Babylonians. The Scorpion-Man and his wife guard the gate leading to
the Māšu mountain(s), and watch the sun at rising and setting. Their
upper part reaches to the sky, and their _irtu_ (breast?) to the lower
regions (Epic of Gistubar 60, 9). After Gistubar has traversed the Māšu
Mountain, he reaches the sea. This sea lies to the east or south-east.
However obscure these conceptions may be, and however they may render a
general idea impossible, one thing is clear, that the Scorpion-Men are
to be imagined at the boundary between land and sea, upper and lower
world, and in such a way that the upper or human portion belongs to the
upper region, and the lower, the Scorpion body, to the lower. Hence
the Scorpion-Man represents the boundary between light and darkness,
between the firm land and the water region of the world. _Marduk_,
the god of light, and vanquisher of Tiāmat, _i.e._ the ocean, has for
a symbol the Bull = Taurus, into which he entered in spring. This
leads almost necessarily to the supposition that both the Bull and
the Scorpion were located in the heavens at a time when the sun had
its vernal equinox in Taurus and its autumnal equinox in Scorpio, and
that in their principal parts or most conspicuous star groups; hence
probably in the vicinity of Aldebaran and Antares, or at an epoch when
the principal parts of Taurus and Scorpio appeared before the sun at
the equinoxes."
If my suggestion be admitted that the Babylonians dealt not with the
daily fight but with the yearly fight between light and darkness--that
is, the antithesis between day and night was expanded into the
antithesis between the summer and the winter halves of the year--then
it is clear that at the vernal equinox Scorpio setting in the west
would be watching the sunrise; at the autumnal equinox rising in the
east, it would be watching the sunset; one part would be visible in
the sky, the other would be below the horizon in the celestial waters.
If this be so, all obscurity disappears, and we have merely a very
beautiful statement of a fact, from which we learn that the time to
which the fact applied was about 3000 B.C., if the sun were then near
the Pleiades.
Jensen, in the above-quoted passage by implication, and in a subsequent
one directly, suggests that not all the zodiacal constellations were
established at the same time. The Babylonians apparently began with
the easier problem of having six constellations instead of twelve. For
instance, we have already found that to complete the present number,
between
Scorpio Capricornus Pisces
we must interpolate
Sagittarius Aquarius.
Aries and Libra seem also to be late additions according to Jensen, who
writes:--
"We have already above (p. 90) attempted to explain the striking
phenomenon that the Bull and Pegasus, both with half-bodies only,
ἡμίτομοι, enclose the Ram between them, by the assumption that the
latter was interposed later, when the sun at the time of the vernal
equinox was in the hind parts of the Bull, so that this point was
no longer sufficiently marked in the sky. Another matter susceptible
of a like explanation may be noted in the region of the sky opposite
to the Ram and the Bull. Although we cannot doubt the existence of
an eastern balance, still, as already remarked (p. 68), the Greeks
have often called it χηλαὶ 'claws' (of the Scorpion), and according
to what has been said above (p. 312), the sign for a constellation
in the neighbourhood of our Libra reads in the Arsacid inscription
'claw(s)' of the Scorpion. These facts are very simply explained on the
supposition that the Scorpion originally extended into the region of
the Balance, and that originally α and β Libræ represented the 'horns'
of the Scorpion, but later on, when the autumnal equinox coincided with
them, the term Balance was applied to them. Although this was used as
an additional name, it was only natural that the old term should still
be used as an equivalent. But it also indicates the great age of a
portion of the zodiac."
Let us suppose that what happened in the case of Aries and Libra
happened with six constellations out of the twelve: _in other words,
that the original zodiac consisted only of six constellations_.
Taurus
_Gemini_
Crab
(or Tortoise)
_Lion_
Virgin
(or ear of corn)
_Libra_
Scorpion
_Sagittarius_
Capricornus
_Aquarius_
Pisces
_Aries_
The left-hand list not only classifies in an unbroken manner
the Fish-Man, the Goat-Fish, the Scorpion-Man, and Marduk of the
Babylonians, but we pick up all or nearly all of the ecliptic stars
or constellations met with in early Egyptian mythology, Apis, The
Tortoise,[178] Min, Serk-t, Chnemu, as represented by appropriate
symbols.
Further, the remarkable suppression or small representation of the
Lion in both the more ancient Babylonian and Egyptian mythology is
explained. I have shown before how the Babylonians with an equinoctial
year would take slight account of the solstice, while it also follows
that the Egyptians, who were wise enough not to use zodiacal stars for
their warnings of sunrise, for the reason that stars in the brighter
light of dawn near the sun are more difficult to see, might easily
neglect the constellation of the Lion, as first Phact and then Sirius,
both southern stars, marked for them the advent of the summer solstice;
on different grounds, then, the Lion might well have been at first
omitted in both countries.
Since there is a doubt as to the existence of the Lion among the first
Babylonian constellations, the argument in the following paragraph
would appear to refer to observations made at a later time, when
totemism was less prevalent:--
"The Lion in the heavens must represent the heat of the summer. He
does this most effectually when the summer solstice coincides with
the constellation--that is, when its principal stars appear before
the sun at the summer solstice. This happened at the time when the
vernal equinox lay in Taurus, and when the principal star-group of
the Bull appeared before the sun at the time of the vernal equinox.
The Water-jug (Amphora), Aquarius, must represent symbolically the
watery season of winter. It does this most effectually when the winter
solstice coincides with it, or its principal star-group appears before
the sun at the winter solstice. This happened about the time when the
vernal equinox lay in Taurus, and its principal star-group rose before
the sun at the time of the vernal equinox."
Thanks to Jensen's researches, then, we have the important conclusion
before us that the Babylonians, as well as the Egyptians, in early
times symbolised the following constellations:--
Taurus Bull.
Cancer Tortoise.
Virgo Ear of corn or other product representing fertility.
Scorpio Scorpion.
Capricornus Goat-man or goat-fish.
Pisces Fish-man.
But what time was this?
We have seen that in Egypt the Bull constellation had been established
possibly in the time of Mena, and that certainly both the Bull and the
Scorpion had been established in pyramid times.
I have also given evidence to show that the E. and W. pyramid worship
was brought from Babylonia. Now, about this date we know that Sargon
I. was king of that country, and reigned at Accad or Agade, lat. 33°
N., on the right bank of the Euphrates, Sippara being across the river.
Here it may be mentioned that the latitudes of Eridu and Babylon are
31° N. and 32½° N. respectively, so that Agade was to the north of
both.
Although the worship of Marduk--that is, the vernal equinox
Sun-god--in Babylon was much intensified when Khammurabi reigned about
2200 B.C., it is known that it existed long before; how long I cannot
find. It is also very remarkable that the deities of Eridu, whenever
that city was pre-eminent, were guarded by sacred bulls. We must
leave it undetermined, therefore, at what date the Bull sun-god was
established; but it seems certain, on the above grounds, that it must
have been before pyramid times.
But we are not limited to the above line of evidence. There are
astronomical considerations which will help us. For the purpose of
noting the validity of the argument based upon them, a slight reference
is necessary to the change of the equinoctial point along the ecliptic.
By the processional movement, the position of the sun in the ecliptic
at an equinox or solstice sweeps round the ecliptic in about 25,000
years. Now if we suppose twelve ecliptic constellations of equal
size--that is, 30° long (30° × 12 = 360°)--the time it would take the
sun's place at the vernal equinox to pass through one constellation
would be (25000∕12 =) 2083 years. If the constellation of the Bull were
twice as long formerly as it is now (when the constellations are twice
as numerous), of course this period would be doubled.
So that the statement that the sun at the equinox was in the Bull does
not help us very much to an actual date, and the constellation of the
Lion could have been established 2000 years after the Bull, and yet
have marked the summer solstice.
Further, if all the stars of the Bull (speaking generally) are seen
at dawn--that is, before the sun rises--the sun has not yet reached
the Bull. We can then, at all events, fix a minimum of time. The sun's
longitude at the vernal equinox being always 0, the longitude of the
most easterly part of the constellation, assuming this part not to
have been changed, will give us the number of years that have elapsed.
I now go on to state Jensen's view as to the date of the introduction
of the god Marduk into Babylonian mythology, or, in other words, of the
worship of the spring-tide sun.
Jensen remarks:--
"It may safely be assumed that the constellations of the Scorpion and
the Bull actually originated at the latest at a time when the autumnal
and vernal equinoctial points respectively coincided with their
principal stars. But this was the case more than 4900 years ago. But
if we assume that Taurus and Scorpio were given their names at a time
when their main stars rose before the sun at the time of the vernal and
autumnal equinoxes respectively, we should obtain as the date of the
establishment of the constellations of Taurus and Scorpio in the skies
about the year-5000.[179] According to Dr. Tetens, the sun stood at the
tips of the horns of the Bull at the commencement of spring 6000 years
ago. At this time, therefore, Taurus had completely risen above the
eastern horizon at sunrise.
"Since it is not inconceivable that in the delineation of the first
signs of the zodiac a name was attached to a constellation of the
ecliptic emerging from behind the sun, and apparently more or less
connected, the name being such as to indicate symbolically the
beginning of the spring then occurring, the time, about 1400 B.C.,
might also be that of the introduction of the Bull (and the Scorpion).
But it is, of course, not necessary that this should have occurred at
one of the three epochs mentioned; this is, indeed, highly improbable,
and the process must be regarded as follows: When the idea was
conceived of indicating symbolically the beginning of spring in the
sky--whether the idea originated in the brains of the masses or in
that of a learned scholar, whether it had a mythological or a more
scientific basis--a name was given in the first instance to the region
in which the sun was at the beginning of spring, or to that west of
it, the name denoting symbolically the beginning of spring. This, of
course, does not exclude the possibility that more eastward portions of
the ecliptic, whose stars were less prominent, were included in this
name. From this we may conclude that Taurus did not originate later
than-3000, for at that time Aldebaran, its principal star, stood east
of the sun at the beginning of spring. Hence it would follow that our
creation legends are, at least in part, just as old."[180]
It may, then, be gathered from the above that the constellations of the
Bull and the Scorpion were recognised as such at the same early date
both in Babylonia and Egypt; and to these we may add the Tortoise (our
present Cancer) and some of the southern constellations. Further, that
the date of their establishment was certainly not later than, say, 4000
B.C., and probably much earlier.
With regard to the complete ecliptic, the information seems meagre
both from Babylonia and from Egypt in early times. I have already
referred to the Egyptian decans, that is, the lists of stars rising
at intervals of ten days. The lists will be found in Lepsius and in
Brugsch's "Astronomische und Astrologische Inschriften," but the stars
have not been made out. In later times in Babylonia--say 1000 B.C.--the
following list represents the results of Jensen's investigations:--
(1) Perhaps Aries (= "leading sheep").
(2) A "Bull (of the Heavens)" = Aldebaran or (and) = our Taurus.
(3) Gemini.
(4)?
(5) Perhaps Leo.
(6) The constellation of the "Corn in Ears" = the Ear of Corn. [Spica.]
(7) Probably Libra, whose stars are, however, at least in general,
called "The Claw(s)" (_i.e._, of the Scorpion).
(8) The Scorpion.
(9) Perhaps Sagittarius.
(10) The "Goat-fish" = Caper.
(11)?
(12) The "Fish" with the "Fish band."
A few hundred years later, we learn from the works of Strassmeyer and
Epping, a complete chain of twenty-eight stars along the ecliptic had
been established, and most careful observations made of the paths of
the moon and planets, and of all attendant phenomena. The ecliptic
stars then used in Babylonia were as follows:--[181]
1. η Piscium.
2. β Arietis.
3. α Arietis.
4. η Tauri.
5. α Tauri.
6. β Tauri.
7. ζ Tauri.
8. η Geminorum.
9. μ Geminorum.
10. γ Geminorum.
11. α Geminorum.
12. β Geminorum.
