The Origin of the Zodiac: (Astrology)

 The Origin of the Zodiac: (Astrology)

The zodiac (Greek: ζoδιακός, zōdiakos) is the term used to describe the circle of twelve 30° divisions of celestial longitude that are centred upon the ecliptic - the path of the sun. The term zodiac derives from Latin zōdiacus, which in its turn comes from the Greek ζoδιακoς κύκλος (zōdiakos kuklos), meaning "circle of animals".

From the earliest of times, the zodiac has been universally used to predict or reflect characteristics of personality, whether from the Chinese, Mesopotamian, Indus Valley, Egyptian or any other culture, echoing the ancient philosophy 'As above - so below'... what we today call astrology.

Astrology, in its broadest sense, is the search for purpose in the heavens.

We know from ancient records that the Greeks inherited their knowledge of the heavens primarily from the Mesopotamians, who in turn inherited their knowledge from the Sumerians. But is there any evidence of the heavenly constellations in art or culture from before this time. Remarkably, it has been proposed that the images at Lascaux and other nearby Palaeolithic sites show exactly that...

The Lascaux Planetarium.

Near to the entrance of the Lascaux cave complex is a magnificent painting of a bull. Hanging over its shoulder is what appears (to us) to be a map of the Pleiades, the cluster of stars sometimes called the Seven Sisters. Inside the bull painting, there are also indications of spots that may be a representation of other stars found in that region of sky. Today, this region forms part of the constellation of Taurus the bull.

In recent years, new research has suggested that the Lascaux paintings may incorporate prehistoric star charts. Dr Michael Rappenglueck of the University of Munich argued that some of the non-figurative dot clusters and dots within some of the figurative images correlate with the constellations of Taurus, The Pleiades and the grouping known as the "Summer Triangle". Based on her own study of the astronomical significance of Bronze Age petroglyphs in the Vallée des Merveilles and her extensive survey of other prehistoric cave painting sites in the region — most of which appear to have been specifically selected because the interiors are illuminated by the setting sun on the day of the winter solstice — French researcher Chantal Jègues-Wolkiewiez has further proposed that the gallery of figurative images in the Great Hall represents an extensive star map and that key points on major figures in the group correspond to stars in the main constellations as they appeared in the Palaeolithic leading to the remarkable suggestion of a direct transfer of information for over 17,000 years.

The Origin of the Zodiac:

While there are currently 88 constellations officially by the IUA recognised today (9), this page is concerned only with the origin of the 12 constellations that make up the modern zodiac.

The classical map of the sky, with the 48 Greek constellations, was derived from at least two different pre-Greek traditions. One tradition comprised the 12 signs of the zodiac, with several associated animalconstellations, all of which developed over 3,200-500 BC in Mesopotamia in a religious or ritual tradition. These were taken over by the Greeks around 500 BC. However the other Babylonian constellations, their farming-calendar tradition, were not adopted. The other tradition was not Mesopotamian; it comprised largeconstellations which appear to date from 2,800 BC, probably from the Mediterranean region, devised for the navigators of ships. They include huge bears and serpents which marked the celestial pole and equator at that time, and probably the four anonymous giants which we know as Hercules, Ophiuchus, Bootes, and Auriga, as well as some of the large southern 'marine' constellations. The origins of some otherconstellations, including the Perseus tableau and various animals, are unknown. (11) It is therefore currently concluded that among the Indo-European peoples, astrology dates to the third millennium BC. (4) This is supported by the following research.

'There has been much speculation as to the origin of the constellations. Until recently it has usually been assumed that they evolved from the fancies of primitive imaginations, but research now suggests that they were designed as a pictorial scientific coordinate system. A coordinate system is a set of imaginary lines for measuring positions, like the lines of latitude and longitude for determining locations on the earth. The constellations perform a similar function, but they employ pictures, which make it easy to identify stars without need of instruments. Moreover, this evidence points to a time and place that they originated: about 2700 B.C at about 36° north latitude. There are three main lines of evidence that point to this date and location'. (10)

The Empty Part of the sky. There is a circle of about 36° radius in the southern part of the sky which does not contain any of the original 48 constellations. That implies that the originators of the constellations lived at about 36° north latitude because at that location, exactly such an area of southern sky would be invisible to them. Moreover, the centre of that circle moves very slowly through the sky because of the motion of the earth's axis. The location of the centre of the empty part of the sky implies an origin date of about 2,900 B.C. 

