The Babylonians and The Mayans









An archeoastonomical overview of two major cultures.





























Jeremy Chapman

3726223

Astronomy and Cosmology

SCHA 298A/2 AA







Ever since human life evolved, the night sky has been one of the biggest enigmas we have encountered. We have archaeological proof of ancient cultures' interest in astronomy, from the megalithic structures of Britain to Babylonian clay tablets and Mayan parchments. These early astronomers did more than simply gaze at the heavens, starstruck; they calculated, coded, compiled and observed all of the available phenomena. The attempt to make sense of what was happening above is a worldwide practice, and has been since time immemorial. The way to this knowledge was fraught with difficulty, having such matters as retrograde motion to explain.

This essay will provide a brief overview of two ancient astronomical cultures; the Babylonian and the Mayan. Both were enormous influences on later thought, and scientific progress owes much to these two groups. Once we are acquainted with their respective views on the subject, we will explore the connections between the two and attempt to understand how the differences that exist may have come about. Our first subject will be the Babylonian culture.

1. The Babylonians



The citizens of ancient Babylon were among the earliest systematic stargazers. Their first astronomical texts were tables of the times for the moonrise and the date of the new moon, along with various meteorological data. These observations date back to 1800 BC. There are in fact two distinct time periods when observations were made. The first are from a remarkably complete set of observations of the rising and setting of Venus. A later set of tablets that were discovered cover a period of about 1000 years altogether, starting around 1100 BC. Thus, there is a lapse in observational material covering about 1000 years of cosmological history. Whether this information simply has yet to be discovered, or if other factors caused this blank period, archeoastronomers have been unable to ascertain.

The first group of measurements were essentially contained within one document, written during the reign of King Ammisaduqua of the First Dynasty of Babylon. These documents listed the dates for the consecutive first and last appearances of Venus as an evening star and as a morning star. The list of Venusian dates, which were used also as a list of omen predictions, was copied and recopied extensively, embedding within the text certain corrupt details. This table became a standard collection of astronomical and meteorological omens, predicting favorable times for coronations, harvests and births.

The second set of observations comes from the great capital of Babylon in what is now southern Iraq. These documents are a type of astronomical log, but also contain details about everyday life. These tablets are called the Mul-Apin tablets (the earliest dates from 687 BC), so named because Mul-Apin are the first words inscribed. Each has 3 lists of stars: 12 stars of Anu, 12 stars of Ea and 12 stars of Enlil. The tablets were filled with a panoply of information, a summary of which follows:



· an extensive list of stars of Enlil, Ea and Anu, and the dates of their heliacal risings.

· a list of pairs of stars in opposite directions from the earth, so that one rises as the other sets.

· a list of culminations (star culminates when it reaches its highest point in its circle around the pole). The tablets indicate the time of culmination by listing a star that is rising at the same time

· a list of stars and constellations in the moon's path.

· the statement that the sun is in Anu in months 12-2 and winds blow; it is in Enlil in months 3-5, the time of heat and harvest; it is in Ana again in months 6-8 and winds blow; it is in Ea in months 9-11 and the weather is cold.

· rules for telling when a year needs a thirteenth month. For example, if the moon is near the Pleiades on the first day of the year there will not be a thirteenth month.

· Tables showing when the shadow of a standard gnomon ( a vertical rod standing on a horizontal plate) has certain lengths.

· The length of the night on various dates.





The statement about the sun being in either Ea, Anu, or Enlil tells us that the Babylonians at this period were aware of how the height of the sun in the sky affected weather patterns and created the seasons. Also, since the path of the moon was observed as separate from the listing of the stars suggests that the Babylonians were as yet unaware that the sun defines the ecliptic.



