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Archaeoastronomy, Ethnoastronomy, Cultural Astronomy, Shamanism, Paleolithic Europe, Paleolithic Archaeology, and 36 moreMythology, Comparative mythology, Philosophy, Human Evolution, Chiemgau Impact, Carbon Allotropes, Impact Structures, Chiemgau Impact, Meteorite Impact Crater, Holocene Impact, Chiemgau Impact, Phaethon Myth, Meteorite Impact, Chiemgau Impact, Meteorite impact and shock metamorphism, Palaeolithic Europe, Palaeolithic archaeology, Mesolithic archaeology, Prehistoric transitions, Environmental archaeology, Archaeozoology, Pleistocene fauna, Palaeoclimate, Refugia and recolonisation, Spatial analysis, Palaeolithic art and symbolism, Ice Age Cave Art, Comparative Religion, Chronobiology, History of Astronomy, History of Astrology, Mithraism, Comets, Near Earth Asteroids, Iron Silicides, Xifengite, Gupeiite, Titanium Carbide, Silicon Carbide, Moissanite, METEORITE IMPACT, History of Impact Research, Crater Strewn Field, Impact Controversies, OSL dating, Tsunamis, Impact events, Meteorite Impact Crater, Gravity Survey, Cosmic Iron Silicides, Astronomy, and Astrophysics edit
Research Interests:
Archaeology, Geology, Geoarchaeology, Late Bronze Age archaeology, Prehistory, and 14 moreDisasters, Iron Age archaeology, Georadar, Catastrophism, Impact Cratering, Meteorite impact and shock metamorphism, Chiemgau Impact, Shock Metamorphism, Azuara Impact, Rubielos De La Cérida Impact, Saarland Impact, Meteorite, Czech meteorite impacts, and Impact airburst
"The existence of caves gave people an excellent reason where to locate the celestial bodies at the time of their invisibility: They moved through secret realms under the ordinary world, somehow at the... more
"The existence of caves gave people an excellent reason where to locate the celestial bodies at the time of their invisibility: They moved through secret realms under the ordinary world, somehow at the "backside" or the interior of the customary perceptible landscape. Caverns made accessible this "subterranean" space-time, wh ich ancient people regarded as a special lounge of the celestial bodies, and other beings. Thus, it is obvious why caverns fascinated people from Palaeolithic epochs to Jules Verne's "Voyage au centre de la terre (1864)": Going into the underground galleries, and following the mighty celestial bodies on their course through the subterranean area, offered a unique possibility to explore the inner structure of the cosmos. Moreover, at another level of understanding, ancient people interpreted the entry into a cavern and the passage through the inner space-time ofthe world as a voyage to the generative interior of an enormous female, representing the Great Mother of the World. They thought that the cosmos and the cave, the outer and the inner structure of the world, run parallel to the physical body and the psychonoetic essence of a human being. Going into a cave then meant not only to travel to the creative realm of the cosmos, but in a figurative sense also to undertake a voyage to the innermost person. It isn't surprising that since Palaeolithic time caverns had been regarded as sacred places, were often used as shrines, cult places, or for burials and served as a model ofthe world."
Research Interests:
Cognitive Science, Landscape Archaeology, Social and Cultural Anthropology, Psycholinguistics, Phenomenology, and 15 moreHistory of Religions, Evolution, Archaeoastronomy, Cognitive archaeology, Megalithic Monuments, Ethnoastronomy, Paleolithic Europe, Comparative mythology, Heritage interpretation, Cave, Paleolithic, Belief Systems, Archeoastronomy, Modern Human Behavior, and History of Archaeological Theory
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Zu den grundlegenden Bedingungen der menschlichen Existenz gehört es, sich in Lebensräumen einzurichten - zu wohnen - oder an außergewöhnlichen Orten besondere Seinserfahrungen zu erreichen. Beides ist seit alters her mit Symbolen, Mythen... more
Zu den grundlegenden Bedingungen der menschlichen Existenz gehört es, sich in Lebensräumen einzurichten - zu wohnen - oder an außergewöhnlichen Orten besondere Seinserfahrungen zu erreichen. Beides ist seit alters her mit Symbolen, Mythen und Riten verbunden. In ihnen wird einerseits die Wahrnehmung von Ordnungen in Raum und Zeit, der Umgang mit ihnen, aber auch das Übersteigen dieser Strukturen thematisiert. Der Aufbau, die Gliederung und die Gewichtung des Lebensraumes sowie die Einordnung in ihn wurden in den Kulturen seit alters her und weltweit, symbolisch und mythisch, ausgedrückt wie auch rituell begleitet. Ob Landschaft, Zeltlager, Haus, Kulthöhle oder Heiligtum: Es war geordnet und gestaltete Raum-Zeit - ein Kosmos -, in den menschliches Leben sich einbetten ließ und vom dem her es seinen „Horizont“, sein „Zentrum“ und seine „Orientierung“, eine Sinnstruktur erhielt. Archäologische und ethnologische Befunde weltweit zeigen, dass seit dem Paläolithikum Kosmovisionen eine bedeutsame Rolle im Leben der Menschen spielen. Es scheint für sie fundamental notwendig zu sein, die Welt in symbolischen Deutungssystemen zu erfassen, die eine Integration und Orientierung innerhalb sich verändernder Ökosphären ermöglichen. Diese waren auch wichtig, um grundlegende menschliche Fragen nach dem Warum und Wozu von Mensch und Welt zu beantworten. Kosmovisionen des Weltgehäuses, präsentiert an den Beispielen von Höhle, Heiligtum und Haus, können als holistische, vielschichtige Modelle evolvierender menschlicher Ökosysteme aufgefasst werden, die in symbolischer Sprache helfen, die Welt „wohnlich“ zu machen, aber auch sie zu transzendieren.
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The aquatic world plays an essential part in ecosystems. On the earth it provides the fertilizing, vital basis for life. Devastating giant flooding, however, has been destructive and fatal for certain cultures. Archaic people identified... more
The aquatic world plays an essential part in ecosystems. On the earth it provides the fertilizing, vital basis for life. Devastating giant flooding, however, has been destructive and fatal for certain cultures. Archaic people identified the realm of the water world as the primeval and lasting cosmic ocean, which surrounds and intersperses the world. The respective land ("the earth") and the celestial bodies emerged out of the cosmic sea, both swimming there as the first "aquatics". People identified different species of the celestial fauna and flora as having counterparts in the earthly water world, with the moon, single stars and asterisms, open star clusters, zodiacal star patterns, shooting stars, the Milky Way, and the cosmological structure. Ancient cultures, especially those whose subsistence was based mainly on fishing and navigation, often correlated their time reckonings using lunar cycles and star phases with the rhythms of the water realm (e.g. tides, ...
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Research Interests:
Convex cut mirrors manufactured from the volcanic glass obsidian had been known since Neolithic time (7400/7100 to about 6200 BCE) in Çatalhöyük, Turkey. A Herschelian type telescope made with an obsidian mirror (12 cm) allowed to see the... more
Convex cut mirrors manufactured from the volcanic glass obsidian had been known since Neolithic time (7400/7100 to about 6200 BCE) in Çatalhöyük, Turkey. A Herschelian type telescope made with an obsidian mirror (12 cm) allowed to see the Moon"s craters sharp and distinct, the phases of Venus as well as the discs of Venus and Jupiter. The moons of Jupiter however are not visible due to the low degree of reflection of the used obsidian mirror. A specimen with a much better reflection or a bigger one would result in improved views of celestial objects. The paper reports on the making of the telescope and its potential application. Moreover, as a general basis, the study addresses the prehistory and symbolism of mirrors, with special focus on a possible assignment for skywatching.
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Research Interests:
Birds played an important role in the cosmographies and cosmovisions of ancient cultures all over the world. Evidences are given by artifacts, symbols, myths, and rituals. People studied carefully the body, the behavior, and the phenology... more
Birds played an important role in the cosmographies and cosmovisions of ancient cultures all over the world. Evidences are given by artifacts, symbols, myths, and rituals. People studied carefully the body, the behavior, and the phenology of birds. Thereof they associated certain species to the luminaries, special celestial phenomena, archaic calendars, orientation and navigation, social, political, religious, cosmological and cosmogonical conceptions.
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The Chiemgau strewn field in the Alpine Foreland discovered in the early new millennium comprises more than 80 mostly rimmed craters in a roughly elliptically shaped area with axes of about 60 km and 30 km. The crater diameters range... more
The Chiemgau strewn field in the Alpine Foreland discovered in the early new millennium comprises more than 80 mostly rimmed craters in a roughly elliptically shaped area with axes of about 60 km and 30 km. The crater diameters range between a few meters and a few hundred meters. Geologically, the craters occur in Pleistocene moraine and fluvio-glacial sediments. The craters and surrounding areas so far investigated in more detail are featuring heavy deformations of the Quaternary cobbles and boulders, abundant fused rock material (impact melt rocks and various glasses), shock-metamorphic effects, and geophysical anomalies. The impact is substantiated by the abundant occurrence of metallic, glass and carbon spherules, accretionary lapilli, and of strange matter in the form of iron silicides like gupeiite and xifengite, and various carbides like, e.g., moissanite SiC. The hitherto established largest crater of the strewn field is Lake Tüttensee exhibiting an 8 m-height rim wall, a ri...