Slanted Constellations. Many of the constellations are tipped at an angle to the natural directions of north, east, south and west. If one asks if there was a time and place when they would have all been much aligned vertically and horizontally, the answer is, about 2,900 B.C. Note that this is an entirely different line of reasoning, but it yields a very similar date and location of origin. Moreover, several of the constellations mark astronomically important areas at the date. For example, the long snake Hydra would have coincided with the circle called the celestial equator.

Star risings and settings. The ancient Greek poet Aratus states that certain stars rise at the same time, or set at the same time, or that one rises as another sets on opposite points on the horizon. Because of the earth's precession, such coincidences depend on both the location on the earth and on the date of observations. Using statistical methods, it has been found that Aratuswas describing the stars at a latitude of about 36° (within about 2°) at about 2,600 B.C. (within 800 years).

Evidence points to an origin on Latitude 36°, which is near perfect for Sumeria (the civilization from which Babylon inherited much of its science). Accordingly, the Sumerians are currently credited with originating the constellations. It is important to recognise that the Sumerians also divided both time and space with the Hexadecimal system resulting in a 360° division of the globe and heavens.

Of particular interest in relation to this is is the location of the capital city of the Assyrian empire (Nimrud), which was founded by King Shalmaneser I (1274 BC – 1245 BC). It became the Assyrian religious capital in 875 BC by Ashurnasirpal II. It also happens to be be placed 6° to the North and 12° to the East of the Egyptian anchor point of Giza/Heliopolis (12) revealing the complex system of geodetic placement in operation at that time (based on a 360° division of the globe).  Perhaps also no coincidence that the longitude of Nimrud is also the same as the exterior angle of both Snoferu's pyramids.

Nimrud - (36° 06’ N, 43° 20’ E).

The Babylonian MUL.APIN. ('The Shining Herd')

Having established that astrology (the 12 constellations) originated in Sumeria, it is worth investigating if this represents the true origins of the zodiac. It is known that Babylonian astrology developed within the context of divination. A collection of 32 tablets with inscribed liver models, dating from about 1,875 BC, are the oldest known detailed texts of Babylonian divination, and these demonstrate the same interpretational format as that employed in celestial omen analysis. (6) However, we are also told that another influence can be seen in Sumeria from before that time, an influence that is suggestive of geometry, longitude and latitude. (11)

The Sumerians called the twelve major zodiacal constellations

 the 'Shiny herd'.

Sumerian	Translation	Modern Name
GU.AN.NA MASH.TAB.BA DUB   UR.GULA  AB.SIN ZI.BA.AN.NA GIR.TAB PA.BIL (Archer) SUHUR.MASH GU SIM.MAH KU.MAL	Heavenly Bull Twins Pincers, Tongs Lion Her father was Sin Heavenly Fate Which claws and cuts Defender Goat-Fish Lord of the waters Fishes Field dweller	Taurus Gemini Cancer Leo Virgo Libra Scorpio Sagittarius Capricorn Aquarius Pisces Aries

(Right: Sumerian astrology tablet, dating from c. 2,300 BC) Note the presence of a lion and a crab in the central band.!

The first official inscribed version of a Babylonian compendium is from 86 BC, but by using modern astronomical techniques an astronomer at Louisiana State University has dated the original observations to 1,370 BC, give or take 100 years. He also says the observations were made within 100km of 35.1° N. The tablets record the day of the year that certain groups of stars, or constellations, appear in the sky at dawn. These constellations are widely thought to be the precursors of the modern Signs of the Zodiac. (1),  However, Babylonian art is resplendent with images of Lions, Scorpions, Rams, and Bulls, dating back much further suggestive of a much earlier recognition of the zodiac symbols.

The Armenian Zodiac:

While it is traditionally claimed that the earliest reference to the zodiac originates with the Babylonians, the discovery of an observatory in Metsamor, Armenia, predating the Babylonian kingdom by almost 2,000 years has changed our perception of events as the observatory at Metsamor apparently contains the first recorded example of dividing the year into 12 sections.  Using an early form of geometry, the inhabitants of Metsamor were able to create both a calendar and envision the curve of the earth. (13)

The discovery of the astronomical 'observatory' at Metsamor and the presence of engravings which have been speculatively called 'zodiac creatures' has given credence to the assertion that the ancient figures of the constellations were probably created by ancient peoples living in the Euphrates valley and near Mount Ararat in eastern Anatolia and Armenia: Rick Ney, the author of 'Karahundj, The Armenian Stonehenge', says of it:

"Parsamian's discovery at Metsamor, and the stones at Sissian give concrete credence to Maunder's and Olkott's theories, especially when coupled with ca. 4,000–3,000 BC stone carvings of zodiac figures on rocks on the Geghama Mountain Range in Armenia." (15).\]