Download or read book Archaeoastronomy and Ethnoastronomy IAU S278 written by Clive L. N. Ruggles and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2011-08-25 with total page 430 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: IAU Symposium 278, the ninth of the 'Oxford' conferences on cultural astronomy, presents a diverse range of disciplinary perspectives on a set of problems that continue to raise exciting and challenging new research questions and promote vigorous debate. It extends discussions about cultural astronomy beyond the community of 'Western' academics to focus on the ethnoastronomy and archaeoastronomy of South America, Central and North America, and elsewhere. Highlights include vigourous debates about Chankillo, a recently discovered solar observation site in coastal Peru dating to c. 300 BC. The first IAU Symposium devoted to this topic not only discusses new discoveries and interpretations but also considers broader issues of mutual interest across disciplines in cultural astronomy, such as field methodology and social theory. This volume is valuable not just to researchers working in these fields, but to anyone who takes an interest in the protection of astronomical heritage.
Download or read book Archaeology and Ancient Religion in the American Midcontinent written by Brad H. Koldehoff and published by University Alabama Press. This book was released on 2018-11-06 with total page 367 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Analyses of big datasets signal important directions for the archaeology of religion in the Archaic to Mississippian Native North America Across North America, huge data accumulations derived from decades of cultural resource management studies, combined with old museum collections, provide archaeologists with unparalleled opportunities to explore new questions about the lives of ancient native peoples. For many years the topics of technology, economy, and political organization have received the most research attention, while ritual, religion, and symbolic expression have largely been ignored. This was often the case because researchers considered such topics beyond reach of their methods and data. In Archaeology and Ancient Religion in the American Midcontinent, editors Brad H. Koldehoff and Timothy R. Pauketat and their contributors demonstrate that this notion is outdated through their analyses of a series of large datasets from the midcontinent, ranging from tiny charred seeds to the cosmic alignments of mounds, they consider new questions about the religious practices and lives of native peoples. At the core of this volume are case studies that explore religious practices from the Cahokia area and surrounding Illinois uplands. Additional chapters explore these topics using data collected from sites and landscapes scattered along the Mississippi and Ohio River valleys. This innovative work facilitates a greater appreciation for, and understanding of, ancient native religious practices, especially their seamless connections to everyday life and livelihood. The contributors do not advocate for a reduced emphasis on technology, economy, and political organization; rather, they recommend expanding the scope of such studies to include considerations of how religious practices shaped the locations of sites, the character of artifacts, and the content and arrangement of sites and features. They also highlight analytical approaches that are applicable to archaeological datasets from across the Americas and beyond.
Download or read book Advancing Cultural Astronomy written by Efrosyni Boutsikas and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2021-04-08 with total page 319 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of essays on cultural astronomy celebrates the life and work of Clive Ruggles, Emeritus Professor of Archaeoastronomy at Leicester University. Taking their lead from Ruggles’ work, the papers present new research focused on three core themes in cultural astronomy: methodology, case studies, and heritage. Through this framework, they show how the study of cultural astronomy has evolved over time and share new ideas to continue advancing the field. Ruggles’ work in these areas has had a profound impact on the way that scholars approach evidence of the role of sky in both ancient and modern cultures. While the papers span many time periods and regions, they are closely connected by these three major themes, presenting methodological investigations of how we can approach archaeological, textual, and ethnographic evidence; describing detailed archaeoastronomical case studies; or stressing the importance of global heritage management. This work will appeal to researchers and scholars interested in the history and development of cultural astronomy.
Download or read book Astrology and Cosmology in Early China written by David W. Pankenier and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2013-10-10 with total page 617 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Drawing on a vast array of scholarship, this pioneering text illustrates how profoundly astronomical phenomena shaped ancient Chinese civilization.
