The Greek Star-Map

Posted on April 13, 2015 by gavin664

This short essay was originally published as part of Appendix 1 from my book Babylonian Star-Map. An Illustrated Guide to the Star-lore and Constellations of Ancient Babylonia by Gavin White.

Even though the Greek star-map is fundamental to modern astronomy, very little is actually known concerning its origins or date of creation. We can be certain that all, or nearly all, of the 48 traditional constellations were established by the 4th century BCE when Eudoxus of Cnidos wrote his Phaenomena. This work, which was subsequently lost, was versified by Aratos of Soloi a century or so after its creation, and fortunately for us, Aratos’ work does survive. From this we can infer that Eudoxus’ work described the appearances and locations of the constellations but didn’t pay much heed to the mythology associated with them.

This, at least, provides us with a latest possible date for the formation of the Greek constellations, but trying to trace back their origins any further becomes increasingly difficult. All we know for sure is that Ursa Minor, the Little Bear, was added in the 6th century BCE and that 4 or 5 constellations and a few individual stars were known to Homer and Hesiod – the earliest Greek writers whose births are conventionally dated between 700 and 750 BCE. In truth, this is the earliest date that any Greek star-lore can be positively ascribed to.

The stars and constellations mentioned by Homer and Hesiod – the Great Bear, the Pleiades, Hyades, Orion, Sirius and Arcturus – are very prominent figures, both in the heavens and in the realm of astral mythology. Even though some modern scholars argue that Homer and Hesiod only knew of these few star figures, many find it difficult to accept that this was the sum total of Greek star-lore in the 8th century BCE. Even though there is no textual evidence from Greece beyond this time, it is known that Homer’s epics draw on legends first formulated in the Mycenean period (1550-1100 BCE) and I believe that this is a plausible enough timeframe for the creation of at least some of the early Greek constellations. One factor in particular supports this early date – Mycenean Greece had strong trading and cultural contacts with the Near East, especially so in the 13th century BCE when Babylonia was actively exporting its literate culture.

The Near Eastern influence in Hesiod’s mythical works are relatively well-known but Homer too, also reveals that he knew a little star-lore that originated in Babylonia when he specifically states that the stars of the Great Bear were also called the Wagon (which is of course the Babylonian name for the seven principal stars of Ursa Major).

As we will see a little later, a considerable number of Greek constellations have been derived from Babylonian sources, even though many have been distorted, misplaced or otherwise transformed in the process of transmission.

Our detailed knowledge of the Greek star-map is largely due to the illustrations and descriptions found in medieval Arabic works on astronomy. These works, especially Al-Sufi’s Uranometry, were a substantial improvement on the earlier work of Ptolemy. The following map of the Greek constellations (fig 166) is primarily based on the illustrations found in the Uranometry.

greekmap2

Fig 1: The Greek Star-map according to Arabian astronomers

The Arabian version of the Greek star-map is well worth reproducing, not only for its greater artistic merit, but also for the occurrence of a number of instances where Arab astronomers have departed from the familiar forms of the Greek constellations. The following examples amply demonstrate the types of transformation and misunderstanding that inevitably arise when a body of traditional lore is transmitted from one culture to another.

  • The figure of Virgo has lost her barley stalk and date-palm frond, and to fit her image onto the star map she has had her right arm cut off above the elbow and shifted downwards towards her thigh.

  • The lion’s skin held by Orion has been transformed into an elaborately extended sleeve, which was popular among upper-class Arabian society during the medieval period.

  • The Greek Wolf (Lupus) has been changed into a lion or lioness. And curiously enough, this is actually closer to the Babylonian prototype of the Mad Dog, which was portrayed as a combination of man and lion.

  • Arabian astronomers have transformed the figure of Lyra, which should be a musical instrument whose sounding box was an empty tortoise shell, into a complete living tortoise.

  • Finally, the Gorgon’s head carried by Perseus has been transformed into the head of a masculine ghoul – from which we derive the modern star-name of Algol (literally meaning ‘the ghoul’).