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Archaeology, Geology, Disaster Studies, Geomythology, Astrophysics, and 15 moreAstronomy, Catastrophes, Civilizations, Chiemgau Impact, Accretionary Lapilli, Geoelectrical Measurements, Diaplectic Glass, Geophysics of Impact Craters, Catastrophic Impact Layer, Crater Strewn Field, Glass Spherules, Carbon Spherules, Caompo Del Cielo Craters, Bajada Del Diablo Craters, and geophysical anomalies
Carbynes and DLC in naturally occurring carbon matter from the Alpine Foreland, South-East Germany: Evidence of a probable new impactite S. Isaenko (1), T. Shumilova (1), K. Ernstson (2), S. Shevchuk (1), A. Neumair (3), and M.... more
Carbynes and DLC in naturally occurring carbon matter from the Alpine Foreland, South-East Germany: Evidence of a probable new impactite S. Isaenko (1), T. Shumilova (1), K. Ernstson (2), S. Shevchuk (1), A. Neumair (3), and M. Rappenglück (3) (1) Institute of Geology Komi SC UB RAS, Syktyvkar, Russian Federation (shumilova@geo.komisc.ru), (2) Faculty of Philosophy, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany (kernstson@ernstson.de), (3) Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies, Gilching, Germany (mr@infis.org) Unusual carbonaceous matter (UCM) in the form of mostly centimeter-sized lumps and cobbles has been sampled in the southeast Bavarian Alpine Foreland. It is a highly porous blackish material with a glassy luster on freshly crushed surfaces. In some cases aerodynamically shaped cobbles like volcanic bombs were sampled. The material is unknown from any industrial or other anthropogenic processes and thus appears to have a natural origin, which is underlined by findings on a small ...
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We studied exotic carbon matter from the field composed of amorphous carbon and the monocrystalline carbyne allotrope ("chaoite"). The required PT conditions (4-6 GPa, 2500-4000 K) are evidence of a formation in a so-far... more
We studied exotic carbon matter from the field composed of amorphous carbon and the monocrystalline carbyne allotrope ("chaoite"). The required PT conditions (4-6 GPa, 2500-4000 K) are evidence of a formation in a so-far unsettled shock event.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
THE CZECH REPUBLIC. M. Molnár, K.Ventura, P. Švanda, Z. Štaffen, M.A. Rappenglück K. Ernstson, Resselovo nám. 76, Chrudim 537 01, Czech Republic; molnar@ego93.com. University of Pardubice, Czech Republic; Karel.Ventura@upce.cz,... more
THE CZECH REPUBLIC. M. Molnár, K.Ventura, P. Švanda, Z. Štaffen, M.A. Rappenglück K. Ernstson, Resselovo nám. 76, Chrudim 537 01, Czech Republic; molnar@ego93.com. University of Pardubice, Czech Republic; Karel.Ventura@upce.cz, Pavel.Svanda@upce.cz. Vraclav 8, 565 42 Vraclav, Czech Republic; Zdenek.staffen@centrum.cz. Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies, Gilching, Germany; mr@infis.org Faculty of Philosophy 1, University of Würzburg, Germany; kernstson@ernstson.de
Research Interests:
"The existence of caves gave people an excellent reason where to locate the celestial bodies at the time of their invisibility: They moved through secret realms under the ordinary world, somehow at the... more
"The existence of caves gave people an excellent reason where to locate the celestial bodies at the time of their invisibility: They moved through secret realms under the ordinary world, somehow at the "backside" or the interior of the customary perceptible landscape. Caverns made accessible this "subterranean" space-time, wh ich ancient people regarded as a special lounge of the celestial bodies, and other beings. Thus, it is obvious why caverns fascinated people from Palaeolithic epochs to Jules Verne's "Voyage au centre de la terre (1864)": Going into the underground galleries, and following the mighty celestial bodies on their course through the subterranean area, offered a unique possibility to explore the inner structure of the cosmos. Moreover, at another level of understanding, ancient people interpreted the entry into a cavern and the passage through the inner space-time ofthe world as a voyage to the generative interior of an enormous female, representing the Great Mother of the World. They thought that the cosmos and the cave, the outer and the inner structure of the world, run parallel to the physical body and the psychonoetic essence of a human being. Going into a cave then meant not only to travel to the creative realm of the cosmos, but in a figurative sense also to undertake a voyage to the innermost person. It isn't surprising that since Palaeolithic time caverns had been regarded as sacred places, were often used as shrines, cult places, or for burials and served as a model ofthe world."
Research Interests:
Cognitive Science, Landscape Archaeology, Social and Cultural Anthropology, Psycholinguistics, Phenomenology, and 15 moreSymbolism, History of Religions, Evolution, Archaeoastronomy, Cognitive archaeology, Megalithic Monuments, Ethnoastronomy, Paleolithic Europe, Comparative mythology, Heritage interpretation, Paleolithic, Belief Systems, Archeoastronomy, Modern Human Behavior, and History of Archaeological Theory
Among the archaic cosmologic and cosmogonic concepts of cultures worldwide and across time the metaphor of the world as a giant living entity is significant. People cultures considered the universe to be e.g. an animal, a giant human, or... more
Among the archaic cosmologic and cosmogonic concepts of cultures worldwide and across time the metaphor of the world as a giant living entity is significant. People cultures considered the universe to be e.g. an animal, a giant human, or an egg. The anatomy of certain creatures, in particular of the human being, served as an excellent model for the world"s spatial construction, time–factored changes and cycles of reproduction. The giant cosmic living being showed a form of metabolism, respiration, and reproduction, appearing e.g. as wind currents, water cycle, seasons, tides, lifecycles of plants, animal, and humans, linked to celestial phenomena. People especially considered heaven and earth to act like the human reproductive organs and identified the cosmos with a giant womb. Moreover, the cosmogonic first and essential dichotomy, which causes the world"s diversities, was compared with a kind of primordial sacrifice of a giant cosmic living entity. People regarded the la...
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Mythology And Folklore, Mythology, History of Medicine, Symbolism, Metaphor, and 10 moreHistory of Biology, Archaeoastronomy, Cognitive Science of Religion, Symbolic Anthropology (Anthropology), Cultural Anthropology, Ethnoastronomy, Comparative mythology, History of Science and Religion, Cultural Astronomy, and Anthroplogy
Since the Bronze Age turtles and tortoises were related to a cosmic symbolism by ancient cultures in different parts of the world, with a certain concentration in the northern hemisphere. The paper attempts to categorize aspects of the... more
Since the Bronze Age turtles and tortoises were related to a cosmic symbolism by ancient cultures in different parts of the world, with a certain concentration in the northern hemisphere. The paper attempts to categorize aspects of the cosmic turtle symbolism, using mainly an ethnoastronomical approach, partly supported by archaeological evidences. As a result a set of concepts can be identified, which are related to cosmologic, cosmogonic, biological, and psychological aspects.
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The symbolism of the World Tree has not hitherto been explored from the perspective of possible astronomical references, despite widespread examples of the concept across the world and attention from various fields of study. The aim of... more
The symbolism of the World Tree has not hitherto been explored from the perspective of possible astronomical references, despite widespread examples of the concept across the world and attention from various fields of study. The aim of the current study is to respond to that gap, using an interdisciplinary methodology that draws on approaches from comparative mythology, ritual studies, archaeological records, botany and socio-anthropological analysis.
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During the Upper Paleolithic (40–12 ka BP) people used observation-based and early kinds of rule-based astronomical systems of time reckoning. Paleolithic versions of almanacs and calendars based on lunar, solar, lunisolar, and sidereal... more
During the Upper Paleolithic (40–12 ka BP) people used observation-based and early kinds of rule-based astronomical systems of time reckoning. Paleolithic versions of almanacs and calendars based on lunar, solar, lunisolar, and sidereal time reckoning are recorded on mobile objects and cave walls. Typical are combinations and synchronizations of astronomical periods with biological cycles of certain animals and the human female.
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Archaeological and ethnological records worldwide give evidence that cosmovisions played an important role in the life of man since Paleolithic epochs. Parallel to the reduction of instincts man developed cultural systems to establish and... more
Archaeological and ethnological records worldwide give evidence that cosmovisions played an important role in the life of man since Paleolithic epochs. Parallel to the reduction of instincts man developed cultural systems to establish and maintain order and rhythm in his personal and social life and to organize the world into a meaningful system. Cosmovisions helped man to integrate and orientate himself within changing human ecosystems. These concepts were also useful to answer fundamental human questions about the whys and wherefores of man and the world. Some of the main features of archaic cosmovisions in different cultures across the world and throughout the epochs are discussed with focus on human ecosystems and the human mind.
