Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-fbnjt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-05T11:25:13.338Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Astronomy and culture in Late Babylonian Uruk†

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 July 2011

John M. Steele
John M. Steele*
Affiliation:
Department of Egyptology and Ancient Western Asian Studies, Brown University, Box 1899, Providence, RI 02912, USA email: [email protected]
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

This article presents three case studies of the role of astronomy within the culture of Late Babylonian Uruk. I argue that in order to fully understand Babylonian astronomy it is necessary to combine technical study of astronomical cuneiform texts with wider cultural study of Babylonian scholarship, archival practice and society.

Keywords

astrologyastral medicinecalendarUruk
Type
Contributed Papers
Information
Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 7 , Symposium S278: “Oxford IX” International Symposium on Archaeoastronomy , January 2011 , pp. 331 - 341
Copyright
Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2011

References

Beaulieu, P.-A. 1993, The impact of month-lengths on the neo-Babylonian cultic calendar. Zeitschrift für Assyriologie 83, 66–87.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beaulieu, P.-A. 2000, The descendants of Sîn-lêqi-unninni. In Marzahn, J. & Neumann, H. (eds), Assyriologica et Semitica: Festschrift für Joachim Oelsner, Ugarit-Verlag, Münster, pp. 1–16.Google Scholar
Beaulieu, P.-A. & Britton, J. P. 1994, Rituals for an eclipse possibility in the 8th year of Cyrus. Journal of Cuneiform Studies 46, 73–86.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beaulieu, P.-A. & Rochberg, F. 1996, The horoscope of Anu-belšunu. Journal of Cuneiform Studies 48, 89–94.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brack-Bernsen, L. 2002, Predictions of lunar phenomena in Babylonian astronomy. In Steele, J. M. & Imhausen, A. (eds), Under One Sky: Astronomy and Mathematics in the Ancient Near East, Ugarit-Verlag, Münster, pp. 5–20.Google Scholar
Brack-Bernsen, L. & Steele, J. M. 2004, Babylonian mathemagics: two mathematical astro-nomical-astrological Texts. In Burnett, C., Hogendijk, J. P., Plofker, K. & Yano, M. (eds), Studies in the History of the Exact Sciences in Honour of David Pingree, Brill, Leiden, pp. 95–125.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Britton, J. P. 2007, Calendars, intercalations and year lengths in Mesopotamian astronomy. In Steele, J. M. (ed.), Calendars and Years: Astronomy and Time in the Ancient Near East, Oxbow Books, Oxford, pp. 115–132.Google Scholar
Clancier, P. 2009, Les Bibliothèques en Babylonie dans la Deuxième Moitié du 1er Millénaire av. J.-C., Ugarit-Verlag, Münster.Google Scholar
Downey, S. B. 1988, Mesopotamian Religious Architecture: Alexander Through the Parthians, Princeton University Press, Princeton.Google Scholar
Geller, M. 2010, Ancient Babylonian Medicine: Theory and Practice, Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hunger, H. 1971, Die Tafeln des Iqīša. Welt des Orients 6, 163–165.Google Scholar
Hunger, H. 1976, Spätbabylonische Texte aus Uruk. Teil I, Mann, Berlin.Google Scholar
Hunger, H. & Pingree, D. 1999, Astral Sciences in Mesopotamia, Brill, Leiden.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jordan, J. 1928, Uruk-Warka Nach den Ausgrabunden durch die Deutsche Orient-Gesellschaft, Hinrichs, Leipzig.Google Scholar
Neugebauer, O. 1955, Astronomical Cuneiform Texts, Lund Humphries, London.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Oelsner, J. 2000, Von Iqīšâ und einigen anderen spätgeborenen Babyloniern. In Graziani, S. (ed.), Studi su Vicino Oriente Antico Dedicati alla Memoria di Luigi Cagni, Instituto Universitario Orientale, Naples, pp. 797–813.Google Scholar