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Received wisdom states that beyond the zodiac and such constellations as the Raven, Hydra and Southern Fish that are closely assimilated to zodiac figures, only 4 or 5 Greek constellations are derived from Babylonian sources.1 The remaining 28 or 29 constellations are widely regarded as either being native inventions or transmissions from non-Babylonian sources. The sea-faring Phoenicians are sometimes cited as a potential source, especially for the maritime constellations found in the southern reaches of heaven, even though next to nothing is actually known of Phoenician star-lore. 2

Now that more information is available on Babylonian star-lore, there is every reason to suspect that the Greek star-map has been influenced by the Babylonian tradition to a much greater degree than has previously been recognised. Personally, I would argue that some form of Babylonian influence is detectable in between 25 and 30 of the 48 Greek constellations, which is nearly double the conventional tally. Even so, beyond the zodiac figures and their associated constellations already mentioned, there are only two Greek constellations – the Charioteer and the Eagle – that are likely to be accurate representations of their Babylonian counterparts:

greek1The Greek Charioteer (Auriga) is plainly based on the Babylonian constellation of the Chariot. Contrary to its name, the Chariot was also depicted as a chariot-driver, and as yet there is no reason to believe that he ever had a chariot. The figure of a goat (Capella), sometimes found at his shoulder is also a memory of a Babylonian star called the Crook, which was similarly envisioned as a goat-kid (see fig 37).

greek2The Greek Eagle (Aquila) is almost certainly derived from the Babylonian Eagle. In their respective traditions, both stars are often associated or confused with a vulture; and both birds are carrying another object represented among the stars – the Greek Eagle carries an Arrow (Sagitta) while the Babylonian Eagle carries the constellation known as the Dead Man.

Beyond these well-known and potentially accurate transmissions, another 8 or 9 Greek constellations are more loosely based on Babylonian prototypes. The parallels are not so easy to recognise as various components of the figures have been transfigured in the process of transmission:

greek3The Serpent-bearer (Ophiuchus) is represented on the Greek star-map by a hero wrestling with an enormous serpent. I believe that this figure is ultimately based on the Babylonian constellation known as the Sitting Gods. It was sacred to the serpent-god Nirah, who was sometimes depicted as a man with a huge serpent in place of his legs.

greek4Two further Greek figures – Centaurus and Lupus – are obviously based on Babylonian prototypes, even if there are some notable changes in their respective appearances. The Babylonian forerunner of Centaurus was known as the Bison-man, a mythical creature that combined the torso of a man with the hindquarters of a bison. But during the process of transmission, this two-legged figure was transformed into the four-legged Centaurus, which combined a human torso with the body of a horse.

The Greek figure of the Wolf (Lupus) can be traced back to the Babylonian constellation known as the Mad Dog, which was portrayed as a combination of man and lion. Although the form of the Greek constellation may have changed considerably, its close relationship to the Babylonian figure is most clearly expressed in an alternative Greek title – the ‘Wild Beast’ – which is a surprisingly accurate translation of the Mad Dog’s name.

In Babylonian tradition, the symbolism of the Mad Dog and Bison-man is informed by a well-defined seasonal motif called the Lion-Bull conflict. The essential meaning of this motif is displayed in the stars where the Bison-man, who represents the autumn rainy season, is seen killing the lion, which symbolises the drought-stricken summer months. This basic motif appears to have entered Greek tradition as star-myths inform us that Centaurus is depicted in the act of sacrificing Lupus to the gods.

We can also be pretty certain that three more Greek constellations – Pegasus, Hercules and Eridanus – are all derived from Babylonian sources, even if their images have been re-orientated, relocated or otherwise distorted in relation to their Babylonian prototypes:

greek5Pegasus is clearly based on the Babylonian Horse constellation, which has been faithfully preserved in Arabic stellar traditions. But quite why Pegasus is portrayed upside down on the Greek star-map and is further missing its hindquarters has proved impossible to explain.

grrek6Hercules too, has been inexplicably placed upside down on the celestial sphere, where he can be seen fighting the dragon (Draco), which guards the Golden Apples. His origins probably lie with the Babylonian constellation called the Standing Gods, which like the Sitting Gods mentioned earlier, was depicted as a man with a serpent for legs. In the earliest Greek traditions this constellation was simply known as the ‘Kneeler’ – which is, I believe, a misunderstanding of the names of the Sitting and Standing Gods.