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Decades of research work done by several scientists all over the world since the beginning of the 20th century confirmed the idea, that Palaeolithic man looked up to the starry sky and recognized prominent patterns of stars as well as the... more
Decades of research work done by several scientists all over the world since the beginning of the 20th century confirmed the idea, that Palaeolithic man looked up to the starry sky and recognized prominent patterns of stars as well as the course of the celestial bodies. Though sometimes highly speculative, the investigations made clear, that time-factored notations played an important role in the archaic cultures of Palaeolithic epochs (from 33,000 to 10,000 BP). There are some distinct and detailed examples of lunar-, solar- and lunisolar-calendars sometimes combined with pictures of seasonality, mostly discovered on transportable bones and stones, but also on the fixed walls of certain caves. The investigations showed that in Palaeolithic epochs time-reckoning, in particular the lunar cycle, had been related to the pregnancy of women too (Figure 2a-d). Recently I showed, that in the Magdalenian time (16,000-12,000 BP) man also recognized single and very complex star patterns, including the Milky Way: the Northern Crown in the cave of El Castillo (Spain), the Pleiades in the cave of Lascaux (France) and the main constellations of the sky at the same location. They were used by the Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers for orientation in space and for time-reckoning. These star patterns also played an important role in the cosmovisions of archaic cultures. Together with the depictions of the course of the moon and the sun, they helped to organize the spatiotemporal structure of daily and spiritual life of Palaeolithic man. Now I present a rock panel in the cave of La-T^ete-du-Lion (France) that shows the combination of a star pattern - Aldebaran in the Bull and the Pleiades - with a drawing of the moons cycle above. This picture comes from the Solutrean epoch ca 21,000-22,000 BP. It shows not only a remarkable similarity with the representation in the Lascaux cave, but clearly connects the star pattern with a part of the lunar cycle.
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... Inseln zu bestimmen. 75 Schließlich gab es „Spezialkarten “(meddo, medo) für Fahrten zwischen nahen Atollen innerhalb einer der beiden Inselketten des Marshall-Archipels. 2.10. 2 Die „Heilige Kalebasse “–Lehrgerät, kosmografisches... more
... Inseln zu bestimmen. 75 Schließlich gab es „Spezialkarten “(meddo, medo) für Fahrten zwischen nahen Atollen innerhalb einer der beiden Inselketten des Marshall-Archipels. 2.10. 2 Die „Heilige Kalebasse “–Lehrgerät, kosmografisches Modell, Navigationshilfe Die „Heiligen ...
This review systematically presents all finds of geogenic, impact-induced, and extraterrestrial iron silicide minerals known at the end of 2021. The respective morphological characteristics, composition, proven or reasonably suspected... more
This review systematically presents all finds of geogenic, impact-induced, and extraterrestrial iron silicide minerals known at the end of 2021. The respective morphological characteristics, composition, proven or reasonably suspected genesis, and possible correlations of different geneses are listed and supported by the available literature (2021). Artificially produced iron silicides are only dealt with insofar as the question of differentiation from natural minerals is concerned, especially regarding dating to pre-industrial and pretechnogenic times.
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SEM and TEM analyses of millimeter- to centimeter-sized particles from Holocene soils reveal a multi-stoichiometric iron silicide matrix containing purest crystals of titanium carbide and cubic moissanite. A cosmochemical origin is... more
SEM and TEM analyses of millimeter- to centimeter-sized particles from Holocene soils reveal a multi-stoichiometric iron silicide matrix containing purest crystals of titanium carbide and cubic moissanite. A cosmochemical origin is suggested.
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This review systematically presents all finds of geogenic, impact-induced, and extraterrestrial iron silicide minerals known at the end of 2021. The respective morphological characteristics, composition, proven or reasonably suspected... more
This review systematically presents all finds of geogenic, impact-induced, and extraterrestrial iron silicide minerals known at the end of 2021. The respective morphological characteristics, composition, proven or reasonably suspected genesis, and possible correlations of different geneses are listed and supported by the available literature (2021). Artificially produced iron silicides are only dealt with insofar as the question of differentiation from natural minerals is concerned, especially regarding dating to pre-industrial and pretechnogenic times.
Research Interests:
The archaic and ancient views of the lifeworld were essentially based on the unity of the network of forces in the world with which these societies felt connected. Heaven was important, but it was only one aspect of their respective... more
The archaic and ancient views of the lifeworld were essentially based on the unity of the network of forces in the world with which these societies felt connected. Heaven was important, but it was only one aspect of their respective world, which contained at least earth and the underworld or was divided into many cosmic spheres in between. The view of the cosmos was interrelated with the way people existed in the associated lifeworlds and ecosystems. The archaic and ancient cosmologies were ecomorphic, which is modelled on the lifeworlds. It is, therefore, more appropriate to refer to the discipline not as archaeoastronomy or cultural astronomy, but as cultural cosmology as a generic term for various sub-disciplines. From the discussions on content and methodology, the scope and methodology of such research field can be determined as taking up previous approaches from archaeoastronomy to cultural astronomy and integrating them with a transdisciplinary methodology. In his studies, Lionel Sims has charted this path. Cultural cosmology deals with the self-understanding of a culture in its world (cosmos). This definition also makes it possible to include the ongoing cosmic change of perspective that began in the modern era (15th/16th century) - geocentrism, heliocentrism, galactocentrism ... multiverse, or from the singularity of the position of the Earth and humankind in the cosmos to the plurality of worlds. The tremendous global technical, scientific, and economic development of modern times and modernity led to a growing alienation of humanity from the life processes of planet Earth. This also created numerous problems that threaten the diversity of life and thus humanity in the long term. The rapid development of the earth system sciences however, together with the growing need for solutions to global problems, interestingly leads back to the connection of the different earth spheres, the interacting network of life forms, and a communicative world sphere. But in contrary to most of the archaic world views, the cosmos is now gigantically expanded in space and time. This makes a future cultural cosmology difficult, but not hopeless. At the same time, however, modern techniques make it possible to translate distant spaces and times, other worlds and realities into perception and, within limits, a kind of experience. With the moon flight of Apollo 8, the first colour image (NASA: AS8-14-2383HR) of the earth rising above the moon (Earthrise) was taken on 24.12.1968 by William Anders. This image, the later (since Apollo 17, 1972) 'Blue Marble' photographs of the Earth, as well as the images taken from great distances by space probes (Voyager 1, 6 billion km away, 14.2.1990; Cassini-Huygens, 1.45 billion km away, 19.7.2013), referred to as 'Pale Blue Dot', are meant to promote a 'planetary' consciousness. With a focus on the 'blue planet' as the only ecosphere and home of mankind to date, the advance of space travel into interplanetary space and the simultaneous extreme widening of the view into the diversity of the structures of the cosmos, the theme of a cultural cosmology is formed anew: how do humans - earth - cosmos belong together?
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This study gives a short overview of the most important cosmological and cosmogonic aspects of the motif of the cosmic mountain as they are transmitted by different cultures worldwide in myths, rituals and buildings. Previous research has... more
This study gives a short overview of the most important cosmological and cosmogonic aspects of the motif of the cosmic mountain as they are transmitted by different cultures worldwide in myths, rituals and buildings. Previous research has meritoriously collected elements of the motif but has only touched on the underlying cosmological and cosmogonic model. In this study, therefore, the function of the
World Mountain in connection with the projection of spatio-temporal structures and movements with reference to a gnomon is discussed in more detail in the context of an outline. It also becomes clear how the motif of the World Mountain is linked with archaic notions of the transition between this world and the hereafter. The methodology
is interdisciplinary and draws on results from comparative mythology, religious studies, archaeology, cultural anthropology, cultural astronomy, and map projection.
Keywords: Cosmic/World mountain; cosmology; cosmogony; mythology; cultural astronomy, cultural anthropology
World Mountain in connection with the projection of spatio-temporal structures and movements with reference to a gnomon is discussed in more detail in the context of an outline. It also becomes clear how the motif of the World Mountain is linked with archaic notions of the transition between this world and the hereafter. The methodology
is interdisciplinary and draws on results from comparative mythology, religious studies, archaeology, cultural anthropology, cultural astronomy, and map projection.
Keywords: Cosmic/World mountain; cosmology; cosmogony; mythology; cultural astronomy, cultural anthropology
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This study briefly reviews the major cosmological and cosmogonic aspects of the cosmic mountain motif as transmitted by various cultures worldwide in myths, rituals, and buildings. Previous research has collected meritorious elements of... more
This study briefly reviews the major cosmological and cosmogonic aspects of the cosmic mountain motif as transmitted by various cultures worldwide in myths, rituals, and buildings. Previous research has collected meritorious elements of the motif, but has only touched on the underlying cosmological and cosmogonic model. This study therefore discusses in more detail the function of the world mountain in relation to the projection of spatiotemporal structures and movements in relation to a gnomon in the context of a sketch. It will also become clear how the motif of the world mountain is linked to archaic notions of the transition between this world and the hereafter. The methodology is interdisciplinary, drawing on results from comparative mythology, religious studies, archaeology, cultural anthropology, cultural astronomy, and map projection.