13. δ Cancri.
14. η Leonis.
15. α Leonis.
16. ρ Leonis.
17. β Leonis.
18. β Virginis.
19. γ Virginis.
20. α Virginis.
21. α Libræ.
22. β Libræ
23. δ Scorpionis.
24. α Scorpionis.
25. δ Ophiuchi.
26. α Capricorni.
27. γ Capricorni.
28. η Capricorni.
In Egypt, dating from the twentieth dynasty (1100 B.C.), is a series
of star tables which have puzzled Egyptologists from Champollion and
Biot downwards. These observations are recorded in several manuscripts
found in tombs; they seem to have been given as a sort of charm to the
people who were buried, in order to enable them to get through the
difficulties of the way in the nether world.
The hieroglyphs state that a particular star of a particular Egyptian
constellation is seen at a particular hour of the night. We have twelve
lines representing the twelve hours of the night, and it is stated that
we have in these vertical lines the equivalent of the lines in our
transit instruments, and that the reference "in the middle," "over the
right eye," "over the right shoulder," or "over the left ear," as the
case may be, is simply a reference to the position of the star.
Were this confirmed, one of the remarkable things about the inquiry
would be that the Egyptians did not hesitate in those days to make a
constellation cover very nearly 90° of right ascension, showing that
they wished to have as few constellations, including as many stars, as
possible. But the best authorities all agree that these are tables of
stars rising at different hours of the night, and a small constellation
near the pole might have taken many hours to rise.
The observations were made on the 1st and 16th of every month. The
chief stars seem to be twenty-four in number, and it looked at first as
if we had really here a list of priceless value of twenty-four either
ecliptic or equatorial stars, similar to the decans to which reference
has already been made.
Unfortunately, however, the list has resisted all efforts to
completely understand it. Whether it is a list of risings or meridian
passages even is still in dispute. Quite recently, indeed, one of
the investigators, Herr Gustav Bilfinger,[182] has not hesitated to
consider it not a list of observations at all, but a compilation for a
special purpose.
"The star-table is intended to carry the principle of time into the
rigid world of the grave, and represents over the sepulchral vault
'the eternal horizon,' as the ancient Egyptians so aptly styled the
grave, an imitation of the sky, a compensation for the sky of the upper
world with its time-measuring motion; yet the idea here is bolder,
the execution is more artificial and complicated, since the sculptor
endeavoured to combine the daily and the annual motion of the celestial
vault in _one_ picture; wanted to transfer into the grave the temporal
frames in which all human life is enacted. This endeavour to represent
by one configuration both motions and both chronological units explains
all the peculiarities and imperfections of our star-table.
"The simplest means of representing both motions was found in the
stars, which circle the earth in the course of a day, and indicate the
year by the successive appearance of new stars in the morning twilight.
If the same stars were to serve both purposes in one representation,
it was necessary to take twenty-four stars which rose at intervals
of fifteen days, since only such followed each other at an average
distance of 15°, and were therefore useful for showing the hours.
"If the calendar-maker really possessed a list of the twenty-four
principal (zodiacal) stars, the course of the year was indicated
thereby; but since he also wanted to represent the daily motion, he
might with some justice have composed each night out of eleven of
these stars, since the stars' risings are only visible during the ten
middle hours of the night. But ten hours would not have adequately
represented the night, since this was thought of as a twelve hours'
interval.
"There was a way out of it--viz., to call hora 0 'sunset,' hora 12
'sunrise,' which would have been a simple and correct solution if the
division of the night into twelve parts for practical purposes had been
aimed at. But this expedient he could not adopt, because he could or
would only operate with stars, and the notions of sunrise and sunset
found no place in his tables. Thus he was forced to _falsify_ the
customary division of the hours, by squeezing the twelve hours of the
night into the time during which star risings are visible--viz., the
dark night exclusive of twilight. On the other hand, he could not, with
his principal stars at intervals of 15°, divide his night, shortened
as it was by two hours, into twelve parts, and thus he was obliged to
make use of two or three auxiliary stars, as we have proved in detail
above, and thus yet more to disfigure the hour-division, since thereby
the lengths of the hours were made very variable. These are then two
things which we must not regard as peculiarities of ancient Egyptian
reckoning, but as a consequence of the leading idea of our table, which
did not intend to facilitate the division of the night into twelve
parts by star observations, but was calculated, by the connection of
thirteen stars with thirteen successive moments, to create the idea of
the circling host of stars and thence the course of the night."
I give an abstract of the list of the twenty-four principal stars and
the Egyptian constellations in which they occur:--
1. Sahu = Orion.
2. Sothis = Sirius.
3. The two stars.
4. The stars of the water.
5. The lion.
6. The many stars.
7. Mena's herald.
8. Mena.
9. Mena's followers.
10. }
11. }
12. } Hippopotamus.
13. }
14. }
15.}
16.}
17.} Necht.
18.}
19.}
20.}
21. Ari.
22.}
23.} Goose.
24. Sahu = Head of Orion.
It will be seen that even this Egyptian star-list is very
indeterminate. It is known that Sahu is the name for the constellation
of Orion. The hippopotamus represents Draco, and probably Necht another
northern constellation. There are indications, too, that Mena may
symbolise Spica, with which star we have seen Min-worship associated.
Further than this the authorities do not venture at present to go.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
THE INFLUENCE OF EGYPT UPON TEMPLE-ORIENTATION IN GREECE.
In the final pages of this book I have to show that recent
investigations have put beyond all doubt the fact that the astronomical
observations and temple-worship of the Egyptians formed the basis first
of Greek and later of Latin temple-building.
I have indicated in a former chapter that in our own days, and in our
own land, the idea of orientation which I have endeavoured to work out
for Egypt still holds its own. It was more than probable, therefore,
that we should find the intermediate stages in those countries whither
by universal consent Egyptian ideas percolated. Among these, Greece
holds the first place, as it was the nearest point of Europe to the
Nile Valley.
Before we study the orientation of the Greek temples, let us endeavour
to realise the conditions of those Greek colonists who, filled with the
Egyptian learning; impressed with the massive and glorious temples in
which they had worshipped; favoured, perchance, moreover, with glimpses
of the esoteric ideas of the priesthood; and finally, fired with Greek
ideals of the beautiful, determined that their new land should not
remain altarless.
What would they do? They would naturally adapt the Egyptian temple to
the new surroundings, climatic among others. The open courts and flat
roofs of Egyptian temples would give way to covered courts and sloping
roofs to deal with a more copious rainfall; and it is curious to note
that the chief architectural differences have this simple origin. The
small financial resources of a colony would be reason good enough for a
cella not far from the entrance, with courts surrounding it under the
now necessary roof. The instinctive love of beauty would do the rest,
and make it a _sine quâ non_ that the rosy-fingered dawn should be
observable, and that the coloured light of the rising sun in the more
boreal clime should render glorious a stately statue of the divinity.
[Illustration: A GREEK TEMPLE RESTORED--THE TEMPLE OF POSEIDON AT
PÆSTUM.]
It is well to take this opportunity of emphasising the transition from
the Egyptian form of temple to the Greek one, in order to show how
completely among many apparent changes the astronomical conditions were
retained. The entrance door and the cella are always in the axis of
the temple; the number of columns in the front is always even; _the
door is never blocked_.
[Illustration: THE TEMPLE OF THESEUS AT ATHENS: THE ACROPOLIS, WITH THE
PARTHENON, IN THE BACKGROUND.]
I have already pointed out that in both groups of Egyptian temples,
whether furnished with a pylon or not, one goes from the entrance to
the other end, which held the sanctuary, through various halls of
different styles of architecture and different stages of magnificence.
But in the Greek temple this is entirely changed; the approach to the
temple was outside--witness the glorious propylæum of the Parthenon at
Athens--the temple representing, so to speak, only the core, the Holy
of Holies, of the Egyptian temple; and any magnificent approach to it
which could be given was given from the outside. Be it further remarked
that the propylæum was never in the fair-way of the light entering the
temple.
[Illustration: THE EAST FRONT OF THE PARTHENON, FACING THE RISING OF
THE PLEIADES.]
The massive pylons of some of the Egyptian temples were useful for
shading the roofless outer courts. In Greece these were no longer
useful.
The east front of the Parthenon very much more resembles the temple of
Denderah than it does the early Egyptian temple--that is to say, the
eastern front is open; it is not closed by pylons.
The view as to the possibility of temple-orientation being dominated by
astronomical ideas first struck me at Athens and Eleusis, and when I
found that the same idea had been held by Nissen, and that the validity
of it seemed to be beyond all question, I consulted my friend Mr. F.
C. Penrose specially with regard to Greece, as I knew he had made a
special study of some of the temples, and that, he being an astronomer
as well as an archæologist (for, alas! they are not, as I think they
should be, convertible terms), it was possible that his observations
with regard to them included the requisite data.
I was fortunate enough to find that he had already determined the
orientation of the Parthenon with sufficient accuracy to enable him
to agree in my conclusion that that temple had been directed to the
rising of the Pleiades. He has subsequently taken up the whole subject
with regard to Greece in a most admirable and complete way,[183] and
has communicated papers to the Society of Antiquaries (February 18,
1892), and more recently to the Royal Society (April 27, 1893) on his
results.[184]
These results are so numerous and complete that it is now quite
possible to trace the transition from Egyptian to Greek temple-worship,
and this, with Mr. Penrose's full permission, I propose to do in this
chapter.
But, in the first instance, I am anxious to state that Mr. Penrose was
soon convinced that in Greece, as in Egypt, the stars were used for
heralding sunrise. He writes:--
"The object the ancients had in using the stars was to employ their
rising and setting as a clock to give warning of the sunrise, so that
on the special feast days the priests should have timely notice for
preparing the sacrifice or ceremonial, whatever it may have been:
"'Spectans orientia solis
Lumina _rite_ cavis undam de flumine palmis
Sustulit,' etc."
I may further give an extract from a letter received from him in which
he deals with the demonstration of the orientation hypothesis furnished
by the Greek temples alone.
"In my paper sent to the Royal Society there was a passage which seems
to make it practically _certain_ that heliacal stars were connected
with the intra-solstitial temples as derived from Greek sources alone,
independent of the powerful aid of the Egyptian cases.
"'That the first beam of sunrise should fall upon the statue centrally
placed in the adytum of a temple or on the incense altar in front of
it on a particular day, it would be requisite that the orientation of
the temple should coincide with the amplitude of the sun as it rose
above the visible horizon, be it mountain or plain.
"'That a star should act as time-warner it was necessary that it
should have so nearly the same amplitude as the sun that it could
be seen from the adytum through the eastern door, if it was to give
warning at its rising, or to have a similar but reversed amplitude
towards the west, if its heliacal setting was to be observed; and it
follows that in the choice of the festival day and the corresponding
orientation, on these principles, both the amplitude of the sun at its
rising and that of the star eastwards or westwards, as the case might
be, would have to be considered in connection with one another.
"'From what has been said it is obvious that in the intra-solstitial
temples the list of available bright stars and constellations is in
the first instance limited to those which lie within a few degrees
of the ecliptic, and it will be found that in the list above given
and those which follow, if we omit Eleusis, where the conditions
were exceptional, all but one of the stars are found in the zodiacal
constellations. A very great limit is imposed, in the second place,
by one of the conditions being the heliacal rising or setting of
those stars from which the selection has to be made. So that,
when both these combined limitations are taken into account, it
becomes improbable to the greatest degree that in every instance of
intra-solstitial temples of early foundation of which I have accurate
particulars, being twenty-eight in number and varying in their
orientation from 21° N. to 18° 25′ S. of the true east, there should
be found a bright heliacal star or constellation in the right position
at dates not in themselves improbable unless the temples had been so
oriented as to secure this combination.'
"I have just been looking into the number of possible stars which
could have been used, _i.e._ within the limits of the greatest
distance from the ecliptic that could have been utilised.
