A group of German scientists has deciphered the meaning of one of the most spectacular archeological discoveries in recent years: The mystery-shrouded sky disc of Nebra was used as an advanced astronomical clock.
Foto: 3,600 years ago, this sky disc was used as an astronomical clock
A group of German scientists has deciphered the meaning of one of the most spectacular archeological discoveries in recent years: The mystery-shrouded sky disc of Nebra was used as an advanced astronomical clock.
The purpose of the 3,600 year-old sky disc of Nebra, which caused a world-wide sensation when it was brought to the attention of the German public in 2002, is no longer a matter of speculation.
A group of German scholars who studied this archaeological gem has discovered evidence which suggests that the disc was used as a complex astronomical
clock for the harmonization of solar and lunar calendars.
"This is a clear expansion of what we knew about the meaning and function of the sky disc," said archeologist Harald Meller.
A thirteenth month?
Foto: The sky disc of Nebra was not all moonshine
Unlike the solar calendar, which indicates the position of the earth as it revolves around the sun, the lunar calendar is based on the phases of the moon. A lunar year is eleven days shorter than the solar year because 12 synodic months, or 12 returns of the moon to the new phase, take only 354 days.
The sky disc of Nebra was used to determine if and when a thirteenth month -- the so-called intercalary month -- should be added to a lunar year to keep the lunar calendar in sync with the seasons.
"The functioning of this clock was probably known to a very small group of people," Meller said.
Bronze Age science
Foto: A slice of prehistory for romantic sky gazers
The 32-centimeter-wide (seven-inch) bronze disc with gold-leaf appliqués representing the sun, the moon, and the stars is the oldest visual representation of the cosmos known to date. A cluster of seven dots has previously been interpreted as the Pleiades constellation as it appeared 3,600 years ago.
The explanation of the disc's purpose sheds new light on the astronomical knowledge and
abilities of the Bronze Age people, who used a combination of solar and lunar calendars as important indicators for agricultural seasons and passage of time.
"The sensation lies in the fact that the Bronze Age people managed to harmonize the solar and lunar years. We never thought they would have managed that," Meller said.
According to astronomer Wolfhard Schlosser of the Rurh University Bochum
"Whether this was a local discovery, or whether the knowledge came from afar, is still not clear," Schlosser said.
From Saxony-Anhalt to Babylon
Foto: The sky disc of Nebra was found near Europe 's oldest observatory in Goseck
Ever since the disc was discovered, archaeologists and astronomers have been puzzled by the shape of the moon as it appears on the disc.
"I wanted to explain the thickness of the crescent on the sky disc of Nebra because it is not a new moon phase," said Hamburg
In his quest to explain why the Nebra astronomers created a sky map with a four or five days old
moon on it, Hansen consulted the "Mul-Apin" collection of Babylonian documents from the 7th and 6th centuries B.C.
These cuneiform writings represent, according to Hansen, a compendium of "astronomic knowledge from the earliest times." They also contain a calculation rule for the crescent that looks strikingly similar to the one from Nebra.
According to the ancient Babylonian rule, a thirteenth month should only be added to the lunar calendar only when one sees the constellation of the moon and the Pleiades exactly as they appear on the Nebra sky disc.
Knowledge comes and goes
Foto: The sky disc of Nebra was first discovered by treasure hunters
The Bronze Age astronomers would hold the Nebra clock against the sky and observe the position of the
celestial objects. The intercalary month was inserted when what they saw in the sky corresponded to the map on the disc they were holding in their hands. This happened every two to three years.
But the German researchers also discovered that in the 400 years that the disc was in use, its status had evolved. The perforations on the edge of the object as well as a ship that was later added to the map suggest that the knowledge about the lunar calendar's shortage of days was lost along the way.
"That means, that in the end the disk became a cult object," Meller said.
The disc was found in 1999 by two previously convicted treasure looters. It was seized by the authorities in 2002 along with other Bronze Age objects in a police operation in Switzerland
Fuente: © 2006 Deutsche Welle, 27 de febrero de 2006
(2) Rebuilding Germany Temple
Foto: Ancient farmers may have used the observatory to check the seasons
A project to faithfully reconstruct a 7,000 year-old solar observatory, the oldest of its kind in Europe , began this week at Goseck in the German state of Saxony .
The reconstruction, which is estimated to cost a total of 100,000 euros ($122,830) at its completion, should be finished by the end of the year and the restored observatory will join the growing list of increasingly popular "Sky Way
The observatory was first discovered in 1991 when
the 75 meter diameter circular outer ring was unearthed by archeologists after an aerial photograph revealed the site.
Foto: The observatory sits next to the small town of Goseck Germany
A good 12 years later, the team of experts under the direction of Professor Francois Bertemes uncovered the main hall area which led them to believe that this was a major find.
An insight into the life of ancient farmers
They were right. The observatory was not only the largest of its kind on the continent and an important discovery in the quest to understand ancient astronomical exploration but it gave the archeologists further insight into the spiritual-religious world of Europe's first farmers.
The sun was worshipped as the bringer of life and the orchestrator of the changing seasons and the observatory may have had played a part in the farmers'
understanding of nature and crop growth.
Experts say that the southeast gate of the observatory corresponds to the exact point the sun rose at the beginning of the winter solstice on Dec. 21 almost 7,000 years ago. The southwest gate is believed to be the corresponding point to the sundown on that date.
An area rich in
astronomical finds
Its discovery is also significant due to the fact it is situated only 23 kilometers from the place where the 3,600 year-old sky disc of Nebra was discovered in 2002, an example of one of the earliest astronomical representations of the night sky.
The solar observatory, situated in an area rich in
ancient heritage sites in Saxony-Anhalt is estimated to have been originally built sometime around 5,000 years B.C.
Fuente: Fuente: © 2006 Deutsche Welle, 27 de febrero de 2006
*** Seguimiento de la noticia en Terrae Antiqvae:
1. La civilización más antigua de Europa central, 4.800-4.600 a.C.
...5 kilómetros del llamado "disco de Nebra", de 3.600 años, la antigüedad del observatorio pudo ser determinada ...
Publicado el 12/06/2005 15:45.
...5 kilómetros del llamado "disco de Nebra", de 3.600 años, la antigüedad del observatorio pudo ser determinada ...
Publicado el 12/06/2005 15:45.
2. Goseck (Alemania) Hallan un observatorio solar de 7.000 años
o de Goseck y el "Disco de Nebra" (de 3.600 años de antigüedad) Es el más antiguo de Europa y está emplazado...
Publicado el 26/12/2004 18:49.
o de Goseck y el "Disco de Nebra" (de 3.600 años de antigüedad) Es el más antiguo de Europa y está emplazado...
Publicado el 26/12/2004 18:49.
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