Diese Studie gibt einen kurzen Überblick über die wichtigsten kosmologischen und kosmogonischen Aspekte des Motivs des kosmischen Berges, wie sie von verschiedenen Kulturen weltweit in Mythen, Ritualen und Gebäuden überliefert werden. Bisherige Forschungen haben verdienstvolle Elemente des Motivs gesammelt, aber nur das zugrunde liegende kosmologische und kosmogonische Modell berührt. In dieser Studie wird daher die Funktion des Weltberges im Zusammenhang mit der Projektion von raum-zeitlichen Strukturen und Bewegungen in Bezug auf einen Gnomon im Rahmen einer Skizze näher diskutiert. Es wird auch deutlich, wie das Motiv des Weltberges mit archaischen Vorstellungen vom Übergang zwischen Diesseits und Jenseits verbunden ist. Die Methodik ist interdisziplinär und stützt sich auf Ergebnisse aus der vergleichenden Mythologie, Religionswissenschaft, Archäologie, Kulturanthropologie, Kulturastronomie und Kartenprojektion.
Diese Studie gibt einen kurzen Überblick über die wichtigsten kosmologischen und kosmogonischen Aspekte des Motivs des kosmischen Berges, wie sie von verschiedenen Kulturen weltweit in Mythen, Ritualen und Gebäuden überliefert werden. Bisherige Forschungen haben verdienstvolle Elemente des Motivs gesammelt, aber nur das zugrunde liegende kosmologische und kosmogonische Modell berührt. In dieser Studie wird daher die Funktion des Weltberges im Zusammenhang mit der Projektion von raum-zeitlichen Strukturen und Bewegungen in Bezug auf einen Gnomon im Rahmen einer Skizze näher diskutiert. Es wird auch deutlich, wie das Motiv des Weltberges mit archaischen Vorstellungen vom Übergang zwischen Diesseits und Jenseits verbunden ist. Die Methodik ist interdisziplinär und stützt sich auf Ergebnisse aus der vergleichenden Mythologie, Religionswissenschaft, Archäologie, Kulturanthropologie, Kulturastronomie und Kartenprojektion.
Research Interests:
9.1 Introduction.............................................................................................................................................................. 65 9.2 From Astro-Archaeology to Cultural... more
9.1 Introduction.............................................................................................................................................................. 65
9.2 From Astro-Archaeology to Cultural Astronomy.................................................................................................... 65
9.3 How can the range of topics and the methodology of Cultural Astronomy be determined? .................................. 66
9.4 The Integral Methodology as a scientific approach − Case studies from the Palaeolithic....................................... 66
9.5 Some points of an Integral Methodology................................................................................................................. 66
9.6 Conclusion............................................................................................................................................................... 69
9.2 From Astro-Archaeology to Cultural Astronomy.................................................................................................... 65
9.3 How can the range of topics and the methodology of Cultural Astronomy be determined? .................................. 66
9.4 The Integral Methodology as a scientific approach − Case studies from the Palaeolithic....................................... 66
9.5 Some points of an Integral Methodology................................................................................................................. 66
9.6 Conclusion............................................................................................................................................................... 69
Research Interests:
Playing, an important activity already well known from advanced animals, is an a priori of human personal and social development. It is quite a special way how man becomes familiar with the natural world around him, with social... more
Playing, an important activity already well known from advanced animals, is an a priori of human personal and social development. It is quite a special way how man becomes familiar with the natural world around him, with social structures, and with himself. Playing can be defined as a voluntary activity, using peculiar tools, which is goal-oriented, follows certain rules, and is aware of coincidences. In most cases, interaction is an essential element of games. By playing, basic structures of personal and social life but also dynamic phenomena of the cosmos can be imitated, modelled and mastered. They can help to exercise practical skills and serve for psychological and educational purposes. Games require certain strategies or are devoted to chance. They are related to myths, rituals, dance, divination, and foretelling. Among the many games known by cultures across the world and throughout time, there exist such, which are loaded with an apparent or hidden astronomical meaning. These games illustrate the rhythm of time (daily, monthly, seasonal, annual, and longer periods), the movement of the celestial bodies around the world axis or on the ecliptic, the shape of certain asterisms, and the principles of time-reckoning, the spatial structure of the cosmos, or even the functionality of astronomical instruments (e.g., the gnomon). Sometimes also the construction of certain monuments follows the conception of specific cosmic plays.
The aim of the talk is to give an overview about the types of games, for example hopscotch, ball games, board, games, dice games, card games, string figures, and others containing or depending on astronomical knowledge and to present some selected examples taken from different cultures and epochs, which demonstrate the role of astronomical games in the experience realm and spiritual world of the people. Moreover, the peculiar power of cosmic and calendrical games, which is given by re-enacting, simulating, understanding, and communicating dynamic astronomical phenomena and processes, is shown. Finally, it will be discussed, whether and which role astronomical games may have anew in the context of educational astronomy in the 21st c.
The aim of the talk is to give an overview about the types of games, for example hopscotch, ball games, board, games, dice games, card games, string figures, and others containing or depending on astronomical knowledge and to present some selected examples taken from different cultures and epochs, which demonstrate the role of astronomical games in the experience realm and spiritual world of the people. Moreover, the peculiar power of cosmic and calendrical games, which is given by re-enacting, simulating, understanding, and communicating dynamic astronomical phenomena and processes, is shown. Finally, it will be discussed, whether and which role astronomical games may have anew in the context of educational astronomy in the 21st c.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Chronobiology, Cognitive Science, History of Mathematics, History of Science, Palaeolithic Archaeology, and 15 moreHistory of Geometry, Archaeoastronomy, Aurignacian, Cognitive Sciences, Magdalenian, Gravettian, Cantabrian Palaeolithic, Paleolithic Archaeology, Archaeology of shamanism, Aurignacien, Lascaux Caves, History of Metrology, Magdalenien, Ethnoastronomy Archeoastronomy, and Archaeoastronomy SEAC
Throughout the course of history, from early prehistory to the Space Age, power structures have existed which have been more or less derived from or correlated to astronomical phenomena or certain cosmologies and cosmovisions. These have... more
Throughout the course of history, from early prehistory to the Space Age, power structures have existed which have been more or less derived from or correlated to astronomical phenomena or certain cosmologies and cosmovisions. These have significantly affected and formed the economic, social, political, artistic and religious life of people across different cultures. Cosmographies, time reckoning and calendar systems, celestial navigation techniques, landscape and architectural models of cosmicpotency, celestial divination and astrological ideas, cosmic clothing and other related concepts have been used successfully by interest groups to establish, maintain and expand psychological, social, religious and political power. Furthermore, the celestial sphere and its inhabitants have also been closely connected and partially interwoven with the concept of the manifestation of cosmic order and power both in nature and in culture. The book’s 43 chapters cover numerous aspects of the topic, from general ideas to astronomy and politics in the Modern Age. The editors are proven experts in the field of cultural astronomy, having many years of experience. They are adept in different subjects and methodologies based on natural sciences as well as on humanities. Dr Michael A. Rappenglück MA, the first editor of the work in hand, has been president of the European Society of Astronomy in Culture (SEAC) since 2011.
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Introduction: Impact craters are generally distinguished between simple, bowl-shaped and complex craters with central uplifts and/or inner peak rings. The difference is size-dependent and is observed on Earth at a transition from roughly... more
Introduction: Impact craters are generally distinguished between simple, bowl-shaped and complex craters with central uplifts and/or inner peak rings. The difference is size-dependent and is observed on Earth at a transition from roughly 4 km crater diameter. The difference in formation is strongly gravitationally dependent, which is why the transition from simple to complex craters on the Moon occurs only at much larger diameters. One was surprised therefore already some time ago, when one found on the moon very small craters with diameters of the order of a few 100 m or smaller, which show a rather complex form with a terraced interior instead of the simple bowl form (Fig. 1). A stratification of the subsurface into a loose regolith blanket over solid rock was quickly suggested as an explanation, with the propagation of the shock front initiating the excavation being controlled by the strong material differences.
Research Interests:
Meteorite impact and shock metamorphism, Chiemgau Impact, Shock Metamorphism, Impact Cratering, Explosion Cratering, Ries Impact Crater, Azuara Impact Structure Spain, and 5 moreSpanish Impact Structures, Meteorite Craters, Saarland Impact, Rubielos De La Cérida Impact Structure, and manipulation in science
This study provides insights into the primarily symbolic intentionality and uses of the Nebra Disk. It will be argued that in spite of the disk's fascinating artwork, the Nebra Disk clearly reflects ancient pictorial traditions and... more
This study provides insights into the primarily symbolic intentionality and uses of the Nebra Disk. It will be argued that in spite of the disk's fascinating artwork, the Nebra Disk clearly reflects ancient pictorial traditions and motifs, and hence it does not support the wfetched conclusions drawn previously by most researchers. Finally, this chapter brings into focus the problem of developing suitable methodologies in the field of cultural astronomy as well as the difficulties that arise when hypotheses and interpretations put forward by official institutions become the generally accepted way of thinking about a given artefact.