"The stars which could have been utilised in addition to the seven
which serve for nearly thirty temples are ten only, viz.:--
Aldebaran.
Pollux.
β Arietis.
β Tauri.
α and β Capricorni as a group.
β Libræ.
α Libræ.
α Leonis.
γ Leonis.
β Leonis.
"If the orientations had been placed at random, would not our thirty
temples have made many misses in aiming at these seventeen stars, it
being necessary also to hit exactly the heliacal margin? And would
they have secured anything like a due archæological sequence?
* * * * *
"Another point is this:--
"Whenever a star less than first magnitude is used (Pleiades only
excepted) it has been necessary, to secure coincidence, to give it
several more degrees of sun depression than in the cases of Spica and
Antares."
The problem in Greece was slightly different from that in Egypt. We
had not such a great antiquity almost without records to deal with,
and moreover the feast-calendars of the various temples presented less
difficulty. There was no vague year to contend with, and in some cases
the actual dates of building were known within a very few years.
In Greece, not dominated by the rise of the Nile, we should not expect
the year to begin at a solstice, but rather at the vernal equinox.
I have shown that even in pyramid times in Egypt the risings of the
Pleiades and Antares were watched to herald the equinoctial sun; it is
not surprising, therefore, to find the earliest temples in Greece to be
so oriented. Mr. Penrose has found the following:--
B.C.
η Tauri Archaic temple of} Athens R[185] 1530
(The Pleiades) Minerva }
Asclepieion Epidaurus R 1275
The Hecatompedon } Athens R 1150
(site of Parthenon)}
Temple of Bacchus Athens R 1030
Temple of Minerva Sunium S 845
B.C.
Antares Heræum Argos R 1760
Earlier Erechtheum Athens S 1070
Temple at Corinth S 770
Temple on the Mountain} Ægina S 630
Jupiter Panhellenius }
Here we find the oldest temple in a spot which by common consent is the
very cradle of Greek civilisation.
It has also been shown that in Khu-en-Aten's time the sun-temple at
Tell el-Amarna was oriented to Spica. Spica, too, we find so used in
Greece in the following temples:--
B.C.
Spica The Heræum at Olympia R 1445
Nike Apteros Athens S 1130
Themis Rhamnus R 1092
Nemesis Rhamnus R 747
Apollo Bassæ R 728 Eastern doorway.
Diana Ephesus R 715
When the sun at the spring equinox had left Taurus and entered Aries,
owing to precession, in Egypt the equinoxes were no longer in question,
since the solstitial year was thoroughly established, and consequently
we find no temples to the new warning star α Arietis.
In Greece, however, where the vernal equinox had now been established
as the beginning of the year, we find a different state of things. No
less than seven temples oriented to α Arietis are already known:--
B.C.
α Arietis Minerva Tegea R 1580
Jupiter Olympius Athens R 1202
Jupiter Olympia R 790
Temple (perhaps Juno) Platea S 650
Jupiter Megalopolis S 605
Temple at the Harbour Ægina S 580
Temple on Acropolis of Mycenæ R 540 Eastern doorway.
The Metroum Olympia S 360
[Illustration: THE TEMPLE OF JUPITER OLYMPIUS BELOW THE ACROPOLIS, AT
ATHENS, ORIENTED TO α ARIETIS.]
The above are all intra-solstitial temples--that is, the sunlight as
well as the light of the star can enter them--and this enables us to
note a certain change of thought brought about in all probability by
the artistic spirit of the Greeks. The Egyptian temples were all dark,
often with a statue of a god or a reptile obscure in the naos, and many
were oriented so that sunlight never entered them. Mr. Penrose points
out that almost all the Greek temples are oriented so that sunlight can
enter them. Of such temples we have the following twenty-nine:--
7 examples from Athens.
3 " " Olympia.
2 " " Epidaurus.
2 " " Rhamnus.
2 " " Ægina.
2 " " Tegea.
1 " " Nemea.
1 " " Corcyra.
1 " " Sunium.
1 " " Corinth.
1 " " Bassæ.
1 " " Ephesus.
1 " " Platæa.
1 " " Lycosura.
1 " " Megalopolis.
2 " " Argos.
Now in all these Greek temples, instead of the dark naos of the
Egyptian building, we find the cella fully illumined and facing the
entrance. Frequently, too, there was a chryselephantine statue to be
rendered glorious by the coloured morning sunlight falling upon it, or,
if any temple had the westerly aspect, by the sunset glow.
It was perhaps this, combined eventually with the much later invention
of water-clocks for telling the hours of the night, which led to the
non-building of temples resembling those at Thebes and Denderah facing
nearly north; of these, however, there are scattered examples; one of
very remarkable importance, as it is a temple oriented to γ Draconis
1130 B.C., built therefore not very long after the temple M at Karnak,
and this temple is at Bœotian Thebes! A better proof of the influence
exerted by the Egyptians over the temple-building in Greece could
scarcely be imagined. As Mr. Penrose remarks:--
"Thebes was called the City of the Dragon, and tradition records that
Cadmus introduced both Phœnician and Egyptian worship."
It would be very surprising, if we assume, as we are bound to do, that
these temples to stars were built under Egyptian influence, that Sirius
should not be represented among them, that being the paramount star
in Egypt at a time when we should expect to find her influence most
important in Greece. Still, I have shown already that, as the Greek
year ignored the solstice, the use of Sirius as a warning star for all
purposes of utility would not come in. Mr. Penrose finds, however,
that, in spite of this, Sirius was used for temple-worship.
"Leaving the solar temples, we find that the star which was observed
at the great temple of Ceres must have been Sirius, not used, however,
heliacally--although this temple is not extra-solstitial--but for its
own refulgence at midnight. The date so determined is quite consistent
with the probable time of the foundation of the Eleusinian Mysteries,
and the time of the year when at its rising it would have crossed the
axis at midnight agrees exactly with that of the celebration of the
Great Mysteries."
"It is reasonable to suppose that when, as in the case of Sirius
at Eleusis, brilliant stars were observed at night, the effect was
enhanced by the priests by means of polished surfaces."
Another question. Does the star follow the cult in Greece as it does in
Egypt?
In Greece we find the following:--
"The star α Arietis is the brightest star of the _first sign of the
Zodiac_, and would therefore be peculiarly appropriate to the temple
of Jupiter. The heliacal rising of this star agrees both with the
Olympieium at Athens and that at Olympia. There is a considerable
difference in the deviation of the axes of these two temples from the
true east; but this is exactly accounted for by the greater apparent
altitude of Hymettus over the more distant mountain at Olympia.[186]
"The Pleiades are common to the following temples of Minerva--viz.,
the Archaic temple on the Acropolis, the Hecatompedon, and Sunium. In
the two former it is the rising, the latter the setting star.
"There must have been something in common between the temples at
Corinth, Ægina, and Nemea. The two last, at any rate, are reputed
temples of Jupiter."
The Greek side of the inquiry becomes more interesting when the
connection between the orientation of the intra-solstitial temples
and the local festivals is inquired into; in Egypt this is all but
impossible at present.
A temple oriented to either solstice can only be associated with the
longest or with the shortest day; if the temple points to the sunrise
or sunset at any other period of the year, the sunlight will enter the
temple twice, whether it points to the sunrise or sunset place.
Now Mr. Penrose finds that in Greece, as in Egypt, the initial
orientation of each intra-solstitial temple was to a star, and this
would, of course, secure observations of the star and the holding of an
associated festival at the same time of the year for a long period. But
when the precessional movement carried the star away, they would only
have the sun to depend on, and this they might use twice a year. It is
possible, as Mr. Penrose remarks, that
"there would have been no reason for preferring one of these solar
coincidences to the other, and the feast could have been shifted to a
different date if it had been thought more convenient."
He goes on to add:--
"It would appear that something of this sort may have taken place at
Athens, for we find on the Acropolis the archaic temple, which seems
to have been intended originally for a vernal festival, offering its
axis to the autumnal sunrise on the very day of the great Panathenaia
in August.
"The chryselephantine statue of the Parthenon, which temple followed
on the same lines as the earlier Hecatompedon (originally founded
to follow the rising of the Pleiades after that constellation had
deserted the archaic temple alongside), was lighted up by the sunrise
on the feast to the same goddess in August, the Synæcia, instead of
some spring festival, for which both these temples seem at first to
have been founded.
"The temple at Sunium, already quoted for its October star-heralded
festival to Minerva, was oriented also axially to the sun on February
21, the feast of the Lesser Mysteries."
I have had to insist again and again that in the case of the Egyptian
temples the stated date of foundation of a temple is almost always long
after that in which its lines were laid down in accordance with the
ritual. No wonder, then, that the same thing is noticed in Greece.
"In about two-thirds of the cases which I have investigated the
dates deduced from the orientations are clearly earlier than the
architectural remains now visible above the ground. This is explained
by the temples having been rebuilt upon old foundations, as may be
seen in several cases which have been excavated, of which the archaic
temple of Minerva on the Acropolis of Athens and the temple of Jupiter
of Olympius on a lower site are instances. There are temples also of
the middle epoch, such as the examples at Corinth, Ægina, and the
later temples at Argos and at Olympia (the Metroum at the last-named),
of which the orientation dates are not inconsistent with what may be
gathered from other sources."
The problem is, moreover, helped in Greece by architectural
considerations, which are frequently lacking in Egypt: of two temples
it can be shown, on this evidence alone, that one is older than the
other. Such an appeal strengthens my suggestion that two of the temples
of the Acropolis Hill were oriented to the Pleiades, by showing the
older temple to point to an earlier position of the star group. To
these Mr. Penrose adds another pair at Rhanmus, where he has found that
there are two temples almost touching one another, both following (and
with accordant dates) the shifting places of Spica, and still another
pair at Tegea.
INDEX.
