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Explore the practical origins and deeper religious meanings attached to ancient American astronomy. Discover civilizations like the Ohio Moundbuilders and their mysterious structures, such as the Great Serpent Mound and the Octagon. Learn about advanced observing methods and the fascinating Hopewell Earthworks. Dive into the history of the Fort Ancient People and the impressive Sunwatch Village, as well as the reconstructed village Cahokia and its monumental mounds. Uncover the intriguing Woodhenge and its astronomical alignments, along with the Southwest Pueblo tribes and the enigmatic Chaco Canyon.
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Practical Origins • Ancient Americans were farmers and needed to know the best time for planting and harvesting. • With farming came a practical need for a calendar. • As civilization developed, deeper meanings were attached to astronomical phenomenon. • An overall trend: the more settled a culture became, the more religious meanings became attached to the sky.
Some Quick History • People crossed from Asia into Alaska via the now sunken Bering Land Bridge in about (YEAR). • Following open areas free of ice people migrated South into the continent. • First permanent settlements in about (YEAR). • Except for the Maya civilization, no Ancient Americans ever developed writing. • Most information is based on educated guesses and second-hand European sources.
Moundbuilders (1000BC-500AD) • A collective name given to many Indian groups between 1000BC and 1500AD. • By the time of European colonists, the Moundbuilders were history. • Many mounds were for burial. • Some may have been related to astronomy.
The Great Serpent Mound • Located in Adams County, Ohio. • Built by the Adena (YEARS) • At over 3 feet tall, 20 feet wide, and 1,370 feet long, it is the world's largest effigy mound. • No burials, its purpose remains a mystery. • Time of construction is unknown.
An Astronomical Explanation? • Do the head and coils point toward the sunrises/sets on solstices and equinoxes? • Does the serpent represent Draco? • Can lunar movements be found within the coils?
The Octagon • Located in Newark, OH, now incorporated into a golf course. • Built by the Hopewell Culture (200BC-500AD) • In the 1980s during a search for solar alignments, several Lunar alignments were discovered (no solar ones though).
Evidence of Advanced Observing • The main axis, connecting the octagon and circle, points to the Northernmost moon rise in the 18.6 year lunar cycle. • Four other sides point to the maximum southern rise, minimum northern rise, maximum northern set, and minimum southern set. • A similar Hopewell structure, the High Bank Earthworks in Chillicothe, also exhibit these same alignments.
Is There More? • Newark and Chilicothe are very similar sites about 55 miles apart. • The common design in obvious. • In Newark, traces of parallel Earth banks about 200 feet apart, leading 6 miles in the direction of Chillicothe were first surveyed in 1862. • With aerial photography, traces of this supposed road are visible at four additional sites, which are in direct line between Newark and Chillicothe.
Fort Ancient People (1000-1550) • Descendants of the Moundbuilders • Named for a hilltop site occupied by the tribe. In reality, this site, no longer considered a fort, was probably built by the Moundbuilders. • Far more agriculturally orentated than their Moundbuilder ancestors. • With agriculture comes a need for accurate timekeeping.
Sunwatch Village • Located in Dayton. • Originally intended to be a salvage excavation. Now, the site is permanantely preserved. • Now restored. • The village centers around tall posts in the ground. • Using line of sight, these posts mark the solstices and equinoxes. • Special houses are also in these sight lines.
Cahokia • Located in the St. Louis area. • Flourished from about 650-1400 AD. • Monk's Mound (left) is a pyramid-like structure and is the largest man made mound in N. America with a 1,037' x 790' base (Egypt's Great Pyramid is a 754' square).
“Woodhenge” • Located to the West of Monk's Mound. • Consisted of a circle of posts used to make line of sight astronomical alignments. • There were as many as five henges, with posts ranging from as few as 12 to as many as 60. • Original posts long gone, holes averaging 4 feet deep and 2 feet wide were the evidence the henge existed. • The 48 post version, 410 feet in diameter, has been reconstructed. • Solstices and Equinoxes were marked. • Other alignments are unknown.
The Pueblo (1200AD-????) • A collective name applied to many individual tribes. • Lived in the Four Corners area of the Southwest. • Known for their pottery and cliff side housing. • Modern Indians in this area claim these people as their ancestors. • Although not certain, there are believed to be links with Mesoamerican cultures.