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The finds of iron silicides composed, among others, of xifengite, gupeiite, hapkeite with inclusions of titanium carbide, khamrabaevite and moissanite, and CAIs, together with about 30 elements including uranium and REE, which have been... more
The finds of iron silicides composed, among others, of xifengite, gupeiite, hapkeite with inclusions of titanium carbide, khamrabaevite and moissanite, and CAIs, together with about 30 elements including uranium and REE, which have been regarded as extraterrestrial for about 15 years in the crater strewn field of the Chiemgau impact, have been enriched by an 8 kg find with analogous composition.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
During the Palaeolithic epoch parallel to the emerging human mind and self-consciousness the abstracting, logical-mathematical (arithmetic and geometrical) thinking developed from a neural basis, which already was present in the animal... more
During the Palaeolithic epoch parallel to the emerging human mind and self-consciousness the abstracting, logical-mathematical (arithmetic and geometrical) thinking developed from a neural basis, which already was present in the animal kingdom. Moreover, in the evolution of man, processes of counting and calculating, internally running automatically in the brain, had been externalized and stored in various forms on certain “data carriers” of different material. This was closely linked to the emergence of the human form of self-consciousness and, above all, of the specific human language ability, which differentiates the “world” into the respective subject and the objects. Past research in the field of palaeomathematics has made a considerable contribution to the prehistory of counting, calculating and calculating aids in the “Stone Age”. It is shown that the origins of counting already existed in the Lower Palaeolithic (Acheulean: 1.76 million to 150,000 years ago). Numeracy and calculation aids, as well as the beginnings of arithmetic, closely connected to metrology, calendars and astronomy, can be demonstrated in the Neolithic Age, 50,000–10,000 years ago and in
the transition to the post-ice age cultures (Mesolithic, Neolithic) 13,000–5,500 years ago. The beginnings of calculus and abacus are to be found in the Palaeolithic.
Im Paläolithikum hat sich zugleich mit der Ausgestaltung des menschlichen Selbstbewusstseins auch das abstrahierende, logisch-mathematische (arithmetische und geometrische) Denken aus einer bereits im Tierreich vorhandenen neuronalen Basis entwickelt.
Darüber hinaus wurden in der Evolution des Menschen im Gehirn intern
automatisch ablaufende Zähl- und Rechenvorgänge in „externalisiert“ und in verschiedenen Formen auf „Datenträgern“ unterschiedlichen Materials „gespeichert“. Dies war eng mit dem Auftauchen der menschlichen Form des Selbstbewusstseins und vor allem
der besonderen menschlichen Sprachfähigkeit verknüpft, die in das jeweilige Subjekt und die Objekte der „Welt“ differenziert. Die bisherige Forschung auf dem Gebiet der Paläomathematik hat einen beachtlichen Beitrag zur Urgeschichte des Zählens, des
Rechnens und der Rechenhilfen in der „Steinzeit“ geleistet. Es zeigt sich, dass die Ursprünge des Zählens bereits im Altpaläolithikum (Acheuléen: vor 1,76 Millionen bis 150.000 Jahren) liegen. Rechenfähigkeit und Rechenhilfen, sowie die Anfänge der
Arithmetik, eng verbunden mit Metrologie, Kalendarik und Astronomie, können im Jungpaläolithikum, vor 50.000–10.000 Jahren und im Übergang zu den nacheiszeitlichen Kulturen (Mesolithikum, Neolithikum), vor 13.000–5.500 Jahre, belegt werden. Die Anfänge des Kalkulierens und des Abakus liegen im Paläolithikum.
the transition to the post-ice age cultures (Mesolithic, Neolithic) 13,000–5,500 years ago. The beginnings of calculus and abacus are to be found in the Palaeolithic.
Im Paläolithikum hat sich zugleich mit der Ausgestaltung des menschlichen Selbstbewusstseins auch das abstrahierende, logisch-mathematische (arithmetische und geometrische) Denken aus einer bereits im Tierreich vorhandenen neuronalen Basis entwickelt.
Darüber hinaus wurden in der Evolution des Menschen im Gehirn intern
automatisch ablaufende Zähl- und Rechenvorgänge in „externalisiert“ und in verschiedenen Formen auf „Datenträgern“ unterschiedlichen Materials „gespeichert“. Dies war eng mit dem Auftauchen der menschlichen Form des Selbstbewusstseins und vor allem
der besonderen menschlichen Sprachfähigkeit verknüpft, die in das jeweilige Subjekt und die Objekte der „Welt“ differenziert. Die bisherige Forschung auf dem Gebiet der Paläomathematik hat einen beachtlichen Beitrag zur Urgeschichte des Zählens, des
Rechnens und der Rechenhilfen in der „Steinzeit“ geleistet. Es zeigt sich, dass die Ursprünge des Zählens bereits im Altpaläolithikum (Acheuléen: vor 1,76 Millionen bis 150.000 Jahren) liegen. Rechenfähigkeit und Rechenhilfen, sowie die Anfänge der
Arithmetik, eng verbunden mit Metrologie, Kalendarik und Astronomie, können im Jungpaläolithikum, vor 50.000–10.000 Jahren und im Übergang zu den nacheiszeitlichen Kulturen (Mesolithikum, Neolithikum), vor 13.000–5.500 Jahre, belegt werden. Die Anfänge des Kalkulierens und des Abakus liegen im Paläolithikum.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Durability and change are necessary for the stability and development of both the individual and a human society. Most of human evolution is characterized by the existence of nomadic or semi-nomadic economies: migration has been an... more
Durability and change are necessary for the stability and development of both the individual and a human society. Most of human evolution is characterized by the existence of nomadic or semi-nomadic economies: migration has been an essential element of human development. Today, again we are all “on the road”. On the one
hand, people need stable living conditions. These are given by fixed spatiotemporal
frames of reference that are built around the subject and thus form the centre and
horizon of perception, judgment, order and meaning: a world enclosure in which they can embed themselves, find a home and meaning. On the other hand, it is necessary for people to develop a dynamic that transcends the limits of this static world housing. Heaven offered phenomena to different cultures worldwide and across epochs, demonstrating stability on the one hand, and change on the other, thus
providing an excellent model of human life and natural processes in general. The world housing could be modelled in tents, houses and cult buildings on a small scale. Moving from one habitat to another was reflected in migration and travel. The heavenly phenomena guided people on their journeys: orientation and navigation. One used celestial phenomena, such as the movement of the sun, the moon, certain
stars and stellar groups or the Milky Way, to determine the time and / or location, to fix centres and build a spatiotemporal frame of reference, which always allowed certain paths to rediscover and also to lead the individual or communal life in a figurative sense: traveling over land, on water, in the air and then in space, but also the cosmic ways, sky and underworld rides in myths and rituals. The study gives an overview
218 G.Wolfschmidt: Orientierung, Navigation und Zeitbestimmung
of the topic and its significance for cultural history. In particular, the astronomical orientation skills in the animal kingdom are also discussed, some of which are partly reflected in some mythical tradition.
Dauerhaftigkeit und Wechsel sind nötig für die Stabilität und die Entwicklung sowohl des einzelnen Menschen wie auch einer menschlichen Gesellschaft. Der größte Teil der menschlichen Evolution ist dadurch charakterisiert, dass es nomadische oder halbnomadische Wirtschaftsformen gegeben hatte: Migration ist ein wesentliches Element der menschlichen Entwicklung gewesen. Und auch heute wieder sind wir alle „unterwegs“. Dabei benötigen Menschen einerseits stabile Lebensbedingungen. Diese werden durch feste raumzeitliche Bezugssysteme gegeben, die um das Subjekt herum aufgebaut werden und damit das Zentrum und den Horizont von Wahrnehmung, Bewertungen, Ordnung und Bedeutung bilden: ein Weltgehäuse, in dem sie sich einbetten können, eine Heimat und Sinn finden. Andererseits ist es für Menschen nötig, eine Dynamik zu entfalten, die sie über die Grenzen dieses statischen Weltgehäuses hinausführt. Für unterschiedliche Kulturen weltweit und je nach Epoche verschieden
bot der Himmel Phänomene, die einerseits die Stabilität und andererseits den Wandel vor Augen führten und so ein hervorragendes Modell für das menschliche Leben und die Vorgänge in der Natur allgemein abgaben. Das Weltgehäuse konnte in Zelten, Häusern und Kultbauten im Kleinen wiedergegeben werden. Der Umzug von einem
Lebensraum zu einem anderen fand seinen Niederschlag in Migration und Reisen. Dabei leiteten die himmlischen Phänomene Menschen auf ihren Wanderungen: Orientierung und Navigation. Man nutzte Himmelsphänomene, wie beispielsweise die Bewegung der Sonne, des Mondes, bestimmter Sterne und Sterngruppen oder auch
der Milchstraße, um den Zeitpunkt und/oder den Ort zu bestimmen, Zentren zu fixieren und ein raumzeitliches Bezugssystem aufzubauen, das es erlaubte, bestimmte Wege immer wieder aufzufinden und auch im übertragenen Sinne das einzelne oder auch gemeinschaftliche Leben zu leiten: Reisen über Land, zu Wasser, in der Luft und
dann auch im Weltraum, aber auch die kosmischen Wege, Himmel und Unterweltsfahrten in Mythen und Ritualen. Die Studie gibt einen Überblick der Thematik und ihre Bedeutung für die Kulturgeschichte. Insbesondere wird auch auf die astronomischen Orientierungsfähigkeiten im Tierreich eingegangen, die teilweise auch in manch mythischer Überlieferung ihren Niederschlag gefunden haben.