1.1 OBSERVATIONS

Figure 1 (1)



Phenomena Babylonian Model

(Ammizaduga Tablet)

Maya Model

(Dresden Codex)

Actual Observable Average
Morning Star

(visible in east)

245 days

(8 months, 5 days)

236 days 263 days
Disappearance Period

(eastern disappearance to western appearance)

90 days

(3 months)

90 days 50 days
Evening Star

(visible in west)

245 days

(8 months, 5 days)

250 days 263 days
Disappearance period

(western disappearance to eastern appearance)

7 days 8 days 8 days
Total Cycle 587 days

(19 months, 17 days)

584 days 584 days

(583.92)



These various observations serve to highlight the small variations in the measurements of the movements of Venus. This was an important planet to watch, because it is easy to spot with naked eyes, and it also follows a repeating path. Starting from about 700 BC onward we find clay tablets recording sophisticated observations of the moon and planets, down to details such as the direction in which the earth's shadow sweeps across the moon in an eclipse. A typical tablet covers either the first or second half of a year and for each of the six months the tablet records the following :





· the number of days in the preceding month

· the time between moonrise and sunset on the last day of the month on which the moon rises before sunset

· the times between sunset and moonrise on the next day

· the time between moonset and sunrise on the last day on which the moon sets before the sun rises

· the time between sunrise and moonset on the next day

· the time between moonrise and sunrise on the last day on which the moon is visible

· the longitudes of each of the planets (signs of zodiac they are situated in)

· the river level in Babylon

· the price of barley, dates, sesame, etc…

· some include also where appropriate:

· details of eclipses

· for each outer planet, the date of its first or last visibility, the date on which it starts or finishes retrograde motion, and the date on which it rises as the sun sets.

· the date of first or last visibility of Venus or Mercury

· conjunctions of the moon or planets with stars near the zodiac

· the weather; if bad

· interesting news.



1.2 The Babylonian Zodiac

The first list of stars which used signs of the zodiac is dated about 410 BC. The places of the planets in the zodiac were employed in a relatively simple cyclic scheme in order to give short range predictions, generally thought by the forecasters to be of worldwide impact. It is also possible that these signs were employed because the list of stars and constellations on the path of the moon can be an easy way to describe the elliptic. However, this system of naming all the stars and describing their placement was an almost insurmountable problem. In order to simplify this, the Babylonians later came up with a way to reduce the list of stars to twelve constellations roughly equally spaced around the elliptic. After this was accomplished, they divided the elliptic into twelve precisely equal parts, which we call the "signs of the zodiac" - each of which is named for the constellation nearest it. The signs of the zodiac are therefore not the same as the constellations of the zodiac: a constellation is a group of stars, whereas a sign is a twelfth part of a circle. The following table shows the equivalency between Latin, Greek and Babylonian zodiacal sign systems.



Figure 2 (2)



LATIN Babylonian Babylonian Meaning Greek Greek Meaning
Cancer kushú, nangar, allul [?] Karkinos [Crab]
Leo a, ura [Lion] Leon [Lion]
Virgo absin [Furrow] Parthenos [Virgin]
Libra rín, zibanitu [Balance] Khelai, Zygos [Claws], [Balance]
Scorpio gír, gir-tab [Scorpion] Skorpios [Scorpion]
Sagittarius pa, pabilsag [Name of a god] Toxotes [Archer]
Capricornus másh, sahurmásh [Goat-fish] Aigokeros [Goat-Horned]
Aquarius gu, gula [?] Hydrokhoos [Water-pourer}
Pisces zib, zib-me [Tails] Ikhthyes [Fishes]
Aries hun, luhunga, lu [Hired hand] Krios [Ram]
Taurus múl [Star] Tauros [Bull]
Gemini mash, mash-mash, mashtabba [Twins] Didymoi [Twins]


As one can see, there is overlap between these 3 systems, due primarily to the fact that the two more recent civilizations used the Babylonian system as the basis for their own astrological observations. This zodiacal system was important because it allowed the user of the signs to be able to pinpoint a location in a way that had been previously impossible. Using these signs as marker points, a Babylonian might for instance describe a position on the elliptic as "6 degrees in mul" that is 6 degrees further east than the first point of mul. A degree, (for which the Babylonians' word is ush) is one-thirtieth of a sign, and therefore 1/360th of a circle. This happens to be generally the same system we continue to use, even after the metric system was introduced.



1.3 Babylonian Numbering System

Babylonian mathematics operated on a sexigesimal numbering system (base 60). Their method of notation for numbers up to sixty was simple, one stroke represented one unit and a sideways vee shape represented ten units. For example, 23 = <<III. As previously stated, the Babylonians knew of two things that could be separated into divisions of 360, the circle and the day: 1/360th of a circle is an ush which means the same as our degree of arc when used to measure angles. They also called 1/360th of a day an ush, equal to four of our minutes.