Chaco Canyon • Occupied by the Anasazi People from about 900-1250AD. • Pearls and parrot feathers found here, which are thought to be represent a link to Central American groups. • The strength of these ties is uncertain, ranging from trading partners to outposts of Mesoamerican civilization. • Reasons for their collapse are thought to be weather related.
The Supernova Petroglyph • M1, the Crab Nebula, is the remnant of a Supernova first seen on July 4, 1054. • The Supernova was visible in daylight for almost three weeks, absolutely impossible to ignore. • The people at Chaco Canyon may have recorded this observation in stone. • Tracing back the sky, the glyph depicts the moon's location on July 5, 1054.
The Sun Dagger • Rediscovered in the 1970s. • Used to mark the solstices and equinoxes. • Created by the interplay of light and shadow. • Consists of petroglyphs on rock behind a stone slab in front with slits for sunlight. • The petroglyphs are a large spiral and a small snake. • The effect would last about 15 minutes. • Due to shifting rocks, the effect is now altered and the site is closed to the public.
In Detail • Summer Solstice: The sun shines through a slit and appears as a small point of light on the spiral. Slowly the point of light grows into a cone, which is then cut off at the top to make a dagger, which slowly moves down. • Winter Solstice: The same except that two daggers bracket the spiral. • Equinoxes: Long light shaft bisects the snake, another illuminated the spiral.
Medicine Wheels • Many are located in the Western U.S. • Strongly resemble henges. • Spokes and rocks are thought by some to mark astronomical alignments. • A complete lack of written history leaves meanings uncertain.
Quick History • Many cultures in a small area. • Overall trend: cultural succession. A certain culture becomes dominant, declines, and is replaced by another. • As new cultures rise, they build on the legacy of the previous civilizations. • In Mesoamerica, the astronomy/religion link is common. By the Spanish conquest, religion and astronomy are essentially one discipline.
The Olmecs (1200-300BC) • The foundation culture of Central America. • Known as “The Rubber People” for their ballgame-more later. • The tradition of pyramid temples started with the Olmecs. • Known for carving giant stone heads, on which there has been much speculation. • Astronomically, the development of the first calendars is their most important achievement.
The Ritual Ballgame • Played with a heavy (WEIGHT) rubber ball, which represented the sun. • The object was to keep the ball moving and get it through a stone loop high on a wall. • The game could last for days because the players could not use hands or feet. • Played by teams of two. • The losers were often sacrificed. • A potentially deeper meaning to the stone loop will be addressed later.
The Olmec Calendars • The Olmecs used 2 parallel calendars. • A 365 day solar calendar. As far as we know, no Mesoamrican culture used leap years. This was the everyday calendar for practical activities. • A 260 day ritual calendar. The origins of this calendar remain unknown. • Calendars would start at the same time, but would not re align again for 52 years. • The later Maya expand greatly upon these ideas.
The Maya (600 BC-1200AD) • New evidence continually pushes the Origin of Maya culture further back in time. • Some Maya pyramids rival Egypt's in size. • The only Mesoamerican culture to develop writing. • Once thought to be a peaceful civilization ruled by astronomer-priests. Actually very militaristic. • Did very detailed astronomical observations. • For reasons unknown, civilization mostly collapsed by 900AD. Much speculation here.
More About the Maya • The Maya believed that time was cyclical, not linear. • With this idea came the belief that thew world was created, will be destroyed, and then recreated. • These cycles were known as Suns. • To the Maya, these suns were not random, but were clearly organized. More to follow.
The Importance of Time • Kept the Olmec 365 and 260 day calendars. • Thanks to texts, we know more about the division of the calendars. • Ritual calendar consisted of 20 months of 13 days each. • Solar calendar was 18 months of 20 days each. • The leftover 5 days were considered dangerous because the gates of the underworld were thought to open. People mostly stayed home.
Religion and the Sky • The Milky Way represents the road to the underworld. • The Milky Way is often represented as a monster devouring the dead. • This is the sarcophagus lid of Maya king Pacal.
The Myth of the Hero Twins • A king and his twin brother like to play the ritual ballgame. • Problem: they play on a court over a gateway to the underworld, which annoys the gods of death. • The gods summon the king and his brother to the underworld for a game. • The gods win and the brothers are killed. • The king had two twin sons of his own.
Take Two • The younger twins also like to play the ballgame and also annoy the gods of death. • Once again, the gods summon the twins to the underworld. The twins take the challenge. • This time, the gods lose. • Before exiting the underworld, the twins resurrect their father and uncle. • Their father becomes the sun, their uncle becomes the planet Venus.