There can be little doubt that Eridanus, the celestial river that flows from the region around Orion’s legs, derives its name from the Babylonian constellation known as the Star of Eridu. However, their respective constellation images are placed some distance apart on the celestial sphere, either side of Orion. In the section on the Star of Eridu, I suggest that Eridu was depicted as a enthroned goddess holding a vase overflowing with water, which represents the wellspring of the waters, and that Eridanus might be thought of as the extended outflow of the Babylonian figure.

Beyond the foregoing examples that bear an obvious, if corrupt, debt to Babylonian prototypes, a handful of remaining examples are much more uncertain: 

It is pogrrek7ssible that Ara, the Fire Altar, which is found close to the Scorpio’s tail, is derived, not from a Babylonian constellation but, from the lore of a star at the Scorpion’s Breast. This star, our Antares, is known as Lisi in Babylonian tradition, and her name is significantly written with the sign for ‘fire brazier’.

greek8The origins of Andromeda have exercised the imagination of every investigator of the constellations, both ancient and modern. Many modern commentators suggest she comes from the Near East but no substantial evidence has ever been cited to support such claims. The figure of Andromeda is often compared to the Babylonian constellation of Anunitum, ‘the goddess of heaven’, who represented the Northern Fish of Pisces.

There is some tantalising evidence in Arabic lore that the image of a mermaid was once located in this part of the skies. It could be a remnant of the Sumerian figure known as Kulianna (the Mermaid) who was counted as one of the Slain Heroes. I believe it is possible that this mermaid was split up into separate parts as it became assimilated into the Greek star-map – its human element being transformed into Andromeda, and its fish element becoming the northern fish of Pisces. The close link between the Andromeda and the fish is best expressed by the cord that binds Andromeda’s feet, which can now be understood as another version of the cord that binds together the Piscean fish.

greek9From the perspective of myth and star-lore, the Greek hero Perseus has always been regarded as a purely native figure. However, in the section on the Old Man, I argue that the principal elements of his iconography effectively identify him with Enmešarra, an ancient Babylonian god associated with the dead and the underworld.

greek10Finally, I believe that the figure the Greek Swan (Cygnus) may be a distant memory of the archaic Babylonian constellation called the Anzu-bird (see fig 7). The Swan’s outstretched wings and trailing feet are suspiciously similar to representations of the Anzu-bird, which would originally have been located in this region of the sky.

The potential identification between Cygnus and the Anzu-bird is of considerable interest as, along with the Bison-man seen earlier, the Anzu-bird’s celestial image was actually removed from the Babylonian heavens in the mid 3rd millennium BCE, long before any constellation lore was transmitted to Greece. Both the Bison-man and Anzu-bird are counted among the Slain Heroes, a group of early gods and mythical monsters that were slain by Ninurta. In the section on the Slain Heroes, I suggest that several of the Heroes represented archaic Mesopotamian constellations, and that their deaths at the hands of Ninurta symbolised the removal of their constellation images from the celestial sphere.

Among the other Slain Heroes we find Kulianna (the Mermaid), who may be related to Andromeda and the Northern Fish of Pisces; the Magilum Boat that some commentators suggest maybe related to the Argo; and the Seven-headed serpent that may be a prototype for the Hydra. Additionally I would also suggest that the Greek figure of Cetus, the Sea-Monster, could be another ancient Mesopotamian constellation figure. This intriguing subject demands further study. 3

NOTES

1 I have published a set of short essays on the Zodiac figures of Babylonia on the Skyscript website. Please refer to these documents for information on the nature and history of these pivotal constellation figures.

2 The most up-to-date survey on the origins of the Greek star-map is to be found in two articles by John H. Rogers – The Origins of the Ancient Constellations: 1. The Mesopotamian Traditions; and 2. The Mediterranean Traditions published in the Journal of the British Astronomy Association 1998.