A
=Aāhmes=, King, 339
=Abd el-Latîf=, 12
=Abu Shahrên=, 371
=Abu Simbel=, 16, 306
=Abydos=, mounds and temples at, 74, 99, 175, 214, 338, 393
sanctity of, 327
=Achernar=, 381
=Adytum.= _See_ Sanctuary
=Africa E.=, 373
=Agni=, god of fire, 7
=Ahura-Mazda or Ormuzd=, 6
=Air=, god of, 33
=Āk=, 176, 205
=Amada=, 311
=Amen=, confraternity of, 319
worship of, 189
temples dedicated to, 220, 222
=Amen-t=, Hathor Temple, 306
wife of Amen, 222
star symbol, 223
=Amen-Rā=, Hak of Pun-t, 347
obelisks to, 106
Southern worship, 319
temples of, 25, 75, 78, 99, 223, 351, 354
date of, 119
direction of axis of, 78
growth of, 188
restoration of,108
_See_ also Karnak
=Amenemhāt I.=, 77, 175, 338
=Amen-hetep I.=, 221
=Amen-hetep III.=, Mut Temple, 213
Karnak Temple B, builder of, 189
quarrel with Theban priests, 321
=Amen-hetep IV.=, date of, 321
conservatism of, 320
leaves Thebes, 321
builds Tell el-Amarna, 323
=Amenti=, 35
=Amplitude=, 46
=Amplitudes=, of temples, 59, 67, 170, 309
at Annu, 168
at Denderah, 168, 210
at Karnak, 47, 160, 168, 171, 189
tables of, 305, 306, 311, 312, 318
=Amru=, description of Egypt, 230
=Amsu.= _See_ Min
=An=, and god Anu, 363
=Anaximander=, 8
=Ancestors=, divine, 327
=Annu=, 74
grand priest of (title of Theban priest), 340
list of gods at, 329
Nile flood at, 226
obelisk and mounds at, 214, 316
temples at, 78, 94, 168, 175, 214, 309, 316, 326, 327
walls at, 76
worship at, 318, 319, 326, 359
=Antares=, symbolised by Serk-t, 329, 360
temples in Greece, 419
=Anu=, Babylonian, astronomical meaning for, 363, 365, 372, 377
=Anubis.= _See_ Set
=Ap=, god of the waters, 7
=Apet=, 290
=Apis=, bull, also Hapi, 229, 330, 396
=Apollinopolis Magna.= _See_ Edfû
=Argus= η, 374
=Aries=, first point of, 53
=Arietis= α, temples oriented to, Grecian, 420
=Armant=, Nile gauge at, 235
=Asari=, 372, 384
=Asti=, name of Thoth, 176
=Aswân=, nilometer at, 234, 235
distances of gauges from, 235
Nile flood, maximum time of, 240
to Rôda, Nile flood, rate of, between, 240
=Aten=, most ancient god, 321
=Athene=, temple of, 329
=Athens=, Parthenon at, propylæum of, 415
=Atmu=, Tmu, or Osiris, 25, 26, 295
=Axis= of temples, 169, 173
changes in, 163
=Azimuths=, 46
=Azimuth compass=, 67
B
=Baal=, hieroglyph for, 361, 362
=Baalbek=, structural origin, 92, 94, 367
=Babylonia=, ancient cities in, modern sites of, 86
Anu and Bīl, 365
kings of, 369
state of astronomy 300 B.C., 3
temple structures in, 367
unit of time in, 227
ziggurats, 367
=Bast=, symbolised star γ Draconis, 290
=Bear=, Great, represented by Thigh, 137, 146, 216
Little, represented by Jackal, 137, 146
=Bel=, temple of, 380
=Berenice=, road between Edfû and, 208
=Bêrôssus=, 381
=Bes=, 28, 368
=Bīl=, 363, 372, 377
=Bilfinger=, star tables, 409
=Biot=, ancient star places, calculation of, 129
Denderah, inscriptions, 139, 193
observing conditions in Egypt, 122
precessional globe of, 170
Ramesseum inscriptions, date of, 143
risings, heliacal, of Sirius, 200, 210, 249, 253, 254, 262
=Boeckh=, date of King Mena, 22
=Botta=, 87
=Bouriant=, 183, 220
=Boussard=, 111
=Brugsch=, Amen-Rā's ancestors, 355
book on calendars, 282
Denderah inscriptions, 141
date of Mena, 22
Rameses III., 221
Thothmes III, 189, 261
Usertsen I., 215
Edfû, temple at, alignment of, 179
Egyptian history, 344
furniture of sanctuaries, 112
Gîzeh-pyramids, 363
Hippopotamus, constellation, 216
Hyksos period, 339
inscription at Philæ, 261
Silsilis, 263
Karnak temple, 116
location of Pun-t, 348
pyramid, oldest, date of, 369
Sothic Cycle, 259
temple-foundations, 354
=Bubastis=, antiquity of, 82, 333
Isis temple at, 329
=Budge=, Dr. Wallis, 85, 208, 240
=Bull=, constellation of, pyramid period, 360, 403, 404
=Bunsen=, 22, 148, 384
C
=Cairo=, Nile flood, time of, 233, 240
=Calah=, ancient Nimrûd, 86
=Calendar=, Alexandrine reform, date of, 281
Egyptian, chief use of, 282
=Canopus=, decree of, 270
=Canopus= (α Argus), 280, 281
early observations, 312, 360
heralded autumnal equinox, 342
temples to, amplitudes of, 311
=Capella= observed at Annu, 316, 360
personified by Ptah, 318
temples to, amplitudes and dates, 312, 354
=Capricornus=, 372, 378
=Censorinus=, 267
=Centauri= α, temples to, 308, 351, 354, 360
=Chabas=, 173, 174
=Champollion=, 10, 11, 73
=Cheops.= _See_ Chufu
=Chephren=, 327, 346, 369
=China=, early astronomical observations, 4
=Chnemu=, 35, 384
Rā, 25, 319, 385, 389
=Chufu=, 12, 204, 336
=Churches=, architecture, Scott on, 96
orientation of, 96
=Colossi= at Thebes, 78
=Columbæ α.= _See_ Phact
=Compass=, Azimuth, 67
=Constellations=, early names for, 42, 133, 397, 399, 407
northern, called Set, 149
=Country=, double, meaning of, 345
=Cow= = Star Sirius, 218
=Crocodile=, variant of hippopotamus, 146
=Crown=, double, 345
=Cubit=, Babylonian, 370
=Cults=, change of, 300
origin of Egyptian, 371
northern and southern, 225
=Cycle=, Sothic, beginning of, 262
=Cynocephalus= ape from Pun-t, 348
D
=Dakkeh=, temple at, 341, 354
=Darkness=, gods of, 27, 28
=Dashûr=, blunted pyramid at, 233, 336
=Dawn=, flames of, Tefnut, 36
goddess of, Sechet, 31
gods, hymn to, 7
Isis, 29
names for, 7
representation of Nephthys, 31
risings at, 148
=Declination=, definition of, 45
=Declinations=, corresponding amplitudes, 170
=Delta=, Hawk-god of, 349
=Denderah=, example of second group of temples, 14
Hathor temple, 160, 193, 293, 319, 354
Isis temple, 193
date of, 197
oriented to Sirius, 304
inscriptions at, 141
meaning, 138, 173
Set worship at, 310
temples at, amplitudes, 168, 176
variants of Hathor in, 211
zodiacs of, 19, 134, 146
=Deodorus=, 12
=Dêr el-Bahari=, temple of, orientation of, 16, 212
cult of Hathor, 293
inscriptions at, 319, 348
=De Rougé.= _See_ Rougé
=Devas=, 6
=Djigan=, mounds at, 86
=Draco=, constellation of, forms of, 137, 146
=Draconis= γ, temples to, 310, 354
=Dubhe=, Āk refers to, 176, 203
Āk, meaning of, 176
=Dümichen=, antiquity of This, 327
building inscriptions, 173
Denderah temple, 204
Edfû, temple at, alignment of, 179
Hathor, cult of, 294
Put-Ser, meaning of, 178
=Dumuzi.= _See_ Tammuz, 372
=Dupuis=, 138, 143, 180, 379
=Dur Sarginu=, 86
=Dyaus=, 7
=Dynasties=, divine, 326
=Dyotanâ=, 7
E
=Ea.= _See_ Ía
=Earth=, axis of, 126
emblem of, 33
god of, 7
shape of, 8
=Ebers=, antiquity of This, 327
old roads to Red Sea, 208
Rôda nilometer, 235
the Denderah crypts, 204
=Ecliptic=, obliquity of, 53
pole of, Babylonian observations, 363
plane of, 52
=Edfû=, early temple at, 311, 360
festival calendar at, 282
Hawk-god of, 349
inscriptions at, temple axis, 173, 179, 284
month-table at, 275
names for Hathor, 211
road between Berenice and, 208
temple of, 14, 106, 181
date of, 363, 376
orientation of, 178, 179, 180
=Edkins=, Sun-temple at Pekin, 88
=El-Mamun=, 12
=Entenna=, 369
=Epacts= (or Epagomena), 247
=Epping=, 3, 407
=Equator=, pole of, Babylonian name for, 365
=Equinoxes=, 54, 57, 62
established in pyramid times, 329
=Eridu=, 371
colonisation of, 374, 385
god of, 372, 377
=Esne=, feast calendars of, 282
inscription at, 284
=Ethiopia=, early history of, 345
exile of Theban priests to, 340
return of Theban priests from, 340
=Eudoxus=, sphere of, 139
=Euphrates=, god sacred to, 229
rise of, 85, 230, 267
F
=Fayyûm=, pyramids, 339
=Fire=, god of, 7
=Fitz-Gerald=, agriculture in Africa, 273
=Flandin=, plans of Khorsabad, 87
=Foundation-stone=, laying of, 173, 175
=Foundations= of temples, table of dates of, 352
oldest in Egypt, 354
G
=Garstin=, Nile rising, average rate of, 240
=Gauges=, Nile, distances from Aswân, 235
heights above sea-level 236
=Gebel Barkal=, 221, 347
pyramids at, 356
temples at, 356
=Gîzeh=, cult at, equinoctial, 85, 359
pyramids of, 12, 82, 336, 363
temples at, 82, 287
=Globe=, to rectify the, 44, 130
precessional, 170
=Gnomon=, 63
=Goat-fish= in Babylonia, 377
=Gondokoro=, 238
=Grébaut=, discoveries at Dêr el-Bahari, 319
=Greece=, orientation of temples in. _See_ Chap. xxxviii. _passim_
=Green Water=, Nile, why it heralds the rise, 238
=Green and Red Nile=, difference of time between, 240
H
=Habenben.= _See_ Sanctuary.
=Hak=, of Pun-t, name for Amen-Rā, 347
=Hāpi=, god of Nile, 147, 229
=Harhouditi=, 349
=Harpocrates= (or Hor or Horus), 24, 26
=Harsiisit=, 349
=Harvest= festivals, 233, 319
=Hathor= = Isis, 210
= Isis = Mut = Methuer, 212
change of representation, 301
connection with hippopotamus, 216
form of, ordinary, 217
generic symbolisms, meaning of, 291
goddess from Pun-t, 347
local cult of, 294
= Mut, 214, 289
name of Sirius, 196
personification of, 210
present views of, 32
represented by Dubhe and γ Draconis, 205, 214
rising of, reference to, 194
southern worship, 349
symbol of, 216, 290, 293
temples of 160, 202, 210
amplitude of, 176, 193, 210
at Abu Simbel, 306
at Denderah, 293
at Dêr el-Bahari, 193, 293
various names for, 211
worshipped in pyramid times, 329
=Hāt-shepset=, queen, 106, 212
expedition to Pun-t, 349
=Heliopolis.= _See_ Annu
=Herodotus=, on temple of Tyre, 161
=Hieroglyphics=, decipherment of, 11
=Hind=, star-places, 170
=Hippopotamus=, connected with Hathor, 178, 216
constellation Draco, 137, 143, 146, 218
in pyramid times, 360
form of Taurt, 146
female, 216
hieroglyph for, 362
represents Mutât Thebes, 216
red, 362
variant of crocodile, 146
wife of Set, 146
=History= of Egypt, first blank in, 331, 337
second blank in, 339
north, first civilisation, 330
=Holy of Holies.= _See_ Sanctuary
=Hommel=, 377
=Horizon=, definition of, 40, 169
=Hor-shesu=, 57, 74, 150, 215, 376
=Horus= or Hor or Harpocrates, 26
= rising sun, 293
= S. Egypt, 345
god from Pun-t, 347, 392
god of the Hor-shesu, 58
hymn to, 26
laughing, 149
meaning of, 148, 149
Northern, 349
myth of, description of, 148-151, 378, 390
red, 149
Southern worship, 349
temple of, 180
and Set, 149
= Set, 149
=Hottentot Venus= in Pun-t, 348
=Hours= (12) of day and night, 342
=Hyksos= period, date of, 338, 339
I
=Ía=, 372, 397
Annu, and Bīl, triad, 372
father of Tammuz, 372
legend of, 381
representation of, 384, 397
=Ía-star=, 380
=Ideler=, heliacal risings, 121
length of year, 244
=India=, temples in, age of, 2
=Indra=, 7
=Inundation= of Nile, 233, 234
=Isis= = Hathor, 210, 217
= Mut = Hathor = Methuer, 212
change of representation, 301
form of, at Saïs, 329
generic symbolisms, 291, 293
mythology of, complete, 293, 388
name for Sirius, 196, 210
nursing Horus, meaning of, 292
pyramid temples, 293, 329
present ideas of, 29
temples of, amplitude of, 82, 206, 210
Denderah, 83, 193, 210
date of, 197
=Isis-Sati=, 218
=Isis-Sothis=, 217
J
=Jackal=, constellation of, 137, 143, 146, 361
of Set, 146
=Jensen=, Ía-star, 380
Kosmologie der Babylonier, 360, 396, 397, 405
pole of ecliptic, early Babylonian observations, 363
reference to "Jackal," 362
Scorpio, 405
sun-god, Tammuz, 372
Marduk, 397, 405
Tiāmat, 397
the god Ía, 372
zodiacal constellations, 400
=Jerusalem=, temples at, equinoctial, 92, 367
=Josephus=, temple at Jerusalem, 92
K
=Kahi=, revelation of, feast of, 282
=Kakau=, worship of Apis, 330
=Kali= = Koloë, 351
=Karnak=, inscriptions at, temple axis, 173
observations at, solstice, 117
orientation of, solstitial, 72
north star, 354
temples at, 14, 75
temples at, amplitudes of, 160, 168
date of, Mariette, 113
description of, 100, 102
Amen-Ra at, 78, 99
Amen-Rā, temple of, date of, 119
temple B, 187, 189
amplitude of, 189
temple L, 115, 183, 185
date of, 116, 184
amplitude of, 189
Brugsch on, 116
temple M, 115, 183
date of, 184
γ Draconis, 184
temple of Mut (X), 187, 188, 213
builder of, 189
temple of Ptah, 317, 354
temple of Spica, 313
temple T, amplitude of, 189
date of, 186
temple V, orientation, 308
temple W, 187
=Kemball=, Sir A.,
agriculture of E. Africa, 273
=Khem.= _See_ Min
=Khnum.= _See_ Chnemu
=Khons=, or Khonsu, connection with Canopus, 296
how represented, 223
personification of, 296
Southern worship, 349, 393
temple of, 182, 223, 224, 296
measures of, 185, 310
=Khons-lunus=, 29, 393
=Khorsabad=, mounds at, 36, 87
=Khu-en-Aten.= _See_ Amen-hetep IV.