Download or read book Heritage Sites of Astronomy and Archaeoastronomy in the Context of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention written by Clive L. N. Ruggles and published by . This book was released on 2017-11-30 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This joint venture between ICOMOS, the advisory body to UNESCO on cultural sites, and the International Astronomical Union is the second volume in an ongoing exploration of themes and issues relating to astronomical heritage in particular and to science and technology heritage in general. It examines a number of key questions relating to astronomical heritage sites and their potential recognition as World Heritage, attempting to identify what might constitute "outstanding universal value" in relation to astronomy. "Heritage Sites of Astronomy and Archaeoastronomy--Volume 2" represents the culmination of several years' work to address some of the most challenging issues raised in the first ICOMOS-IAU Thematic Study, published in 2010. These include the recognition and preservation of the value of dark skies at both cultural and natural sites and landscapes; balancing archaeoastronomical considerations in the context of broader archaeological and cultural values; the potential for serial nominations; and management issues such as preserving the integrity of astronomical sightlines through the landscape.Its case studies are developed in greater depth than those in volume 1, and generally structured as segments of draft nomination dossiers. They include seven-stone antas (prehistoric dolmens) in Portugal and Spain, the thirteen towers of Chankillo in Peru, the astronomical timing of irrigation in Oman, Pic du Midi de Bigorre Observatory in France, Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, and Aoraki-Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve in New Zealand. A case study on Stonehenge, already a World Heritage Site, focuses on preserving the integrity of the solstitial sightlines.As for the first ICOMOS-IAU Thematic Study, a international team of authors including historians, astronomers and heritage professionals is led by Professor Clive Ruggles for the IAU and Professor Michel Cotte for ICOMOS.
Download or read book Astronomies and Cultures written by Clive L. N. Ruggles and published by Ocarina Books. This book was released on 1993 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ten thematic articles illustrating the broad scope, diversity and cultural significance of contemporary studies in archaeoastronomy. Contents: The Study of Cultural Astronomy ( Clive Ruggles and Nicholas Saunders ); The Yao Dian and the Origins of Astronomy in China ( Chen Cheng-Yih and Xi Zezong ); The Riddle of Red Sirius: An Anthropological Perspective ( Roger Ceragioli ); Astronomies and Rituals at the Dawn of the Middle Ages ( Stephen McCluskey ); Folk Astronomy in the Service of Religion: The Case of Islam ( David King ); Cosmos and Kings at Vijayanagara ( John McKim Malville and John Fritz ); Medicine Wheel Astronomy ( David Vogt ); Venus-Regulated Warfare and Ritual Sacrifice in Mesoamerica ( John Carlson ); Astronomical Knowledge, Calendrics, and Sacred Geography in Ancient Mesoamerica ( Johanna Broda ); The Pleiades in Comparative Perspective: The Waiwai Shirkoimo and the Shipibo Huishmabo ( Peter G. Roe ).
Download or read book Gods Carved in Stone written by Jürgen Seeher and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 205 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The rock sanctuary of Yazilikaya is one of the most important ritual sites of the Late Bronze Age in Turkey. Its walls are decorated with unique rock-cut reliefs: over ninety male and female deities, animals and mythical beings - more than half of all known Hittite reliefs. The sanctuary once lay on the outskirts of Hattusa, capital of the Hittite Empire, in central Anatolia. The German Archaeological Institute has been excavating here since 1931 and the rock sanctuary of Yazilikaya has been thoroughly investigated in the process. While scientific literature is plentiful, what is lacking is a "complete Yazilikaya": a comprehensively illustrated publication in English intended both for experts and the broader reading public. This book is intended to fill that gap. It offers the reader a virtual tour of the sanctuary and can also serve as a guidebook for visitors to the site. At the same time it summarizes the results of earlier excavations as well as the latest research. Lavishly illustrated with spectacular new photographs of the rock massif, it contains a detailed description of the rock chambers with the reliefs and the accompanying temple buildings. This section is followed by chapters reconstructing the history of the sanctuary and discussing its still mysterious function. Other chapters focus on the Hittites and their capital city, the discovery of the site and its research history and much more besides - with the aim of bringing the ancient monument vividly to life before the reader's eyes.