hand, people need stable living conditions. These are given by fixed spatiotemporal
frames of reference that are built around the subject and thus form the centre and
horizon of perception, judgment, order and meaning: a world enclosure in which they can embed themselves, find a home and meaning. On the other hand, it is necessary for people to develop a dynamic that transcends the limits of this static world housing. Heaven offered phenomena to different cultures worldwide and across epochs, demonstrating stability on the one hand, and change on the other, thus
providing an excellent model of human life and natural processes in general. The world housing could be modelled in tents, houses and cult buildings on a small scale. Moving from one habitat to another was reflected in migration and travel. The heavenly phenomena guided people on their journeys: orientation and navigation. One used celestial phenomena, such as the movement of the sun, the moon, certain
stars and stellar groups or the Milky Way, to determine the time and / or location, to fix centres and build a spatiotemporal frame of reference, which always allowed certain paths to rediscover and also to lead the individual or communal life in a figurative sense: traveling over land, on water, in the air and then in space, but also the cosmic ways, sky and underworld rides in myths and rituals. The study gives an overview
218 G.Wolfschmidt: Orientierung, Navigation und Zeitbestimmung
of the topic and its significance for cultural history. In particular, the astronomical orientation skills in the animal kingdom are also discussed, some of which are partly reflected in some mythical tradition.
Dauerhaftigkeit und Wechsel sind nötig für die Stabilität und die Entwicklung sowohl des einzelnen Menschen wie auch einer menschlichen Gesellschaft. Der größte Teil der menschlichen Evolution ist dadurch charakterisiert, dass es nomadische oder halbnomadische Wirtschaftsformen gegeben hatte: Migration ist ein wesentliches Element der menschlichen Entwicklung gewesen. Und auch heute wieder sind wir alle „unterwegs“. Dabei benötigen Menschen einerseits stabile Lebensbedingungen. Diese werden durch feste raumzeitliche Bezugssysteme gegeben, die um das Subjekt herum aufgebaut werden und damit das Zentrum und den Horizont von Wahrnehmung, Bewertungen, Ordnung und Bedeutung bilden: ein Weltgehäuse, in dem sie sich einbetten können, eine Heimat und Sinn finden. Andererseits ist es für Menschen nötig, eine Dynamik zu entfalten, die sie über die Grenzen dieses statischen Weltgehäuses hinausführt. Für unterschiedliche Kulturen weltweit und je nach Epoche verschieden
bot der Himmel Phänomene, die einerseits die Stabilität und andererseits den Wandel vor Augen führten und so ein hervorragendes Modell für das menschliche Leben und die Vorgänge in der Natur allgemein abgaben. Das Weltgehäuse konnte in Zelten, Häusern und Kultbauten im Kleinen wiedergegeben werden. Der Umzug von einem
Lebensraum zu einem anderen fand seinen Niederschlag in Migration und Reisen. Dabei leiteten die himmlischen Phänomene Menschen auf ihren Wanderungen: Orientierung und Navigation. Man nutzte Himmelsphänomene, wie beispielsweise die Bewegung der Sonne, des Mondes, bestimmter Sterne und Sterngruppen oder auch
der Milchstraße, um den Zeitpunkt und/oder den Ort zu bestimmen, Zentren zu fixieren und ein raumzeitliches Bezugssystem aufzubauen, das es erlaubte, bestimmte Wege immer wieder aufzufinden und auch im übertragenen Sinne das einzelne oder auch gemeinschaftliche Leben zu leiten: Reisen über Land, zu Wasser, in der Luft und
dann auch im Weltraum, aber auch die kosmischen Wege, Himmel und Unterweltsfahrten in Mythen und Ritualen. Die Studie gibt einen Überblick der Thematik und ihre Bedeutung für die Kulturgeschichte. Insbesondere wird auch auf die astronomischen Orientierungsfähigkeiten im Tierreich eingegangen, die teilweise auch in manch mythischer Überlieferung ihren Niederschlag gefunden haben.
Research Interests:
Among the archaic cosmologic and cosmogonic concepts of cultures worldwide and across time the metaphor of the world as a giant living entity is significant. People cultures considered the universe to be e.g. an animal, a giant human, or... more
Among the archaic cosmologic and cosmogonic concepts of cultures worldwide and across time the metaphor of the world as a giant living entity is significant. People cultures considered the universe to be e.g. an animal, a giant human, or an egg. The anatomy of certain creatures, in particular of the human being, served as an excellent model for the world’s spatial construction, time-factored changes and cycles of reproduction. The giant cosmic living being showed a form of metabolism, respiration, and reproduction, appearing e.g. as wind currents, water cycle, seasons, tides, lifecycles of plants, animal, and humans, linked to celestial phenomena. People especially considered heaven and earth to act like the human reproductive organs and identified the cosmos with a giant womb. Moreover, the cosmogonic first and essential dichotomy, which causes the world’s diversities, was compared with a kind of primordial sacrifice of a giant cosmic living entity. People regarded the landscape, a cave, a dwelling, a cultic building, or a settlement as an embodiment of the cosmic living entity in miniature, reflecting the characteristics of the macrocosmic being. This study gives an overview of ideas considering the world as a living entity, with respect to cultures through the ages. Concepts of iatromancy are included. The methodology uses approaches of comparative mythology, studies of religions, archaeology, anatomy, medicine, and social anthropology.
Research Interests:
Mythology And Folklore, Mythology, History of Medicine, Symbolism, History of Biology, and 9 moreArchaeoastronomy, Cognitive Science of Religion, Symbolic Anthropology (Anthropology), Cultural Anthropology, Ethnoastronomy, Comparative mythology, History of Science and Religion, Cultural Astronomy, and Anthroplogy
The symbolism of the World Tree has not hitherto been explored from the perspective of possible astronomical references, despite widespread examples of the concept across the world and attention from various fields of study. The aim of... more
The symbolism of the World Tree has not hitherto been explored from the perspective of possible astronomical references, despite widespread examples of the concept across the world and attention from various fields of study. The aim of the current study is to respond to that gap, using an interdisciplinary methodology that draws on approaches from comparative mythology, ritual studies, archaeological records, botany and socio-anthropological analysis.
Research Interests:
Orientierung, Navigation und Zeitbestimmung – Wie der Himmel den Lebensraum des Menschen prägt Wir laden Sie herzlich ein, Ihre Beiträge aus den Themenkreisen Archäoastronomie und Ethnoastronomie, aber auch Geschichte der Astronomie... more
Orientierung, Navigation und Zeitbestimmung – Wie der Himmel den Lebensraum des Menschen prägt Wir laden Sie herzlich ein, Ihre Beiträge aus den Themenkreisen Archäoastronomie und Ethnoastronomie, aber auch Geschichte der Astronomie vorzutragen und zu diskutieren. Thematik der Vorträge: Die Vorträge, Kurzvorträge und Poster können sich entweder auf das Tagungsthema beziehen oder auch einen anderen Fokus im Bereich der Kulturastronomie haben (Archäoastronomie, Ethnoastronomie, Geschichte der Astronomie); ferner kann die Methodik dieser Fachgebiete diskutiert werden, insbesondere Bezüge der Kulturastronomie zu anderen Fachgebieten (z.B. Archäologie, Anthropologie, Architektur, Kunst, Metrologie, Philosophie, Religionswissenschaften, Soziologie, Vermessungskunde). Es ist geplant, die Vorträge in einem Proceeding-Band zu veröffentlichen, und zwar in der Reihe Nuncius Hamburgensis, Band 42 (2018): http://www.hs.uni-hamburg.de/DE/GNT/research/nuncius.php.
Research Interests:
Archaeology, History of Science, History of Astronomy, Archaeoastronomy, Ethnoastronomy, and 6 moreCultural Astronomy, Archaeoastronomy, Cultural Astronomy, Cultural Astronomy and Astrology, Ethnoastronomy Archeoastronomy, Archaeoastronomy In Megalithic Culture, and Cultural Astronomy (Ethnoastronomy)
Research Interests:
Convex cut mirrors manufactured from the volcanic glass obsidian had been known since Neolithic time (7400/7100 to about 6200 BCE) in Çatalhöyük, Turkey. A Herschelian type telescope made with an obsidian mirror ( 12 cm) allowed to see... more
Convex cut mirrors manufactured from the volcanic glass obsidian had been known since Neolithic time (7400/7100 to about 6200 BCE) in Çatalhöyük, Turkey. A Herschelian type telescope made with an obsidian mirror ( 12 cm) allowed to see the Moon’s craters sharp and distinct, the phases of Venus as well as the discs of Venus and Jupiter. The moons of Jupiter however are not visible due to the low degree of reflection of the used obsidian mirror. A specimen with a much better reflection or a bigger one would result in improved views of celestial objects. The paper reports on the making of the telescope and its potential application. Moreover, as a general basis, the study addresses the prehistory and symbolism of mirrors, with special focus on a possible assignment for skywatching.