=Kirk=, Sir John, on pile-dwellings in Central Africa, 348
=Koptos=, high road between Red Sea and, 208
=Kouyunjik=, mounds of, 86
=Krall=, quoted, 257, 263
change of signs, 269
festival calendar at Edfû, 282
king's reign, time of commencement, 259
length of year, 244
month Pachons, 284
mythology of the sun, 279
oldest month-list, 275
the week, 226
L
=Lanzoni=, variant for Hathor, 211
Chnemu, 384
=Latitude=, terrestrial definition of, 52
celestial, 52
=Lenormant=, 4
=Lepsius=, work on the monuments of Egypt, 73
date of Mena, 22
Eridu, 374
Karnak temples, 116, 187, 213, 306
Thothmes III., date of, 261
temple of Amen-Rā, 99
temple at Heliopolis, 75
the week, 226
=Letronne=, Denderah inscriptions, 138
=Leverrier=, 256
=Lion=, early Babylonian mythology, 402
=Lockyer=, W. J. S., calculation of star tables, 170
=Longitude=, celestial, 52
terrestrial, definition of, 52
=Luxor=, temple at, 166, 328
=Lyons=, Capt., R.E., measures at Annu, 76
Memphis, 317
Wady Halfa, 358
M
=Maāt=, relation to Rā, 32, 36
=Makrīzi=, Rôda nilometer, 235
=Marduk= = spring-sun, 373, 397
destroys winter gods, 377
myth of, 375
temple of, ceremony at, 366
and Tiāmat, myth of, 377, 378, 398
=Mariette=, Amen-Rā, temple of, growth of, 115, 188
Denderah temples, 193
Hyksos period, 339
Karnak temples, 113, 183, 184, 187
location of Pun-t, 348
Mena, date of, 337
modern Theban temples, 186
pyramids, 363, 369
Sothis, 212
=Masnitiu= or Masniu of Edfû, 349
=Maspero=, Baal worship at Memphis, 361
building of Annu, 77, 326
discoveries at Dêr el-Bahari, 319
divine dynasties, 392
the land of Pun-t, 347
length of year, 244
location of land of Pun-t, 347
origin of southern Horus, 349
priestcraft, 111
sanctity of Abydos, 327
Sirius in pyramid times, 209
=Max Müller=, age of Indian temples, 2
sunrise and sunset, 23
Vedas, 5
=Mazzaroth=, meaning of, 133
=Medînet-Habû=, 169
temples at, 163, 220
orientation dates, 221
=Mêdûm=, pyramid of, 335, 337
=Memphis=, Nile flood at, 226
pyramids of, 82, 83
temple of Sutech, 361
Baal, 361
Ptah, 248, 317
worship, 318
=Memphis= and Thebes, Nile flood, rate of, between, 240
=Mena= or Menes, 22, 230, 326
date of reign, 74, 115, 337
worship of Apis, 330
=Menthu=, 339
=Merchet= or Merech, 179
=Meridian=, astronomical, 69
magnetic, 70, 71
=Meröe=, 344, 347, 356
=Mestha=, god, 147
=Mesχet= = Thigh, q.v.
=Methuer= = Mut = Isis = Hathor, 212
=Midnight=, risings at, 148
=Min= or Khem, connection with Spica, 25, 297, 319
temple dedicated to, 297
=Moncrieff=, Sir Colin Scott, 117
=Months=, names for Egyptian, 233
=Moon-gods=, 28, 29, 389, 392, 393
Osiris representation, 137
worship, 379
stations, Egyptian equivalents, 37
=Mosul=, mounds of, 86
=Mul-lil=, 372
=Mut= = Hathor, 214
= Isis = Hathor = Methuer, 212
Hathor worship, 214
mistress of darkness, 344
represented by hippopotamus, 216
γ Draconis, 214
symbolised γ Draconis, 289, 290
temple of, 75, 182, 191, 294, 318
associated with Spica, 320
date of, 213, 214
=Myths=, Babylonian, 377
Egyptian and Babylonian, compared, 377
of Horus, 148, 390
of Marduk and Tiāmat, 375, 377, 378, 398
N
=Naga=, buildings at, 347
=Naos.= _See_ Sanctuary
=Napoleon's= expedition to Egypt, 10
=Naram-Sin=, king, date of, 369
=Naville=, Horus, myth of, 148, 153, 390
=Nebuchadnezzar II.=, ziggurat at Babylon, 367
=Nephthys=, 31, 35
in pyramid times, 329
=Nergal=, son of Ía and Duazag. 373
= spring sun, 373
= midsummer sun, 373
=Neshem=, 31
=New= year's day, variation in date of, 250
=Nigidius Figulus=, 248
=Nile= Flood, at Aswân, 240
at Cairo, 233, 240
rate of, 240
gauges, 235
gauge of, heights above sea-level, 236
at Armant, 235
at Aswân, 235
at Asyût, 235
at Suhag, 235
god sacred to, 229
inundation, effects of, 226, 232
red, 238
rise of, appearance of, 238
at Rôda, 237
average rate of, 240
description of, 241
festival of, 198
importance of, 228
indication of, 237
phenomena coincident with, 249
rate of, 240
warnings of, 239
green water at, why it heralds rise, 238
colour, origin of, 237
time of, rising, 85, 230
=Nilometer= at Aswân, 234
=Nimrûd=, mounds at, 86
modern Calah, 86
=Ninib=, sun-god, 375
=Nissen= on temple building, 173, 175
=Nubia=, mode of telling time at night, 342
=Nuri=, buildings at, 347, 356
=Nu-t= or Nu, 32, 33
double representation of 34
relation to Seb, 35
O
=Oannes.= _See_ Ía
=Obelisk=, at Annu, orientation of, 214, 326
=Obliquity= of ecliptic, values of, 113
=Observations= of stars daily as opposed to yearly, 341
=On.= _See_ Annu
=Oppolzer=, risings, heliacal of Sirius, 200, 249, 253, 268
=Orion=, constellation of, 137, 143
=Ormuzd= or Ahura-Mazda, 6
=Osborn=, the Nile, 232, 238
=Osiris= in Book of the Dead, 28, 35
hymn to, 26
mythology of, 296
representation of, 137
moon-god, 389
sunset-god, 25
southern worship, 349
temples of, 187
at Abydos, 338
bowls at, 248
direction of orientation, 82, 206, 393
Tmu or Atmu, 295
traced in Babylonia, 334, 377
= waning moon, 297
P
=Padoramen= priest, titles of, 340
=Palmyra=, temples at, equinoctial, 92, 94, 367
=Parthenon= at Athens, 164, 415, 416
=Parthey=, 216
=Patah.= _See_ Ptah
=Pekin=, sun temple at, 88, 89
=Penrose= on Greek temples, 98, and chap. xxxviii, _passim_
=Pepi=, King, date of, 207, 262, 337
restoration of Denderah, 204
temple foundations, 354
=Period=, Sothic, 256
=Petrie=, Flinders, on Stonehenge, 90
Mêdûm pyramid, 335, 337
Tell-el-Amarna, 323
=Phact= (α Columbæ), 82, 354, 360, 381
=Philæ=, Chnemu at, 384
inscription at, 261
Isis-Sati at, 218
temples at, 73
early to Canopus, 311, 360
=Pierret=, hieroglyph of hippopotamus, 362
=Pile= dwellings in Pun-t, 348
=Pisces=, 378
=Place=, on Assyria, 86
=Pleiades=, temples oriented to, in Greece, 419, 424
=Pompeii=, temple of Isis at, 320
=Precession=, cause of, 124, 126
effects of, 23, 123, 157
model illustrating, 125
=Priests=, Theban, hatred of Set, 319
=Prithivī=, earth god, 7
=Ptah=, connection with Capella, 296
in pyramid times, 329
god of Memphis, 153, 318
personification of, 296
temples of, 248, 296, 317
=Pun-t=, Hak of, 347
land of, 347
possibly in S. Africa, 348
=Put-ser=, meaning of, 174, 175, 178
=Pyramid= builders, 325
-building in 12th dynasty, 338
Isis temples at, 329
of Dashûr, 336
Gîzeh, 82
Mêdûm, 335, 337
Sakkarah, 333
oldest, 369
orientation of, 333
Step, age of, 369
Q
=Qebhsennuf=, 147
R
=Rā=, eyes of, 280
hymn to, 27
manifestation of, 111
meaning of, 194
sun-god, 25, 26, 35, 227
=Rā=--Tmu--Horus, hymn to, 26
=Rā-t=, symbol of, 290
=Rameses III.=, date of, 135, 184, 221
building of temple T, Karnak, 186
temple M, 115, 214
=Ramessids=, Thoth, sign of, in time of, 269
time of, year used, 263
=Ramesseum=, old month-table at, 141, 275
=Ranke=, 227
=Red= and Green Nile, difference of time between, 240
=Redisieh=, temple of, 208, 341
Set worship at, 310
=Refraction=, 48
=Renouf=, Le Page, 23
=Rhamnus=, temples oriented to Spica, 424
=Rig-Veda=, 38
=Right= ascension, definition of, 52
=Risings.= _See_ Stars and Sun
=Rôda=, nilometer at, 234
rise of Nile at, 237
=Rome=, St. Peter's, 96, 102
=Rosetta= Stone, 11
=Ross=, Col., R.E., 237, 241
=Rougé=, De, on Hor-Shesu, 150
Silsilis inscriptions, 263
Mêdûm pyramid, 336
manifestation of Rā, 111
S
=Saïs=, 82, 329
=Sakkarah=, step-pyramid of, 333, 337
=Samas=, 377
=Sanctuary=, 102, 340
illumination of, 106
darkness of, object of, 109
=Sargon I.=, King, date of, 360, 369, 403
=Sarzec=, M. de, discoveries at Tel-loh, 369
=Sati=, symbol of, 290
=Sayce=, Ann and Bīl, 364
Asari and Osiris, 384
Eridu, 371
Ía-star, 380
sun-god, Tammuz, 372, 393
=Scorpion=, constellation of, 143, 378, 399, 401, 403
known in pyramid times, 329, 360
=Scott=, Gilbert, on church architecture, 96
=Se-ānχ-ka-Rā's= expedition to land of Pun-t, 348
=Seb=, the god, 33, 35
=Sebak-Rā=, 25
=Sekhet=, goddess, 31
symbolised γ Draconis, 290
statues of, at Thebes, 290
=Semneh=, temple at, 311, 351
=Seneferu=, Dashûr pyramid, 336
King, title of, 346
Mêdûm pyramid, 335
temple foundations, 354
=Senti=, 174
=Sept=, 196
=Serk-t= = Antares and α Centauri, 358
in pyramid times, 329
symbol of, 290, 329
=Sesheta=, goddess, 29, 173, 175
=Set=, Sit, Sut, Typhon, Sutech, god of Darkness, 27, 145, 147
and Horus, 149
associated with γ Draconis, 302
conquered by Horus. _See_ Myth of Horus.