3 I hope to explore this subject in a future book on the reconstruction of the Babylonian Star-Map.

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Queen of the Night

Posted on July 3, 2014 by gavin664

QoN cover jpeg

Queen of the Night

 The Role of the Stars in the Creation of the Child

In Queen of the Night, author Gavin White develops a radial new theory of how the prehistoric peoples of the Near East conceived of the heavens that circled above them. Drawing on ancient art and design, the author elucidates the symbolism of the principal constellations of the zodiac, and furthermore explores the nature of the planets that weave their way around the skies. In doing so, he uncovers the basis of a perennial philosophy that lies at the very heart of ancient astrology, mythology and early religion.

Author: Gavin White     Pages: 216

244 black & white drawings

 Publisher: Solaria Publications      Publication date: 11 June 2014

10 digit ISBN: 0955903731   13 digit ISBN: 978-0-9559037-3-1

Dimensions: 190mm x 246mm x 10mm

Wholesale: Available in the UK from Bertrams and Gardners at wholesale discount (55%)

 Available in the USA from Ingram and Baker & Taylor at wholesale discount (55%) on a returnable basis

RRP: $24.00, £16.00, €18.00

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

The Queen of Heaven

A New Interpretation of the Goddess in Ancient Near Eastern Art

coverjpeg

Author: Gavin White

Pages: 190

179 black & white drawings

Publisher: Solaria Publications

Publication date: 27th October 2013

10 digit ISBN: 0955903718

13 digit ISBN: 978-0-9559037-1-7

Dimensions: 190mm x 246mm x 10mm

RRP: $22.00, £15.00, €17.00

 ‘The Queen of Heaven’ is a step-by-step guide to symbolism of the so-called ‘fertility religions’ of the antique worlds. Behind the charming imagery of cattle and calves, flying birds, flowers and stars, there is a profound philosophy of human nature and its intimate relationship to the goddess and the wider cosmos.

Thousands of years before the invention of writing, the artists of the Near East – the potters, painters, and seal-cutters – invented a complex system of visual signs and symbols. The system they created was the foundation of the traditional visual arts for millennia hence. However, in time, the keys to that system were eventually lost – if they could be recovered, they would revolutionise our understanding of prehistory.

With over 150 line drawings, ‘the Queen of Heaven’, finally cracks the code of this symbol system. It is the indispensable guide to the nature and meaning of many of the major symbols found in ancient art and myth.

birdsjpeg

CONTENTS

PART ONE:  The Child, Metaphors of the Child, Animal Metaphors, the Seed of Mankind, the Symbol System

PART TWO: the Goddess of Life, the Winged Goddess, the Storm Goddess, the Celestial Goddess, the Fertile Skies, the Waters of the Sun, the Flower of Heaven

PART THREE: the Battle of the Gods, the Sun and the Child, Death enters the World

Preview passages are now available on Amazon. Reader reviews are online at Amazon and Goodreads.

Posted on November 15, 2013 by gavin664 | 5 Comments

Illustration References for Babylonian Star-lore

Posted on April 11, 2012 by gavin664

ILLUSTRATION REFERENCES BSL-2. A few sources are still missing.

All illustrations are redrawn by the author. The picture sources are as follows:

  1. Original – Gavin White. Loosely based on the ‘Babylonian Map of the World’ – see Horowitz 1998, pages 20-42 for line illustration and commentary. See also Black & Green 1992, fig 46, for a schematic version of the map.

1a. Syrian Seal from the Louvre collection AO7296

  1. Detail from Black & Green 1992, fig 16. Partially reconstructed in area of face.
  2. Wallenfels 1993, page 287.
  3. As-Sufi 1954, fig 20c. Stars and Arabic star designations removed.
  4. Wallenfels 1994, plate 24.
  5. Original – Gavin White.
  6. Anzu mace head
  7. Original – Gavin White.
  8. Detail from Hinke 1907 plate LXXVII; see also Seidl 1989, Abb 11 number 74.

9a. Black & Green 1992, fig 7.