Fire is an essential part of archaic cosmovisions worldwide. People thought that the cosmic generation of fire resulted in a main fiery celestial object, the sun, radiating light and heat, but also in other celestial luminaries, e.g. the... more
Fire is an essential part of archaic cosmovisions worldwide. People thought that the cosmic generation of fire resulted in a main fiery celestial object, the sun, radiating light and heat, but also in other celestial luminaries, e.g. the moon, the planet Venus, the stars, the Milky Way, the meteors, the lightning, or the aurora. Primeval cosmic fire, antagonistic and complementary to cosmic water, was essential for creation, transformation, destruction, and regeneration of the world’s entities. People often linked cosmic fire to the domestic hearth or the cultic fire and delivered rituals of fire kindling at the turning points of time cycles. Later philosophical ideas fire as an element and the central fire are a kind of aftermath of the mythical cosmic fire. The paper is a literary review of the idea of cosmic fire across archaic cultures.
During the Upper Paleolithic (40–12 ka BP) people used observation-based and early kinds of rule-based astronomical systems of time reckoning. Paleolithic versions of almanacs and calendars based on lunar, solar, lunisolar, and sidereal... more
During the Upper Paleolithic (40–12 ka BP) people used observation-based and early kinds of rule-based astronomical systems of time reckoning. Paleolithic versions of almanacs and calendars based on lunar, solar, lunisolar, and sidereal
time reckoning are recorded on mobile objects and cave walls. Typical are combinations and synchronizations of astronomical periods with biological cycles of certain animals and the human female.
time reckoning are recorded on mobile objects and cave walls. Typical are combinations and synchronizations of astronomical periods with biological cycles of certain animals and the human female.
During the Upper Paleolithic (40–12 ka BP) people used observation-based and early kinds of rule-based astronomical systems of time reckoning. Paleolithic versions of almanacs and calendars based on lunar, solar, lunisolar, and sidereal... more
During the Upper Paleolithic (40–12 ka BP) people used observation-based and early kinds of rule-based astronomical systems of time reckoning. Paleolithic versions of almanacs and calendars based on lunar, solar, lunisolar, and sidereal time reckoning are recorded on mobile objects and cave walls. Typical are combinations and synchronizations of astronomical periods with biological cycles of certain animals and the human female.
The 2009 SEAC Annual Meeting was deliberately planned within the celebrations for the International Year of Astronomy. It should contribute to a deepening of the understanding of human beings as inhabitants of the spaceship Earth in a... more
The 2009 SEAC Annual Meeting was deliberately planned within the celebrations for the International Year of Astronomy. It should contribute to a deepening of the understanding of human beings as inhabitants of the spaceship Earth in a vast space of countless worlds by looking back at the cultural history of astronomy and with a view to a common starry sky.
The new library in Alexandria, Egypt, was chosen as the knowledge transfer site, as the old library once set it. In libraries, the cultures of all times come together, come alive, and continue to affect the future. It is about the transmission of knowledge and very much about the encounter of people.
The European Society for the Role of Astronomy in Culture
(SEAC), founded in 1992, is committed to studying Cultural Astronomy (with its sub-disciplines and in interaction with neighbouring sciences).
The 17th annual conference took place from 25 to 31 October
2009 at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA) host. It was about the following topics: Megalithic Phenomena in the ancient Mediterranean and beyond - Archeoastronomy in the ancient Mediterranean and beyond - Eastern Mediterranean Astronomy (Egypt, Greece, and Rhodes) - Astronomy at the Ancient Bibliotheca of Alexandria - Astronomy in Old Europe - Astronomy in Middle Ages - Islamic Astronomy - Copernicus and Galileo Galilei Revolutions - Babylonian Astronomy - Mesoamerican and Pacific Astronomy - Minoan Civilisation Astronomy - Traditional African Astronomy - Other Topics in Cultural Astronomy. More than lectures, including invited ones, were given. Almost 80 presentations, including some invited, were given. This volume contains contributions (peer-reviewed) from them.
The new library in Alexandria, Egypt, was chosen as the knowledge transfer site, as the old library once set it. In libraries, the cultures of all times come together, come alive, and continue to affect the future. It is about the transmission of knowledge and very much about the encounter of people.
The European Society for the Role of Astronomy in Culture
(SEAC), founded in 1992, is committed to studying Cultural Astronomy (with its sub-disciplines and in interaction with neighbouring sciences).
The 17th annual conference took place from 25 to 31 October
2009 at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA) host. It was about the following topics: Megalithic Phenomena in the ancient Mediterranean and beyond - Archeoastronomy in the ancient Mediterranean and beyond - Eastern Mediterranean Astronomy (Egypt, Greece, and Rhodes) - Astronomy at the Ancient Bibliotheca of Alexandria - Astronomy in Old Europe - Astronomy in Middle Ages - Islamic Astronomy - Copernicus and Galileo Galilei Revolutions - Babylonian Astronomy - Mesoamerican and Pacific Astronomy - Minoan Civilisation Astronomy - Traditional African Astronomy - Other Topics in Cultural Astronomy. More than lectures, including invited ones, were given. Almost 80 presentations, including some invited, were given. This volume contains contributions (peer-reviewed) from them.
Research Interests:
Orientierung, Navigation und Zeitbestimmung – Wie der Himmel den Lebensraum des Menschen prägt http://www.hs.uni-hamburg.de/DE/GNT/events/Archaeo-HH-2017.php Wir laden Sie herzlich ein, Ihre Beiträge aus den Themenkreisen... more
Orientierung, Navigation und Zeitbestimmung – Wie der Himmel den Lebensraum des Menschen prägt
http://www.hs.uni-hamburg.de/DE/GNT/events/Archaeo-HH-2017.php
Wir laden Sie herzlich ein, Ihre Beiträge aus den Themenkreisen Archäoastronomie und Ethnoastronomie, aber auch Geschichte der Astronomie vorzutragen und zu diskutieren. Thematik der Vorträge: Die Vorträge, Kurzvorträge und Poster können sich entweder auf das Tagungsthema beziehen oder auch einen anderen Fokus im Bereich der Kulturastronomie haben (Archäoastronomie, Ethnoastronomie, Geschichte der Astronomie); ferner kann die Methodik dieser Fachgebiete diskutiert werden, insbesondere Bezüge der Kulturastronomie zu anderen Fachgebieten (z.B. Archäologie, Anthropologie, Architektur, Kunst, Metrologie, Philosophie, Religionswissenschaften, Soziologie, Vermessungskunde). Es ist geplant, die Vorträge in einem Proceeding-Band zu veröffentlichen, und zwar in der Reihe Nuncius Hamburgensis, Band 42 (2018): http://www.hs.uni-hamburg.de/DE/GNT/research/nuncius.php.