emblem of, 28, 148, 362
feast of, 283
form of, 361
hated by Theban priests, 319
jackal of, 146
N. Egypt, 345
symbolised by northern constellations, 149
temple at Tell el-Amarna, 324
at Annu, 326
temples absent in S. Egypt, 371
thigh of, 146, 147
wife of, 146, 216
worship of, 215, 344, 361, 377
=Seti II.=, 115, 185, 189, 223
=Shabaka=, 340
=Shesu-Hor=, 57, 74, 150, 215
=Shu=, 33, 36
=Silsilis=, inscriptions at, 263
=Sirius-Hathor=, 196, 212, 299
temples to, in Greece, 305, 422
=Sit.= _See_ Set
=Sky=, god of, 7, 33
=Smith=, George, on temple of Bel, 380
=Smith=, Robertson, on Mazzaroth, 133
=Sokhit= in pyramid times, 329
=Solstices=, 55, 57
determination of, 62 _et seq._
by Chinese, 63
relation to inundation, 234
summer, festival of, 198
temples oriented to, 78
and vague year cycle, 252
=Sothis=, Greek form of Sirius, q.v.
=Sowing=, season of, 233
=Sphinx=, object of, 82
=Spica=, associated with Mut temple, 320
observed at Thebes, 318
temples to, 313
in Greece, 419, 424
=St. Peter's=, Rome, 96, 102
=Stars=, apparent paths of, 41
how used to tell time at night, 343
non-rising at Thebes, 44
non-setting at Thebes, 44
northern, antiquity of worship of, 341
risings of, achronic, 121
cosmical, 121, 160
heliacal of Sirius, 121, 200, 209, 210, 249, 250, 254, 262
rising with sun, 60
risings at sunset, 148
settings, achronic, 121
heliacal, 121
table of, 314
southern, used in upper Egypt, 343
southern, worship of, as opposed to northern, 325
table of, 314
=Storms=, god of, 7
=Stonehenge=, 89, 90
=Strassmeyer=, 3, 407
=Suhag=, Nile gauge at, 235
=Sun=, course of, mythology of, 279
the midnight, 65
temples to, at solstices, 78
yearly path of, 53
=Sun-gods=, names for, 7, 373
=Sunlight=, god of, 33, 36
=Sunrise=, herald of, first star used, 277
in Greece, 416
=Sunset=, explanation of red colour of, 32
represented by Nephthys, 31
=Sut.= _See_ Set
=Sutech.= _See_ Set
god of Canaanites, 361
temple at Memphis, 361
=Syria=, invaders from, found 25th dynasty, 340
T
=Tables= of dates of foundations, 352
of stars, 20th dynasty, 408, 410
=Taharqa=, 187, 340
=Tammuz=, associated with Asari, 372
son of Ía, 372
son of Mul-lil, 372
=Tammuz-Nergal=, sun-god, 372, 374
son of Ía, 372
Mul-lil, 372
=Tanis=, decree of, 270
temple of, 82, 281, 329
=Taurus=, constellation of, 143, 378
in pyramid times, 329
=Taurt=, goddess, 28, 146, 302
mistress of darkness, 344
represented by hippopotamus, 146
symbol of, 216, 290
symbolised star γ Draconis, 290
=Tebha=, 145
=Tefnut=, 31, 36
=Tel Hakoab=, mounds at, 86
=Tell el-Amarna=, Spica temple, 313
temples at, 322, 419
=Temples= in Lower Egypt, as opposed to those in Upper Egypt, 341
series of, in Southern Egypt, 311
diversity of, due to different races, 315
=Tetramenes=, 272
=Teχi=, 223, 275
=Thebes=, amplitudes at, 47, 171
astronomical thought at, 324
two schools of, 325
city of Dragon in Greece, 422
first appearance of in Egyptian history, 331, 338
history of cults at, 320
month table at, 143
Nile flood, 240
rising of land about, 240
statues of Sechet, 290
temples at, amplitudes of, 156, 168, 309
of Amen Rā, 99
modern, 186
M, 213
solstitial, 78
=Thigh=, āk of, 176
(Mesχet), 179, 216
constellation, 137, 143, 302
in pyramid times, 360
of Set, 146, 147
represents Great Bear, 146
=This=, antiquity of, 327
=Thistleton-Dyer=, on Myrrh from Pun-t, 348
=Thoth= = Asti, 176
1st of, dates of, 268
festival of, 198
lunus, 29, 393
month of, sign of, 269
relation to Teχi, 275
sign of, in Ramessids' time, 269
=Thothmes I.=, 188
=Thothmes III.=, date of, 261
and the Theban priests, 321
Ptah temple, 354
Karnak, embellishments at, 112
restoration of temple of Amen-Rā, 108
temples at Medînet-Habû, 221
=Thoueris.= _See_ Taurt
=Tiāmat= and Marduk, myth of, 378, 398
=Tigris=, god sacred to, 229
inundation, time of, 85, 230, 367
=Tmu.= _See_ Atmu
=Tomes= on red hippopotamus, 362
=Totemism=, 215
=Triads=, 222
=Tuamāutef=, 147
=Tum.= _See_ Atmu
=Twilight=, representation of, Isis, 29
representation of, Nephthys, 31
=Typhon.= _See_ Set
=Tyre=, temple of, 161
U
=Unger=, date of Mena, 22
=Ur= of the Chaldees, 379
=Ursæ Majoris= α, temples to, 309, 341, 354, 360
=Usertsen I.=, 179, 221, 215
obelisk at Annu, 214, 338
=Ushas=, 7
=Utchats=, 280
V
=Varuna=, 7
=Vedas=, 4, 5, 6
=Virchow=, on race distinctions, 386
=Virey=, Dêr el-Bahari discoveries, 319
on cult of Aten, 321
=Vitruvius=, on temple orientation, 58
=Vyse=, Col. Howard, 12
W
=Wady Halfa= to Aswân, rate of Nile flood, 240
Capt. Lyons' work at, 358
=Wady Hammamāt=, 208
=Wakefield=, measurements at Karnak, 117
=Worship= of N. star, imported into Egypt, 370
Y
=Year=, anomalistic, 53
calendar, 246
definition of, 247
fixed, 251
length of, 251
length of, 244, 247
true, 250
fixed and vague, time of coincidence, 267
variation between, 252
great, Annus Magnus, 257
measure of length of, first, 110
new, indications, 247
sidereal, 53
Sirian, length of, 253
tropical, 53
vague, 251
beginnings of, 110
and solstice, cycle, 252
in time of Ramessids, 263
=Young=, Thomas, Rosetta stone, 11
Z
=Zend-Avesta=, 6
=Ziggurats=, erection of, 367
=Zodiac=, the signs of, 137
=Zodiacs=, of Denderah, 135, 146
discovery of, 18
PRINTED BY CASSELL & COMPANY, LIMITED, LA BELLE SAUVAGE, LONDON, E.C.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] My lectures, given in November, 1890, were printed in _Nature_,
April-July, 1891, under the title "On some Points in the Early History
of Astronomy," with the following note:--"From shorthand notes of a
course of lectures to working men delivered at the Museum of Practical
Geology, Jermyn Street, in November, 1890. The notes were revised by
me at Aswân during the month of January. I have found, since my return
from Egypt in March, that part of the subject-matter of the lectures
had been previously discussed by Professor Nissen, who has employed the
same materials as myself. To him, therefore, so far as I at present
know, belongs the credit of having first made the suggestion that
ancient temples were oriented on an astronomical basis. His articles
are to be found in the _Rheinisches Museum für Philologie_, 1885."
[2] Maspero, "Histoire ancienne des Peuples de l'Orient." p. 136.
[3] Hibbert Lectures, 1879.
[4] _See_ Rawlinson's "History of Egypt," Vol. II., p. 134, for
references on this subject.
[5] "The temples of the gods ought to be so placed that the statue,
which has its station in cella, should, if there be nothing to
interfere with such a disposition, face the west; in order that those
who come to make oblations and offer sacrifices may face the east....
When temples are built in the neighbourhood of a river, they should
command a view of its banks, like the temples of Egypt upon the borders
of the Nile."--_Vitruvius, Civil Architecture, Section I., Chapter V._
[6] _See_ Biot, "Études sur l'Astronomie Indienne," p. 293.
[7] _See_ Biot, "Sur divers points d'Astronomie ancienne: Mémoires,
Académie des Sciences," 1846, p. 47.
[8] For a detailed account of the way in which the formula in use
has been obtained, the reader had better turn to Vol. I., p. 253, of
Chauvenet's "Spherical and Practical Astronomy."
If we denote the latitude by φ,
and let _p_ = the star's polar distance,
_a_ = " " right ascension,
Θ = sidereal time of observation,
_h_ = the star's altitude,
_t_ = " " hour angle;
then, knowing that
_t_ = Θ - _a_,
the formula may be written as follows:--
φ = _h_ - _p_ cos. t + ½{_p_²} sin. 1” sin. _t²_ tan. _h_.
The Nautical Almanac gives tables to facilitate the computations
involved, but greater exactness is obtained by direct computation.
[9] Since I left Egypt, in February, 1893, Captain Lyons has been good
enough to comply with my request to repeat the observations. I give the
following extract from his letter:--
"The mounds are only within a degree, as it is only the general
direction which can be taken.
South mound old temenos wall, 289½° mag. bearing = 19½° N. of W.
Wall at right angles 189° mag. bearing = 71° S. of W.
Going to the West mound there are two higher humps with an opening
between them, tons of limestone chips, sandstone blocks with Rameses
II.'s name; so that I take this for the site of the great pylon. It is
exactly opposite the obelisk, and distant, I should guess, 600 yards.
Site of S. pylon to obelisk, 106½° mag. bearing = 16½° S. of E.
Pole of N. pylon to obelisk, 109½° mag. bearing = 19½° S. of E.
So I think probably the remaining obelisk is the northern one (_cf._
Horner, "Phil. Trans.," MDCCCLV., pp. 124 and 131), and the temple axis
was directed 289½° mag. bearing with corr. 5½° = 284° = 14° N. of
West true amplitude."
[10] Amenenemāt I., the founder of the sanctuary of the sun, entreats,
after he has begun the great work (which was not finished till the
time of his son, Usertesen), "May it not perish by the vicissitudes
of time, may that which is made endure!" This desire of a great king
which has come down to us through the leathern roll now preserved at
Berlin, has not been fulfilled; for of his magnificent structure, built
for all eternity, nothing remains but the obelisk we have seen, and a
few blocks of stone scarcely worth mentioning. The Persian Cambyses
is unjustly accused of having destroyed the temple and city of the
sun, for the city was minutely described in detail long after his
time, and the temple was still flourishing; nay, many remains of the
sanctuary, that have now long since vanished, were described even by
Arab authors.--Ebers, "Egypt," p. 190.
[11] "Ninive et l'Assyrie," par Victor Place. Imprimerie Imperiale,
1867.
[12] "Monument de Ninive," par Botta and Flandin. Imprimerie Nationale,
1849.
