a ...
is the youngest of the zodiacal constellations. The "Swallow" of Babylonian astronomy included the western fish, but was larger as it included as well parts of
Pegasus Pegasus (; ) is a winged horse in Greek mythology, usually depicted as a white stallion. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as horse-god, and foaled by the Gorgon Medusa. Pegasus was the brother of Chrysaor, both born from Medusa's blood w ...
. The square of Pegasus was the constellation of the "field", shown in the
Dendera zodiac The sculptured Dendera zodiac (or Denderah zodiac) is a widely known Art of ancient Egypt, Egyptian bas-relief from the ceiling of the ''pronaos'' (or portico) of a chapel dedicated to Osiris in the Dendera Temple complex, Hathor temple at Dende ...
between the two fishes. The northern fish and part of Andromeda represented the goddess Anunitum, the "Lady of the Heaven". Late Babylonian sources mention also DU.NU.NU "The Fish-Cord". It is unclear how the "Farm Worker" of the MUL.APIN became Aries "The Ram" of Greek tradition, possibly by a pun or misunderstanding. Somewhere around the 5th century BCE, Babylonian astronomical texts began to describe the positions of the Sun, Moon, and planets in terms of 12 equally-spaced signs, each one associated with a zodiacal constellation, each divided into 30  degrees (''uš''). This normalized zodiac is fixed to the stars and totals 360 degrees.


See also

* Babylonian astrology *
Babylonian calendar The Babylonian calendar was a lunisolar calendar used in Mesopotamia from around the 2nd millennium BC until the Seleucid Era ( 294 BC), and it was specifically used in Babylon from the Old Babylonian Period ( 1780s BC) until the Seleucid Era. ...
*
Constellation A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms Asterism (astronomy), a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object. The first constellati ...
*
Enuma Anu Enlil Enuma Anu Enlil ( ,'' The Assyrian Dictionary'', volume 7 (I/J) – ''inūma'', The Oriental Institute, Chicago 1960, s. 160. ''When he gods Anu and Enlil'' .., abbreviated EAE, is a major series of 68 or 70 tablets (depending on the recension) ...
*
Triple deity A triple deity is a deity with three apparent forms that function as a singular whole. Such deities may sometimes be referred to as threefold, tripled, triplicate, tripartite, triune, triadic, or as a trinity. The number three has a long history ...
*
Venus tablet of Ammisaduqa The Venus tablet of Ammisaduqa (''Enuma Anu Enlil'' Tablet 63) is the record of astronomical positions for Venus, as preserved in numerous cuneiform clay tablet, tablets dating from the first millennium BC. Scholars believe that this astronomical ...


Notes


References

*John H. Rogers,
Origins of the ancient constellations: I. The Mesopotamian traditions
, ''Journal of the British Astronomical Association'' 108 (1998) 9–28 * Verderame, Lorenzo, "The Primeval Zodiac: Its Social, Religious, and Mythological Background", in J.A. Rubiño-Martín et al., Cosmology Across Cultures, ASP Conference Series 409, San Francisco, 2009, 151-156. {{DEFAULTSORT:Babylonian Star Catalogues Babylonian astronomy Former constellations