http://www.hs.uni-hamburg.de/DE/GNT/events/Archaeo-HH-2017.php
Wir laden Sie herzlich ein, Ihre Beiträge aus den Themenkreisen Archäoastronomie und Ethnoastronomie, aber auch Geschichte der Astronomie vorzutragen und zu diskutieren. Thematik der Vorträge: Die Vorträge, Kurzvorträge und Poster können sich entweder auf das Tagungsthema beziehen oder auch einen anderen Fokus im Bereich der Kulturastronomie haben (Archäoastronomie, Ethnoastronomie, Geschichte der Astronomie); ferner kann die Methodik dieser Fachgebiete diskutiert werden, insbesondere Bezüge der Kulturastronomie zu anderen Fachgebieten (z.B. Archäologie, Anthropologie, Architektur, Kunst, Metrologie, Philosophie, Religionswissenschaften, Soziologie, Vermessungskunde). Es ist geplant, die Vorträge in einem Proceeding-Band zu veröffentlichen, und zwar in der Reihe Nuncius Hamburgensis, Band 42 (2018): http://www.hs.uni-hamburg.de/DE/GNT/research/nuncius.php.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Comparative Religion, Mythology And Folklore, Mythology, Cosmovision, History of Geometry, and 48 moreShamanism, Symbolism, Archaeoastronomy, Cognitive archaeology, Latin Epigraphy, Symbolic Anthropology (Anthropology), Animal Symbolism, Symbolism (Religion), Ancient Cosmologies, Roman Army, Symbolism (Art History), Ethnoastronomy, Paleolithic Europe, Surveying, Prehistory, Mithras, Cultural Astronomy, Porphyry, Mithraism, Magdalenian, Uzbekistan, Ethnomathematics, Ancient Constellations, Semiotics, Symbolism, Ice Age Cave Art, Mithraic iconography, Caves, Milky Way, Palaeolithic Archaeology, Hominin Palaeontology, Evolutionary Psychology and Cognitive Psychology, Palaeoecology, Palaeoenvironment, and Palaeoclimate studies, Anthropological Genetics, Palaeopathology, Palaeolithic Europe, Palaeolithic archaeology, Mesolithic archaeology, Prehistoric transitions, Environmental archaeology, Archaeozoology, Pleistocene fauna, Palaeoclimate, Refugia and recolonisation, Spatial analysis, Palaeolithic art and symbolism, Upper paleolithic hunter gatherers, Lascaux, Ancient cosmogonies, Latin Inscriptions, Mithraic Grades, Lascaux Caves, History of Metrology, COSMOLOGY, ECOLOGY, SHAMANISM, TIME-SPACE STRUCTURES AND PROCESS, BEGINNING OF SORCERY AND SHAMANISM, CALENDRIC ROUND, AND RELATION TO CONSTELLATIONS AND SHAMANIC ACTIVITIES., Origins of Mithraism, Mithraic Scholarship, Roger Beck, Astrological Interpretations of Mithraism, Palaeoastronomy, Ancient Origin of Man, History of Religous Thought, Schools of Mystical Thought and Evolution of Them, Mythology and Science of Early Civilizations, Gateway Text Theory, and Mithaea
Everyday life in the 21st c. is based on and strongly influenced by modern science, technology, economy, and mass media, which all are closely intertwined. Today’s highly complex and networked societies require well-informed and... more
Everyday life in the 21st c. is based on and strongly influenced by modern science, technology, economy, and mass media, which all are closely intertwined. Today’s highly complex and networked societies require well-informed and well-trained people, who in general are well-acquainted with science methodology and results as a constituent part of all-round education. Moreover expert knowledge is important to deepen and extend scientific progress. Today’s societies base their prosperity in a large part on the development of applied science interlinked with certain technologies. A good insight into the practice of science qualifies people being able to keep up with the very dynamic changes within the societies, to participate in wealth, and to train awareness, scepticism, criticism, and reasoning. It is antagonizing “flat thinking”. From these facts it is clear that there exists a practical need for communicating science to the public and to experts asking for knowledge outside their respective disciplines. The talk gives an overview about the necessity and the delight of communicating science, showing the trends and the challenges.
Research Interests:
Human Computer Interaction, Music, Ethics, Applied Ethics, New Media, and 44 moreInstructional Design, Educational Technology, Science Communication, Bioethics, E-learning, Distance Education, Research Ethics, Digital Media, Gesture, Multimedia, Social and Cultural Anthropology, Poetry, Embodiment, Instructional Technology, Narrative and Design, Digital Culture, Bakhtin, Sound, Machinima, Performance, Reading, Online Learning, Dialogism, Art and technology, Virtual Worlds, Global Ethics, Distance Learning, 21st Century Studies, Science journalism, Technology Ethics, Communication sciences, Science Ethics, Ethics and Philosophy of Science, Technology, and Engineering, Virtual Learning, Cyborgs, Game Spaces, Spatial Story Telling, Educational Virtual Environments, Computer Based Communication, Information & Communication Technologies In Education ICT&E, VR for Learning, Educational Web 3D, Authoring & Intelligent Tutoring Systems, and Virtual Reality Technology
Across different cultures people repeatedly expected and dreaded tremendous cataclysms. At times they even hoped for disasters, which they thought to cause deeply and revolutionary changes in individual and social life. Today among others... more
Across different cultures people repeatedly expected and dreaded tremendous cataclysms. At times they even hoped for disasters, which they thought to cause deeply and revolutionary changes in individual and social life. Today among others Roland Emmerich’s movie "2012", released November 2009, and the attractiveness of television films, which address last days cataclysms or of catastrophe documentaries, which deal with, earthquakes, supervolcanos, tsunamis, impact events, pandemia etc. show that downfalls and upheavals occupy human fantasy pretty much. While couch potatoes love watching catastrophes comfortably in the home cinema, taking no risk, others prepare themselves for the final countdown to dooms day, which they expect to arrive shortly. In the remote past people of different cultures all over the world had been worried about certain cycles of time, world catastrophes, world ages, the ultimate last day, and setting up a new world. The sudden devastation of populated landscapes, even continents, the vanishing of islands, the destruction of cities or the collapse of civilizations had been frequently linked with the effects of gigantic events like global-scaled floods, tsunamis, glaciation, blasts, earthquakes, enormous cyclones, eruptions of huge volcanoes, impacts of celestial bodies on earth or their destruction in the skies, meteor showers, the destructional appearance of comets and new stars (today known as novae or supernovae), other cosmic phenomena, e.g. the shifting of the celestial poles or the moving of the vernal equinox through the zodiacal asterisms., battle of God's and the last judgement. Today people add to the list some new disasters, for example an ultimated MCA, the collapse of the Gulf stream, enegetic changes in the galactic nucleus or Gamma Ray bursts. In the imagination of both, archaic and today`s people, world cataclysms are announced and caused mostly by cosmic phenomena. According to them the fate of the world and humans is bound to a kind of master plan encoded in the language of heavens, which especially gives times (calendar) and numbers connected to the course of the world, setting the dates for destruction and renewal. The lecture outlines the main astronomically motivated concepts of archaic and today´s expectations of big changes, disasters, last days or final cosmic judgements. The deadlines for ultimated last day given in the course of the history of different cultures are surveyed. The talk elaborates astronomical phenomena as well as psychological and ideological motivations underlying the imaginations. In addition the probability of hitherto scientific confirmed real or possible catastrophes caused by cosmic phenomena, such like for example a solar protuberance, a big sized impact, a nearby supernova or a Gamma Ray Burst is pointed out. A special note: The lecturer is eager to give further scientific talks, 2013, just after the World`s end.
Research Interests:
Sociology of Disaster, History of Religion, Cosmology (Anthropology), Jungian psychology, Eschatology and Apocalypticism, and 15 moreHistory of Astronomy, History of Astrology, Archaeoastronomy, Ethnoastronomy, Calendars, Comparative mythology, History of Science and Religion, Cultural Astronomy, History, Science, Astronomy, Ancient Chronological Systems, Calendars, Ancient Astronomy and Calendars, Psychopathology of Catastrophes, Ages of the world, Aion, Doomsday, and Consciousness and Creativity
The aquatic world plays an essential part in ecosystems. On the earth it provides the fertilizing, vital basis for life. Devastating giant flooding, however, has been destructive and fatal for certain cultures. Archaic people identified... more
The aquatic world plays an essential part in ecosystems. On the earth it provides the fertilizing, vital basis for life. Devastating giant flooding, however, has been destructive and fatal for certain cultures. Archaic people identified the realm of the water world as the primeval and lasting cosmic ocean, which surrounds and intersperses the world. The respective land ("the earth") and the celestial bodies emerged out of the cosmic sea, both swimming there as the first "aquatics". People identified different species of the celestial fauna and flora as having counterparts in the earthly water world, with the moon, single stars and asterisms, open star clusters, zodiacal star patterns, shooting stars, the Milky Way, and the cosmological structure. Ancient cultures, especially those whose subsistence was based mainly on fishing and navigation, often correlated their time reckonings using lunar cycles and star phases with the rhythms of the water realm (e.g. tides, sea-sonality etc.) and of certain aquatics. Fishing aids (nets, hooks, and spears), boots and ships as well as navigation aids were recognized in certain star patterns. Some celestial aquatics, e.g. certain fish asterisms, were important as navigation aids for seafaring cultures. Finally, their archaic cosmovisions are linked to the cosmic water world: There are widespread ideas about a giant water animal out of which the world was created or about the aquatic monster in the middle of the abyss in the cosmic ocean, causing earthquakes and tsunamis. The combat between an avian and an aquatic illustrates the antagonism and polarity of the upper world and the lower world, closely linked to the earth's water cycle. An example par excellence for a cosmic water plant is the water lily or lotus. The present work sums up some important aspects of the topic, based on selected examples and a comparative methodology.
Convex cut mirrors manufactured from the volcanic glass obsidian had been known since Neolithic time (7400/7100 to about 6200 BCE) in Çatalhöyük, Turkey. A Herschelian type telescope made with an obsidian mirror ( 12 cm) allowed to see... more
Convex cut mirrors manufactured from the volcanic glass obsidian had been known since Neolithic time (7400/7100 to about 6200 BCE) in Çatalhöyük, Turkey. A Herschelian type telescope made with an obsidian mirror ( 12 cm) allowed to see the Moon"s craters sharp and distinct, the phases of Venus as well as the discs of Venus and Jupiter. The moons of Jupiter however are not visible due to the low degree of reflection of the used obsidian mirror. A specimen with a much better reflection or a bigger one would result in improved views of celestial objects. The paper reports on the making of the telescope and its potential application. Moreover, as a general basis, the study addresses the prehistory and symbolism of mirrors, with special focus on a possible assignment for skywatching.