1.4 Babylonian Religion

To the Babylonian priest, the planets were divine beings that had been transformed into a heavenly body upon his/her death. This transmogrification of their divine attributes and souls into the planets provided these priests of ancient Babylonia with not only a cosmology, but a cosmogony as well. Mars was Nergal, the powerful and war-like god of the underworld in ancient Babylon. Nebo, or Nabu (the wise) was their version of Venus. The Babylonians believed in two planes of reality with humans as the mediator between the two. As Aveni states "[We] were put here on earth not just for ourselves but for the express purpose of interpreting the actions of the omen-bearing invisible spirits who speak through the entrails of sacrificed animals and aborted animal fetuses, who empower the birds to fly and the planets to roam across the sky." (3). He goes on to say that these omens are over 3500 years old and that they all follow the same formula, when X happens in nature, Y happens to us. For example, if Venus appeared while the sky was clear, that was a good omen, conducive to harvest, and therefore a good time to plant or reap one's garden.



2. The Mayans

The Mayan culture stands as one of the foremost ancient civilizations in the Americas. They were active in central America between about 300 and 900 AD. Unfortunately, we have only their remains of once great architectural triumphs in order to judge the level of scientific competency they were able to achieve. They built pyramids, causeways and public buildings that allow us to deduce that many thousands of people lived within their city centers. Further, the layout of the cities and buildings, with the most opulent at the center and the more rural on the outskirts suggest a division of power, possibly based on bloodlines flowing to the present elite classes. The practice of astronomy was stimulated because it was believed that the continuity of the power of rulership was directly expressed from the sky-creator in the form of discernible subtleties in observable planetary cycles. The most prominent of these planetary cycles was that of Venus. We shall discuss this planet and its cycles in a separate paragraph.



2.1 Timeline

A brief timeline of the Mayan civilization may be found in Appendix 1.



2.2 Mayan Numbering

Perhaps the most amazing achievement of ancient Mayans was their use of an intricate and detailed system of writing. This included a sophisticated system of mathematical numeration which was necessary in order to be able to further their knowledge in the field of astronomy. This in turn allowed them to precisely calibrate their calendar, eventually settling on a system that is still in use today.

The system the Mayan peoples used in numbering objects or for mathematics derived from a simple source; their own bodies. The Maya represented numbers by dots and bars, a bar counting as 5. The dots and bars method they used was derived from the preliterate body-count system in which articles were counted on fingers and toes, a system forged in a time when qualitative information was conferred by gesture, not figures.



2.3 Venus

As we have noted, Venus was perhaps the most important planet to the Babylonian cosmological system, it also played a major role in Mayan systems. To the Maya, Venus was Lahun Chan, the god of the tenth heaven. He wears the Venus symbol in his headdress and his appearance predates that of Quetzalcoatl in popular Mayan mythology. He was possessed of the head of a jaguar but the body of a dog. He was said to be envious and dishonest- a sower of discord- a god without virtue. This god is also connected with rain and/or the rainy season, although it is not obvious why. Most modern viewers of Venus would find no apparent connection between the planet's seemingly repeatable aspects and the precipitation. Five Venus cycles, being 584 days long each, equal eight years, but precipitation fluctuates within a single year. However, when one studies the Venus table in the Dresden Codex (a religious book with planetary observations inscribed on it) we can chart Venus's disappearance periods over several seasonal years as seen from Mayan territory. We see that the planet's absence is shortest when Venus disappears in the dry season and longest during the period of rain. This type of observation served to fulfill three purposes: to explain the wanderings of the planets, to further belief in the mythological symbolism that was attached to these bodies, and finally as a means to predict weather for agricultural processes.



2.4 Mayan Calendar

The Mayan calendar used the uinal of 20 days, the tun of 360 days, the katun of 20 tuns and the baktun of 20 katuns. Mayan days were based on a cycle of 20 names : Imik, Ik, Akbal, Kan, Chiccan, Cimi, Manik, Lamat, Muluc, Oc, Chuen, Eb, Ben, Ix, Men, Cib, Caban, Eznab, Cauac and Ahau. Each of these days had both a number and a name, starting with 1 Imix. The numbers worked on a thirteen day cycle, so after 1 Imix would be 2 Ik, then 3 Akbal and so on. After the thirteenth day the numbers would then return to one, so that the fourteenth day became 1 Ix and continued up until the twentieth day was 7 Ahau. At this point the names would start again, so that the next day would be 8 Imix and so on. This cycle has a length of 260 days (20 names X 13 numbers) and is considered to be the sacred calendar.