  1. Roaf 1966, page 90.
  2. Lion bull conflict
  3. Original – Gavin White.
  4. Collon 1987, fig 765.
  5. As-Sufi 1954, figs 44 & 45b. Stars and Arabic star designations removed.
  6. Detail from fig 36 in James ‘The Ancient Gods’ Phoenix Giant 1960.
  7. Original – Gavin White.
  8. Frankfort 1939 plate XXXV a; see also Leick 1991, fig 38.
  9. Detail from Collon 1987, fig 772.
  10. Detail from Frankfort 1939, plate V fig b.
  11. Glassner 2003, fig 8.9 on page 175.
  12. Dalley 1986, fig 2 page 87.
  13. Collon 1987, fig 858.
  14. Egyptian fig from Dendera.
  15. Collon 1987, fig 107.
  16. Wallenfels 1993, page 283.
  17. Wellesz 1965, fig 15.
  18. Detail from Reiner 1995, page 11. Black & Green 1992, fig 159.
  19. Detail from fig 166.
  20. Detail from fig 164.
  21. Detail from Hinke 1907, plate XCI.
  22. Detail from Parker & Neugebauer 1969, plate 72.
  23. Collon 1987, fig 721.
  24. Detail from Cattle-pen from trough.
  25. Detail from Collon 1987, fig 12.
  26. Detail from Collon 1987, fig 693.
  27. As-Sufi 1954, fig 12. Stars and Arabic star designations removed.
  28. Condos 1997, page 49.
  29. Wallenfels 1993, page 284.
  30. Detail from Seidl 1989, Abb 2 number 9.
  31. Detail from Frankfort 1939, fig 27.

40a. Detail from Rogers 1998b, page 83.

  1. Original – Gavin White.
  2. Detail from Seidl 1989, Abb 15 number 82.
  3. Detail from Hinke 1907, plate XIX.
  4. Collon 1987, fig 887.
  5. Detail from Roaf 1966, page 45.
  6. Roaf 1966, page 156.
  7. Detail from BM ?? plate 6, no 87220.
  8. Detail from Boehmer 1965, fig 693, tafel LVIII.
  9. Detail from Collon 1987, fig 9.
  10. Original – Gavin White.
  11. Detail from original (fig 167) – Gavin White.
  12. Detail from fig 164.
  13. Detail from fig 164.
  14. Detail from Boehmer 1965, fig 518. Porada 1987, fig 8, page 285.
  15. Detail from Roaf 1966, page 192.
  16. Original – Gavin White.
  17. Detail from Seidl 1989, Abb 2 number 9.
  18. Original – Gavin White.
  19. Detail from Parker & Neugebauer 1969, plate 60.
  20. Detail from Reiner 1995, page 10. Black & Green 1992, fig 147.
  21. Aspin Atlas 1825 from University of Oklahoma website.
  22. As-Sufi 1954, fig 27. Stars and Arabic star designations removed.
  23. Original – Gavin White.
  24. Detail from Seidl Abb 18 number 90a.
  25. Harrison 1980, page 275, fig 66.
  26. Detail from fig 169 – Gavin White.
  27. Wallenfels 1993, page 285.
  28. Original – Gavin White.
  29. Detail from Seidl 1989, Abb 7 number 61.
  30. Detail from Collon 1987, fig 240.
  31. Detail from Seidl 1989, Abb 10 number 64.
  32. Leick 1991, fig 32.
  33. Detail from Frankfort 1939, fig 72.
  34. Original – Gavin White based on Black & Green 1992, fig 102; and Green Iconography of Meslamtaea RA 82 (1988) page 173.
  35. Detail from fig 164.
  36. Wallenfels 1993, page 282.
  37. Detail from Hinke 1907, fig 11, page 28.
  38. Detail from Slanski 2003, fig 5, page 135.
  39. Detail from Seidl 1989, Abb 18 number 90a.
  40. Collon 1987, fig 923. Frankfort 1939, fig 28, page 74.
  41. Carey 2001, volume 2, Plate 11 B. Stars and Arabic star designations removed.
  42. Detail from Black & Green 1992, fig 16. Heads of both figures slightly restored.
  43. Wallenfels 1993, page 284.
  44. Original – Gavin White.
  45. Original – Gavin White.
  46. Detail from Seidl 1989, Abb 10 number 64.
  47. Black & Green 1992, fig 34.
  48. Original – Gavin White.
  49. As-Sufi 1954, fig 34. Stars and Arabic star designations removed.
  50. Black & Green 1992, fig 101. SAA10 fig 24, page 184.
  51. Detail from fig 164.
  52. Collon 1987, fig 637.
  53. Original – Gavin White.
  54. BM ?? plate 14 no 90922.
  55. Wellesz 1965, fig 7. Stars and Arabic star designations removed.
  56. Harrison 1980, fig 7, page 43.