Download or read book Archaeoastronomy written by Giulio Magli and published by Springer. This book was released on 2020-09-29 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a second edition of a textbook that provides the first comprehensive, easy-to-read, and up-to-date account of the fascinating discipline of archaeoastronomy, in which the relationship between ancient constructions and the sky is studied in order to gain a better understanding of the ideas of the architects of the past and of their religious and symbolic worlds. The book is divided into three sections, the first of which explores the past relations between astronomy and people, power, the afterworld, architecture, and landscape. The second part then discusses in detail the fundamentals of archaeoastronomy, including the celestial coordinates; the apparent motion of the sun, moon, stars, and planets; observation of celestial bodies at the horizon; the use of astronomical software in archaeoastronomy; and current methods for making and analyzing measurements. The final section reviews what archaeoastronomy can now tell us about the nature and purpose of such sites and structures as Stonehenge, the Pyramids of Giza, Chichen Itza, the Angkor Temples, the Campus Martius, and the Valley of the Temples of Agrigento. In addition, it provides a set of exercises that can be performed using non-commercial free software, e.g., Google Earth and Stellarium, and that will equip readers to conduct their own research. This new edition features a completely new chapter on archaeoastronomy in Asia and an “augmented reality” framework, which on the one hand enhances the didactic value of the book using direct links to the relevant sections of the author’s MOOC (online) lessons and, on the other, allows readers to directly experience – albeit virtually –many of the spectacular archaeological sites described in the book. This is an ideal introduction to what has become a wide-ranging multidisciplinary science.
Download or read book Visualising Skyscapes written by Liz Henty and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-08-19 with total page 205 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Above the land and its horizon lies the celestial sphere, that great dome of the sky which governs light and darkness, critical to life itself, yet its influence is often neglected in the archaeological narrative. Visualising Skyscapes captures a growing interest in the emerging field of skyscape archaeology. This powerful and innovative book returns the sky to its rightful place as a central consideration in archaeological thought and can be regarded as a handbook for further research. Bookended by a foreword by archaeologist Gabriel Cooney and an afterword by astronomer Andrew Newsam, its contents have a wide-reaching relevance for the fields of archaeology, anthropology, ethnography, archaeoastronomy, astronomy, heritage and cultural studies. The volume balances six chapters on theory and methodology which elaborate on the history and practice of the field with six other chapters focused on case studies from around the world. Visualising Skyscapes captures the growing interest in the multidisciplinary study of skyscapes and will be of interest to academics, students and the general public, as well as having international appeal. It is topical, timely and relevant to current debates and will hopefully stimulate further interest in this exciting and relatively new area of investigation. The contributions showcase the work of distinguished academics in the field and the chapters are all enhanced by numerous photographs and images.
Download or read book Cosmologies in the Making written by Fredrik Barth and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1987 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: All culture, particularly that of non-literate traditions, is constantly being recreated, and in the process also undergoes changes. In this book, Fredrik Barth examines the changes that have taken place in the secret cosmological lore transmitted in male initiation ceremonies among the Mountain Ok of Inner New Guinea, and offers a new way of explaining how cultural change occurs. Professor Barth focuses in particular on accounting for the local variations in cosmological traditions that exist among the Ok people, who otherwise share similar material and ecological conditions, and similar languages. Rejecting existing anthropological theory as inadequate for explaining this, Professor Barth constructs a new model of the mechanisms of change, based on his close empirical observation of the processes of cultural transmission. This model emphasises the role of individual creativity in cultural reproduction and change, and maintains that cosmologies can be adequately understood only if they are regarded as knowledge in the process of communication, embedded in social organization, rather than as fixed bodies of belief. From the model he derives various theoretically grounded hypotheses regarding the probable courses of change that would be generated by such mechanisms. He then goes on to show that these hypotheses fit the actual patterns of variation that are found among the Ok.
Download or read book African Cultural Astronomy written by Jarita Holbrook and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2008-01-01 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the first scholarly collection of articles focused on the cultural astronomy of the African continent. It weaves together astronomy, anthropology, and Africa and it includes African myths and legends about the sky, alignments to celestial bodies found at archaeological sites and at places of worship, rock art with celestial imagery, and scientific thinking revealed in local astronomy traditions including ethnomathematics and the creation of calendars.