There was not one single calendrical system, they employed different calendars for different uses. They also used a system that had 365 days in a year, almost exactly the same as the world now follows, and like ours, their calendar got out of step every four years and had to be corrected. This cycle consisted of 18 uinals, each of 20 days, plus 5 extra days. The names of the uinals are: Pop, Uo, Zip, Zotz, Tzec, Xul, Yaxkin, Mol, Chen, Yax, Zac, Ceh, Mac, Kankin, Muan, Pax and Cumhu. As with the days in the former numbering system, the days of each uinal are numbered and this is straightforward numbering based on a twenty number cycle. The way that this dating system would be noted is similar to our own modern month-and-day-of -the-month dates: the day after 1 Pop is 2 Pop, and after 20 Pop it simply flips to 1Uo. The Mayas specified a date by using all four components. For example: 1 Imix 4 Pop; Archaeologists call this a "calendar-round" date.

The final system of dating the Mayas used extensively was called "long-count" numbering. This method simply numbered the days, starting from a zero date whose calendar round date corresponds to 4 Ahau 8 Cumhu and which mayanists have pinpointed, by correlating long-count dates with known events as August 13th ,3114 BC (Gregorian calendar).



In conclusion, one can see many obvious parallels between the Mayan and the Babylonian cultures. The point of this essay is not to demystify the beliefs of these two great cultures, rather to show that their imagery is dependent, like our own sciences, in actual occurrences that are seen in the heavens as the earth moves through space. Each culture witnesses the same phenomena, therefore the only difference is in the interpretation of these events. As Figure 1 points out rather clearly, neither of these two cultures were very far off from our modern, scientific measurements. The amount of error we see may also be due to a Platonic type of attempt to "save the phenomenon", linking Venus's cyclic motion to that of the moon. There is evidence that the Maya knew of the discrepancy noted in Figure 1, but allowed it in order to preserve their celestial mechanisms. As Aveni notes when discussing the averaging out of the solar hours throughout the season, "That nature is sometimes not structured in a manner orderly enough to satisfy us is an attitude the ancient Babylonians seem to have shared with us." (4)

. This is not the only thing that they share with us, having between the Maya and themselves given us our calendar, zodiac and the basis for other scientific tools. Most importantly however, they gave us the background that was necessary to make some sense of the complexities of the universe, and the inspiration to quest for further knowledge.



Appendix 1

BC

11,000

The first hunter-gatherers settle in the Maya highlands and

lowlands.



3114 or 3113

The creation of the world takes place, according to the Maya

Long Count calendar.



2600

Maya civilization begins.



2000

The rise of the Olmec civilization, from which many aspects of

Maya culture are derived. Village farming becomes established

throughout Maya regions.



700

Writing is developed in Mesoamerica.



400

The earliest known solar calendars carved in stone are in use

among the Maya, although the solar calendar may have been known

and used by the Maya before this date.



300

The Maya adopt the idea of a hierarchical society ruled by

nobles and kings.



100

The city of Teotihuacan is founded and for centuries is the

cultural, religious and trading centre of Mesoamerica.



50

The Maya city of Cerros is built, with a complex of temples and

ball courts. It is abandoned (for reasons unknown) a hundred

years later and its people return to fishing and farming.











Texts Consulted





Thurston, Hugh Early Astronomy

Springer-Verlag, New York 1994





Toulmin, Stephen and Goodfield, June The Discovery of Time

Harper & Row, New York 1965





Aveni, Anthony Stairways to the Stars

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 1997





Hodson, F.R. (edited by) The Place of Astronomy in the Ancient World

Oxford University Press, London 1974





Aveni, Anthony Conversing with the Planets

Random House, Toronto 1992





Heidel, Alexander The Babylonian Genesis

University of Toronto Press, Toronto 1942

1.

1 Aveni, Anthony Conversing with the Planets

Random House 1992

2.

2 Thurston, Hugh Early Astronomy

Springer-Verlag 1994

3.

3 Aveni, Anthony Conversing with the Planets

Random House 1992

4.

4 Aveni, Anthony Conversing with the Planets

Random House 1992