Ossendrijver, M. 2010, Babylonian astronomers in context: a network approach. In Kogan, L. (ed.), Proceedings of the 53rd Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale, in press.Google Scholar
Pearce, L. E. & Doty, L. T. 2000, The activities of Anu-belšunu, Seleucid scribe. In Marzahn, J. & Neumann, H. (eds), Assyriologica et Semitica: Festschrift für Joachim Oelsner, Ugarit-Verlag, Münster, pp. 331–342.Google Scholar
Pedersén, O. 1998, Archives and Libraries in the Ancient Near East 1500–300 B.C., CDL Press, Bethesda.Google Scholar
Pedersén, O. 2005, Archive und Bibliotheken in Babylon: die Tontafeln der Grabung Robert Koldeweys 1899–1917, SDV, Saarbrücken.Google Scholar
Reade, J. E. 1986, Rassam's Babylonian collection: the excavations and the archives. In Leichty, E., Catalogue of the Babylonian Tablets in the British Museum, Volume VI, British Museum Press, London, pp. xii–xxxvi.Google Scholar
Reiner, E. 2000, Early zodialogia and related matters. In George, A. R. & Finkel, I. L. (eds), Wisdom, Gods and Literature: Studies in Assyriology in Honour of W. G. Lambert, Eisenbrauns, Winona Lake, pp. 421–427.Google Scholar
Robbins, E. 1996, Tabular sacrifice records and the cultic calendar of Neo-Babylonian Uruk. Journal of Cuneiform Studies 48, 61–87.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robson, E. 2008, Mathematics in Ancient Iraq, Princeton University Press, Princeton.Google Scholar
Rochberg, F. 2000, Scribes and scholars: the ṫupšar Enuma Anu Enlil. In Marzahn, J. & Neumann, H. (eds), Assyriologica et Semitica: Festschrift für Joachim Oelsner, Ugarit-Verlag, Münster, pp. 359–376.Google Scholar
Sachs, A. J. & Hunger, H. 1988–2006, Astronomical Diaries and Related Texts from Babylonia (5 volumes published to date), Österreichesche Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna.Google Scholar
Steele, J. M. 2000, A 3405: an unusual astronomical text from Uruk. Archive for History of Exact Science 55, 103–135.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Steele, J. M. 2006, Greek influence on Babylonian astronomy? Mediterranean Archaeology and Archaeometry 6, 153–160.Google Scholar
Steele, J. M. 2007, The length of the month in Mesopotamian calendars of the first millennium BC. In Steele, J. M. (ed.), Calendars and Years: Astronomy and Time in the Ancient Near East, Oxbow Books, Oxford, pp. 133–148.Google Scholar
Steele, J. M. 2008, A Brief Introduction to Astronomy in the Middle East, Saqi, London.Google Scholar
Steele, J. M. 2010, Mesopotamia and the Middle East. In Ruggles, C. & Cotte, M. (eds), Heritage Sites of Astronomy and Archaeoastronomy in the Context of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention: a Thematic Study, ICOMOS–IAU, Paris, pp. 113–116.Google Scholar
Steele, J. M. 2011a, Making sense of time: observational and theoretical calendars. In Radner, K. & Robson, E. (eds), The Oxford Handbook of Cuneiform Culture, Oxford University Press, Oxford, in press.Google Scholar
Steele, J. M. 2011b, Living with a lunar calendar in Babylonia and China. In Ben-Dov, J., Horowitz, W. & Steele, J. M. (eds), Living the Lunar Calendar, Oxbow Books, Oxford, forthcoming.Google Scholar
Stern, S. 2008, The Babylonian month and the new moon: sighting and prediction. Journal for the History of Astronomy 39, 19–42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van Dijk, J. & Mayer, W. 1980, Texte aus dem Reš-Heiligtum in Uruk-Warka, Mann, Berlin.Google Scholar
von Weiher, E. 1983, Spätbabylonische Texte aus Uruk. Teil II, Mann, Berlin.Google Scholar
von Weiher, E. 1988, Spätbabylonische Texte aus Uruk. Teil III, Mann, Berlin.Google Scholar
von Weiher, E. 1993, Spätbabylonische Texte aus Uruk. Teil IV, Mann, Mainz am Rhein.Google Scholar
von Weiher, E. 1998, Spätbabylonische Texte aus Uruk. Teil V, Mann, Mainz am Rhein.Google Scholar