Download or read book Tombs Temples and Their Orientations written by Michael A. Hoskin and published by . This book was released on 2001 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study of archaeoastronomy looks at more than 2,500 communal tombs and sanctuaries from around the Mediterranean. After a brief discussion of Hoskin's aims and the methodology for his fieldwork, individual chapters focus on evidence from particular regions: Malta, Gozo, the Balearics, Iberia, southern France, Corsica and Sardinia, Sicily and Pantelleria, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco. The author concludes that in most of these regions the monuments faced sunrise, or more generally the sun when it was rising or climbing in the sky. Along the Mediterranean coast of France, however, there is a reverse sunset custom; in North Africa tombs faced downhill and in a Minoan cemetery on Crete all the tombs faced moonrise and look towards a mountain on whose peak was a sanctuary probably sacred to a lunar god. 264p, b/w figs and photos throughout, tables (Ocarina Books 2001) ` adorned with dozens of beautiful photographs, technical diagrams, and an extraordinary Corpus Mensurarum.....a living masterpiece in the field of archaeoastronomy ' - Juan Antonio Belmonte, Instituto de Astroficia de Canarias `
Download or read book Gold and Power in Ancient Costa Rica Panama and Colombia written by Jeffrey Quilter and published by Dumbarton Oaks. This book was released on 2003 with total page 448 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The lands between Mesoamerica and the Central Andes are famed for the rich diversity of ancient cultures that inhabited them. Throughout this vast region, from about AD 700 until the sixteenth-century Spanish invasion, a rich and varied tradition of goldworking was practiced. The amount of gold produced and worn by native inhabitants was so great that Columbus dubbed the last New World shores he sailed as Costa Rica—the "Rich Coast." Despite the long-recognized importance of the region in its contribution to Pre-Columbian culture, very few books are readily available, especially in English, on these lands of gold. Gold and Power in Ancient Costa Rica, Panama, and Colombia now fills that gap with eleven articles by leading scholars in the field. Issues of culture change, the nature of chiefdom societies, long-distance trade and transport, ideologies of value, and the technologies of goldworking are covered in these essays as are the role of metals as expressions and materializations of spiritual, political, and economic power. These topics are accompanied by new information on the role of stone statuary and lapidary work, craft and trade specialization, and many more topics, including a reevaluation of the concept of the "Intermediate Area." Collectively, the volume provides a new perspective on the prehistory of these lands and includes articles by Latin American scholars whose writings have rarely been published in English.
Download or read book An Amazonian Myth and Its History written by Peter Gow and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2001 with total page 364 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Peter Gow unites the ethnographic data collected by the fieldwork methods invented by Malinowski with Levi-Strauss's analyses of the relations between myth and time. His book is an analysis of a century of social transformation in an indigenous Amazonian society, the Piro people of PeruvianAmazonia, taking as its starting point a single myth told to the author by a Piro man. Gow explores Piro history and ethnography outwards into the domains of myth-telling in general, and following the logic of certain important myths, further out into important domains of Piro experience such asvisual art, shamanry and girls' initiation ritual. All of these domains, like the myths themselves, have been demonstrably changing over the period since the 1880s. The book then shows how these changes are in fact transformations of transformations, changes in social forms that are intrinsicallyabout change. The logic of these changes are then followed through the historical circumstances of Piro people from the 1880s to the 1980s, to show how the intrinsically transformational nature of Piro social forms led them to respond in the ways that they did to the coming of rubber bosses,missionaries, and film-makers.This book makes an important contribution to debates in anthropology on the nature of history and social change, as well as addressing neglected areas such as myth, visual art, and the methodological issues involved in addressing fieldwork and archival data.
Download or read book Megalithic Astronomy written by Clive L. N. Ruggles and published by British Archaeological Reports Oxford Limited. This book was released on 1984 with total page 326 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Barangay written by William Henry Scott and published by Ateneo University Press. This book was released on 1994 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Barangay presents a sixteenth-century Philippine ethnography. Part One describes Visayan culture in eight chapters on physical appearance, food and farming, trades and commerce, religion, literature and entertainment, natural science, social organization, and warfare. Part Two surveys the rest of the archipelago from south to north.
Download or read book In Search of Cosmic Order written by Juan Antonio Belmonte and published by Melinda Inn. This book was released on 2009 with total page 364 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of studies by specialists in Egyptology and astronomy attempts to unlock some of the secrets of ancient Egyptian civilization. Among the subjects examined are the constellations of ancient Egypt, the Egyptian calendar, and landscape and symbolism, especially how they relate to the orientation of temples and royal tombs.