[13] From a magnetic chart which has been prepared for me by the
kindness of Captain Creak, R.N., F.R.S., of the Hydrographic Department
of the Admiralty, it seems that the variation at Nineveh and Babylon
may be taken as follows:--
Nineveh. Babylon.
1800 8° 25′ W. 8° 25′ W.
1900 0° 0° 25′ W.
The values for intermediate dates may be roughly arrived at by an
interpolation curve.
[14] "Journeys in North China," Williamson. Vol. II., chap. xvi., by
Edkins. p. 253.
[15] "Stonehenge: Plans, Descriptions, and Theories," 1880, p. 20.
[16] Ferguson: "Rude Stone Monuments."
[17] _See_ especially "The Golden Bough," by J. G. Fraser, for the
midsummer and Beltaine fires.
[18] "Antiquities," b. 8, c. 4, p. 401, Whiston's edition.
[19] Josephus, "Antiquities" III., c. 8, § 9.
[20] The italics are mine--J. N. L.
[21] "Antiquities" III., c. 8, § 9.
[22] Warren: "Underground Jerusalem."
[23] Acosta, in his "History of Indies," lib. vi., p. 459. quoted by
Maurice ("Observations Connected with Astronomy and Ancient History
and Ruins of Babylon"), states that some of the stones in the Mexican
temples to sun and moon measure 38 feet by 18 feet by 6 feet.
[24] _See_ "Palmyra and Baalbek." R. Wood, 1827. Plates.
[25] On this point I gather the following information from the article
"Orientation" in the "Grand Dictionnaire Universel du 19 Siècle,"
by M. Pierre Larousse:--"From the fifth century to the time of the
Renaissance, the orientation of churches was generally carried out.
The mystical reasons furnished by the sacred writers--according to
St. John of Damascus and Cassiodorus--were that Jesus on the Cross
had His face turned towards the West, hence Christians during prayer
must turn to the East to see it. Further, in the sacred writings Jesus
is called the East (_Oriens ex alto_). Again, Christians hope to see
Christ descending in the East on the last day. Finally, the faithful
when turning to the East during prayer establish a difference between
themselves and the Jews and heretics, for the Jews when praying turn
West, and certain heretics South, and others North, hence the heathen
said they were sun-worshippers." In the ninth century there was a
strong protest against orientation. Catholic churches were built any
way, and it was said, "_Nunc oremus ad omnem partem quia Deus ubique
est_."
[26] See _Builder_, Jan. 2, 1892.
[27] Brugsch, "Egypt," p. 174.
[28] Inscription south side of obelisk quoted in "Records of the Past,"
Vol. XII. (Letter from Capt. Lyons).
[29] Brugsch, "Egypt," p. 177.
[30] "Chrestomathie Égyptienne," Do Rougé, iii., p. 60.
[31] "Egyptian Archæology," English edition, p. 105.
[32] Brugsch, "Egypt," p. 174.
[33] Brugsch, op. cit., p. 187.
[34] "Karnak. Étude topographique et archéologique."
[35] Mariette, _op. cit._, text, p. 2.
[36] "History" p. 175.
[37] Nissen in his important memoir does not refer to this hill; his
conclusions, therefore, are not absolutely justified by the facts as he
states them.
[38] "Œuvres de Volney," vol. v., p. 431.
[39] "Ptolemy Almagest VIII.," chap. vi.
[40] "Recherches sur l'année vague des Egyptiens," by M. Biot. Académie
des Sciences 4th April, 1831.
[41] _I.e._, the stars which never set.
[42] Herodotus II., 44. (I am indebted to my friend Prof. Robertson
Smith for this reference.)
[43] See _ante_, p. 111.
[44] For instance, in the line of sphinxes in front of temple X, shown
in the folding plate inserted in Chap. XVIII., the line was left
incomplete to preserve the fair-way of the ruined temple north of Y
outside the _temenos_ wall.
[45] "Baugeschichte des Dendera-Tempels," 1877.
[46] "Rheinisches Museum für Philologie," 1885, p. 39.
[47] Quoted from Nissen, _op. cit._
[48] "Origine des Cultes," vol. i., p. 450.
[49] On this point I am permitted by Professor Maspero to print the
following extract from a letter I received from him:--"Tous les temples
ptolémaïques et la plus grande partie des temples pharaoniques sont
des _reconstructions_. Ce que vous avez observé de Dendérah, est
vrai d'Esnéh, d'Ombos, d'Assouan, de Philæ, etc. Or, si les premiers
constructeurs d'un temple--ou chez nous d'une église--peuvent choisir
presque à leur gré l'emplacement, et par suite l'orientation, la plus
convenable, il en est bien rarement de même des _reconstructeurs_.
Les maisons accumulées autour du temple les gênaient, d'ailleurs les
habitudes du culte et de la population étaient prises; on rebâtissait
le temple--comme d'ordinaire chez nous on rebâtit l'église--sur
la même orientation et sur les mêmes fondations. J'ai constaté le
fait à Kom-Ombo, où les débris du temple décoré par Amenhotpou I.
et Thoutmosis III. sont orientés exactement comme ceux du temple
ptolémaïque actuel, bâti sur les ruines du précédent. Vous avez donc le
droit de dire, non seulement pour Dendérah, mais pour beaucoup d'autres
temples, qu'ils ont été reconstruits sur l'orientation du temple qu'ils
remplaçaient, quand même cette orientation ne répondait plus à la
réalité des choses."
[50] Mariette, "Denderah," vol. i., p. 263.
[51] Mariette, _op. cit._, p. 142. Plutarch wrote in the first century
A.D.
[52] Mariette, _op. cit._, p. 206.
[53] Mariette, _op. cit._, p. 142.
[54] Hathor is termed "La maîtresse du commencement de l'an." Mariette,
_loc. cit._, p. 207.
[55] "Besides the solstice and the beginning of the Nile flood,
there was an event in the sky which was too striking not to excite
the general attention of the Egyptian priesthood. We also know from
the newly-discovered inscriptions from the ancient empire that
the risings of Orion and Sirius were already attentively followed
and mythologically utilised at the time of the building of the
pyramids."--KRALL.
[56] Brugsch, "Egypt," Edition 1891, p. 189.
[57] Ebers, "Egypt," p. 335.
[58] Mariette, pp. 168 and 178.
[59] Dümichen, "Bauurkunde der Tempelanlagen von Dendera," p. 20.
[60] Mariette, p. 156.
[61] "Isis and Osiris," Parthey, cap. 56.
[62] Have we such instances of degradation in the cat replacing the
lion and the black pig the hippopotamus, to give two instances?
[63] It has been assumed by several authorities in Egyptology that Sati
is a variant for Sirius. It is quite certain that in late times there
was a temple at Philæ oriented to Sirius; but there are many grounds
for supposing that both Sati and Anuqa referred to special southern
stars. There were several points of dissimilarity between Philæ (and
Elephantine) and Thebes.
[64] Maspero, "Hist. Anc." xi. 10.
[65] "Monumental Egypt," chapter i.
[66] "Monumental Egypt," chapter i.
[67] The modern Egyptians still hold to the old months for irrigation.
7 Taba = January 15, is commencement of wheat irrigation; 30 Misra is
the last safe date for sowing maize in the Delta; 1st Tut is the date
of regulating the bridges = September 8 in Upper Egypt.
[68] "Histoire ancienne des Peuples de l'Orient," p. 72.
[69] "Chronologie," i., p. 70.
[70] _Op. cit._, p. 187.
[71] Krall, _loc. cit._, p. 20.
[72] Mommsen, "Chronologie," p. 258.
[73] "Studien zur Geschichte der Alten Aegypten," I. Wien, 1881.
[74] "Matériaux pour servir à la Reconstruction du Calendrier," p. 29.
[75] "Aeg. Zeit.," 1886, p. 5, quoted by Krall.
[76] It should be observed that a distinction is made between the
Julian and the historical year. This comes from the fact that when
astronomical phenomena are calculated for dates B.C., it must be
remembered that chronologists are in the habit of designating by 1,
or rather by-1, the first year which precedes the instant of time at
which the chronological year commenced, while astronomers mark this
year in their tables by 0. It follows, therefore, that the rank of any
year B.C. is always marked by an additional unit in the chronological
dates. For the Christian era, of course, chronologists and astronomers
work in the same way. The following table, given by Biot, exhibits the
connection between these two methods. In the latter Biot shows the
leap-years marked B, and the corresponding years in the Scaligerian
chronological period are also given.
DATES OF JULIAN YEARS COMMENCING ON JANUARY 1.
According to According to Corresponding
Chronologists. Astronomers. years of the period
of Scaliger.
-6 -5 4708
-5B -4B 4709
── ── ───
-4 -3 4710
-3 -2 4711
-2 -1 4712
-1B -0B 4713B
Physical instant when the era commenced.
+1 +1 4714
+2 +2 4715
+3 +3 4716
+4B +4B 4717B
── ── ───
+5 +5 4718
[77] _Loc. cit._, p. 29.
[78] Probably too great a value by two or three days.
[79] _Op. cit._, p. 48.
[80] Goodwin has already asked, "Does the Smith Papyrus refer to some
rectification of the calendar made in the fourth dynasty, similar to
that made in Europe from the old to the new style?" Quoted by Riel,
"Sonnen-und Sirius-Jahr," p. 361.
[81] On the 7th Epiphi of the tenth year of Ptolemy III. the ceremony
of the stretching off the cord took place. Dümichen, _Aeg. Zeit._, 2,
1872, p. 41.
[82] _Op. cit._, p. 37.
[83] Dümichen, "Bauurkunde der Tempelanlagen von Dendera," p. 20.
[84] Brugsch thus translates one of the inscriptions:--"Horus in
weiblicher Gestalt ist die Fürstin, die Mächtige, die Thronfolgerin
und Tochter eines Thronfolger. Ein fliegender Käfer wild (sie?)
geboren am Himmel in der uranfänglichen Stadt (Denderah) zur Zeit der
Nacht des Kindes in seiner Wiege. Es strahlt die Sonne am Himmel in
der Dämmerung, wann ihre Geburt vollbracht wird." Brugsch, "Astron.
Inscript.," p. 97.
[85] In this and the following tables the dates connected with the
heights of hills where they are known are given in heavy type. Where
the local conditions are unknown, hills 1° high have been assumed.
[86] With regard to the temple A of Lepsius, it may be stated that
in the time of the Ptolemies it received considerable and curious
enlargements and embellishments which make it unique among Egyptian
temples.
[87] Baedeker, "Ober-Aegypten," p. 320.
[88] New Gîzeh Catalogue, p. 61.
[89] Brugsch, "Religion und Mythologie," p. 111. Pierret, "Salle
Historique de la Galerie Égyptienne" (du Louvre), p. 199.
[90] "Notices des Principaux Monuments Exposés au Musée de Gîzeh," p.
260. (1893.)
[91] The little temple of Isis at Pompeii and the associated frescoes
in the Naples Museum are well worth careful study, especially with
regard to the arrangements made for the stellar observations (and their
final stoppage by the drastic proceeding referred to in the text),
and the evolution of Horus in Greek times. The Hippopotami are most
carefully drawn.
[92] Gîzeh Catalogue, 1893, p. 63.
[93] Professor Flinders Petrie has been good enough to send me his
recent measurements. They justify those obtained from Lepsius' plan.
[94] Brugsch, "Egypt," 1891, p. 220.
[95] Ebers and Dümichen, in Baedeker's "Ober-Aegypten," p. 59.
[96] _Op. cit._, p. 21.
[97] That is, if we take the temple as oriented originally to α Ursæ
Majoris.
[98] No sun temple is closely associated with the Set temples either at
Luxor or Abydos, and one on the Annu model would not be so associated,
for a right angle would carry its axis outside the ecliptic limits.
[99] Maspero, _op. cit._, p. 64.
[100] Maspero, _op. cit._, p. 44, note.
[101] Maspero, _op. cit._, p. 64.
[102] Maspero, _op. cit._, p. 46.
[103] Maspero, _op. cit._, p. 41.
[104] "Bubastis," preface, p. iv.
[105] There are, however, notable exceptions to this rule, which will
be discussed further on.
[106] "Mêdûm," chap. i.
[107] Maspero, _op. cit._, p. 59.
[108] Further, it is known that there was some connection between
Pepi-Meri-Rā and the eleventh dynasty of Thebes. Maspero, _op. cit._,
p. 91. And it must also be mentioned that in the later pyramids "texts"
are introduced.
[109] Maspero, _op. cit._, p. 112.
[110] Maspero, _op. cit._, p. 112.
[111] Maspero, _op. cit._, p. 113.
[112] It is worthy of inquiry whether the northern star so observed is
not the true Nephthys (Nebt-het). If so, the triad Nephthys, Isis and
Horus represents daily astronomical observations.
[113] Rawlinson, i. 337.
[114] "Egypt under the Pharaohs," ed. 1891, p. 3.
[115] Brugsch, "History," p. 6.
[116] Maspero, "Histoire ancienne," p. 59.
[117] _Idem_, p. 63.
[118] Rawlinson, ii., p. 134.
[119] Maspero, "Histoire ancienne," p. 5.
[120] Brugsch, "History of Egypt," 1891, p. 54.
[121] Mariette, "Dêr el-Bahari," p. 31. Mr. W. T. Thistleton-Dyer, the
director of the Royal Gardens, Kew, agrees in this view. He permits
me to print the following extract from a letter written to me:--"The
only positive fact that I can deal with is the representation in the
pictures of a small scrubby tree, which seems to have been about four
feet high. It appears to have yielded a gummy or resinous exudation
from its trunk. Mariette supposes this to be myrrh. Pount to be
Somali-land, and To Nuter the Socotran Archipelago. All this fits in
very well with botanical facts. Myrrh-producing plants exist both in
Somali-land and Arabia, and also in Socotra, as ascertained by Bayley
Balfour. The two former places still are, as they always have been, the
place of origin of myrrh, and we know that it was largely used by the
Egyptians in embalming. There is no evidence that myrrh, or anything in
any way resembling it, was ever found south of the Equator. I cannot
carry you further south than Berbera."
[122] On this point I am permitted to print the following extract from
a letter received from my friend Sir John Kirk, K.C.B.:--"I send you
a photo, taken in 1858, in the delta of the Zambezi, of a house built
on high poles. The people there live in such houses. There is a ladder
by which they mount, and all their belongings are kept above. Such
houses I have since seen at the mouth of the River Rufiji, opposite the
island of Monfia, to the south of Zanzibar. The reason in both cases
for such a type of house is that the country at one time is flooded,
and also to avoid mosquitoes. Similar structures are used, I am told,
in Madagascar. At Lake Nyassa I believe there are village communities
living in the lake, on artificial islands of piles."
[123] Rawlinson, ii., p. 131.
[124] "L'Anthropologie," 1891, No. 4.
[125] Brugsch, "Egypt," p. 184.
[126] Inscription of Thothmes III., translated by Brugsch, "Egypt," p.
188.
[127] Brugsch, "Egypt," p. 184.
[128] Brugsch, "Egypt," p. 180.
[129] For plans, _see_ Lepsius, vol. ii., p. 130.
[130] For plans, _see_ Lepsius, vol. ii., pp. 133 and 134.
[131] For plans, _see_ Lepsius, vol. ii., pp. 125 and 127.
[132] There is a point of great interest here. It would seem from
Captain Lyons' examination of the temples at Wady Halfa, which I make
out to have been oriented to α Centauri, that when the two races were
amalgamated in later times, both the stars to which I have referred as
heralding the equinox were personified by the same goddess, Serk-t.
[133] Besides the book on omens we have "The observations of Bel,"
or "Illumination of Bel" (Mul-lil), seventy-two books dealing with
conjunctions of Sun and Moon, phases (?) of Venus, and appearance of
comets. (Sayce, "Hibbert Lectures," p. 29.) The complete materials for
the study of Babylonian and Assyrian astronomy cannot be available
until the catalogue of the Kouyunjik Collection, now in course of
publication by the British Museum, is finished.
[134] Rawlinson, vol. i., p. 316.
[135] Maspero, "Histoire Ancienne," p. 165.
[136] Pierret, "Le Panthéon Égyptien," p. 48. I have before referred to
a doubt on this point.
[137] Maspero, _op. cit._, p. 357.
[138] "Le Panthéon Égyptien," p. 4.
[139] "Kosmologie der Babylonier," p. 147.
[140] "Proc. Zool. Soc.," 1850, p. 160.
[141] Dr. Wallis Budge informs me that An was an old name of the
sun-god.
[142] Rawlinson, vol. ii., p. 64.
[143] "Kosmologie der Babylonier," p. 147.
[144] Sayce, "Hibbert Lectures," 1887, p. 193.
[145] Sayce, p. 193.
[146] Jensen, p. 149.
[147] Sayce, p. 439.
[148] Sayce, "Hibbert Lectures," p. 190.
[149] Sayce, p. 280. There is a bas-relief in the British Museum
showing this ceremonial.
[150] Sayce, p. 101.
[151] _See_ "Guide to the British Museum," p. 71.
[152] Sayce, Hibbert Lectures, p. 33. Flinders Petrie, _Nature_, Aug.
9, 1883, p. 341.
[153] Sayce, _op. cit._, p. 135.
[154] One gets the idea, from reading Professor Sayce's work, that
there might have been in the earliest times a north-star-worshipping
race up the valley before Ía and Sun and Moon worship were established
at Eridu; and that the addition of Ía to the Bīl-Anu-worship to make
one triad, and the addition of Bīl to the Ía-Asari-worship to make
another, were both compromises. See Sayce, pp. 320, 347, 400.
[155] Prof. Sayce has been good enough to inform me that he is of
opinion that Marduk or Merodach was originally a local god of Babylon,
and that he was identified with the son of Ea when a colony came to
Babylon or founded that city, bringing with it the culture and theology
of the south. In this way the sun-god of Babylon became confounded with
the sun-god of Eridu. I should add that Assyriologists are not all
agreed about the transitions to which I have referred.
[156] I owe to the kindness of Sir Arnold Kemball, K.C.B., the perusal
of a valuable report on the agriculture of British East Africa,
prepared for him by Mr. W. W. A. Fitz-Gerald. He has permitted me
to print the following abstract:--"The whole of the eastern coast
is affected in a greater or lesser degree by the S.W. and N.E.
monsoons. The following notes deal only with the extent of coast-land
lying opposite and to the north of Zanzibar and Pemba islands. The
agricultural seasons on the coast-lands are two in number, and
correspond with the advent of the N.E. and S.W. monsoons respectively.
They are distinguished locally as the 'greater rains,' or 'Masika
M'Ku;' the 'lesser rains,' or 'Masika M'dogo.' The greater rains
inaugurate the most important cultivating season, commencing in March
with the S.W. monsoon. Some years the sowing commences as early as
the 7th, but generally speaking the average period may be given as
beginning from the middle of the month, and by the first week in
April all sowings of Indian corn, rice and 'mfmah' (Millet or Sorghum
vulgare), the chief and staple food-stuffs of the people, are generally
finished, though sowings may continue till the end of April. The
heaviest fall of rain occurs in April and May, and the rain continues
with gradually diminishing force to September. _Harvest_ takes place
in July and August, and once the grain is off the field the land is
immediately cleared and prepared for sowing, in anticipation of the
coming of the 'lesser rains' in _October_. The season of the lesser
rains is chiefly the time for the cultivation of Gingelly oil seed,
beans, and such other lesser food-stuffs. The season of the 'lesser
rains' is deemed more uncertain and less to be depended upon, and the
rainfall is decidedly very much smaller in comparison. The 'lesser
rains' practically end in November, for though the wind continues
steadily from the N.N.E., the rainfall in December, January, and
February is slight and uncertain, and it is during these three months,
especially the two last, that the greatest heat prevails. The influence
of the monsoons is considerably less than on Zanzibar Island, and the
difference of rainfall may be put down as about 20 to 30 inches."
[157] Introduction to "Nubische Grammatik," 1880.
[158] Just in the same way that the Equinoctial Pyramid cult gave way
in Egypt, dominated by the rise of the Nile at the solstice.
[159] I shall show subsequently that a similar change seems also to
have been made at Thebes. Amen-Rā, the Summer Sun-god, was a late
invention.
[160] Jensen, pp. 195-198.
[161] Sayce, p. 131.
[162] The italics are mine.--J. N. L.
[163] Professor Sayce also tells me that Asari was subsequently
identified by the Semitic Babylonians with Merodach.
[164] "Egypt's Place," vol. i., p. 377.
[165] Rawlinson's "Ancient Egypt," vol. i., p. 328.
[166] Lanzoni also states that Amen-Rā sometimes appears with the four
heads of the goat, once special to Chnemu, q.v.
[167] Lanzoni, p. 692.
[168] Rawlinson, vol. i., p. 371.
[169] Naville, "Mythe d'Horus," p. 8.
[170] "Mythe d'Horus," p. 7.
[171] "Mythe d'Horus," p. 7.
[172] "Hist. Anc.," p. 33.
[173] "Hibbert Lectures," p. 155.
[174] In modern German, even, the Moon is masculine and the Sun
feminine.
[175] Maspero, _op. cit._, p. 14.
[176] _Annu_ and _An_ (Denderah): (? "la grande Tribu des Anou" of
Maspero?)
[177] _Op. cit._, p. 315.
[178] I think I am right about the Tortoise, for I find the
following passage in Jensen, p. 65, where he notes the absence of
the Crab:--"Ganz absehend davon, ob dasselbe für unsere Frage von
Wichtigkeit werden wird oder nicht, muss ich daran erinnern, das unter
den Emblemen, welche die sogenannten 'Deeds of Sale' häufig begleiten,
verschiedene Male wie der Scorpion so die Schildkröte abgebildet
gefunden wird."
[179] According to a communication of Dr. Tetens, Aldebaran rose
heliacally at the beginning of spring for Babylon 6900 years ago.
[180] With regard to these legends Jensen writes: "Now it is
remarkable that the oldest historical king about whom the Babylonians
know anything, Sargon of Agadi (?) is said to have lived about 3750
B.C.--_i.e._, 5639 years ago--and that his son is called Narām-Sīn
= 'favourite of Sīn,' the moon-god. And if we bear in mind that the
zodiac with its signs plays into the Babylonian legends of creation,
and that the Hebrew cosmogonic legends are derived from these, it is
for us even more remarkable that the Jews place the creation of the
world 5649 years ago, however much the figures derived from the Bible,
according to other computations and traditions, may depart therefrom.
Whether this is accidental or not, I do not profess to judge."
[181] "Astronomisches aus Babylon," pp. 117-133.
[182] "Die Sterntafeln in den ägyptischen Konigsgräbern von Bibân
el-Molûk," von Gustav Bilfinger (p. 69).
[183] In the lists of temples which follow, all the orientations were
obtained from azimuths taken with a theodolite, either from the sun or
from the planet Venus. In almost every case two or more sights were
observed, and occasionally also the performance of the instrument was
tested by stars at night. The heights subtended by the visible horizon
opposite to the axes of the temples were also observed.
[184] _See_ _Nature_, February 25, 1892, and May 11, 1893.
[185] R indicates a rising, and S a setting observation.
[186] With regard to a temple of Minerva using α Arietis at Tegea, Mr.
Penrose writes:--"Minerva is allowed by the poets to have been able
to use Jupiter's thunder, so this is no misappropriation of the star.
Juno also seems to have claimed the use of α Arietis as at Samos, and
at Girgenti it suits the orientation of the temple of Juno better than
Spica. But Spica seems to have been connected with the worship of Juno
and Diana in their more strictly female capacity."