96a. Collon 1987, fig 796.

  1. Detail from Hinke 1907, plate XCI.
  2. Detail from Hinke 1907, plate XXIX face A.
  3. Wallenfels 1993, page 286.
  4. Collon 1987, fig 364.
  5. Original – Gavin White.
  6. Detail from Finkel & Geller 1997, page 15 fig 1
  7. Original – Gavin White.
  8. Detail from Hinke 1907, fig 11, page 28.
  9. Kramer 1956. History begins at Sumer, fig 8, page 68.
  10. Collon 1987, fig 616.
  11. Detail from fig 164.
  12. Detail from Hinke 1907, plate XC.
  13. Detail from Reiner 1995, page 10.
  14. As-Sufi 1954, fig 41. Stars and Arabic star designations removed.
  15. Detail from fig 164.
  16. Detail from Seidl 1989, Abb 14 number 80.
  17. Detail from Parker & Neugebauer 1969, plate 32.
  18. Wallenfels 1993, page 285.
  19. Detail from Boehmer 1965, fig 458. Black & Green 1992, fig 152.
  20. Detail from Hinke 1907, plate LXV.
  21. Detail from Hinke 1907, plate XIX & XX.
  22. Collon 1987, fig 617. Boehmer 1965, fig 715a, plate LX.
  23. Wallenfels 1993, page 285.
  24. Reiner 1995, page 10. Black & Green 1992, fig 159.
  25. Collon 1987, fig 557.
  26. Collon 1987, fig 793.
  27. Detail from Hinke 1907, plate XCI.
  28. Detail from Roaf 1966, page 74. Collon 1987, fig 805.
  29. As-Sufi 1954, figs 13 & 14. Stars and Arabic star designations removed.
  30. Boehmer 1965, fig 575, tafel XLIX.
  31. Roaf 1966, page 77.
  32. Collon 1987, fig 251.
  33. Frankfort 1939, plate XXXI fig h.
  34. Roaf 1966, page 9.
  35. Boehmer 1965, fig 25, tafel III. Collon 1987, fig 852.
  36. Carey 2001, vol 2, plate 11 fig A. Stars and Arabic star designations removed; reversed from left to right.
  37. Roaf 1966, page 86.
  38. Detail from fig 166.
  39. Original – Gavin White based on Wiggermann 1997, page 53, fig 4b. Black & Green 1992, fig 137.
  40. Detail from Seidl 1989, Abb 12 number 103.
  41. Detail from photo from Black & Green 1992, fig 134. The image of the bow, erased in ancient times, has been restored.
  42. Collon 1987, fig 618.
  43. Wallenfels 1994, plate 72.
  44. Collon 1987, fig 561.
  45. Detail from Parker & Neugebauer 1969, plate 60.
  46. Detail from Roaf 1966, page 75.
  47. As-Sufi 1954, fig 5. Stars and Arabic star designations removed.
  48. Original – Gavin White.
  49. Wallenfels 1993, page 288.
  50. Frankfort 1939, plate XXXVII fig f. Collon 1987, fig
  51. Original – Gavin White.
  52. Original – Gavin White.
  53. Original – Gavin White.
  54. Detail from Roaf 1966, page 194.
  55. BM ?? plate 21, no 104414.
  56. Detail from fig 164.
  57. Original – Gavin White.
  58. Detail from Hinke 1907, plates XIX & XXII.
  59. Original – Gavin White.
  60. Detail from Hinke 1907, plate XC.
  61. Detail from fig 164.
  62. Reiner 1995, page 11. Black & Green 1992, fig 159. Weidner 1967, table V, between pages 78 & 79.
  63. Reiner 1995, page 10. Black & Green 1992, fig 159. Weidner 1967, table V, between pages 78 & 79.
  64. Reiner 1995, page 10. Weidner 1967, table V, between pages 78 & 79.
  65. Most images from Wallenfels 1993. Except the following from Wallenfels 1994: the Bull – plate 72; Virgo – plate 51; and left-hand Aquarius – plate 5.
  66. Seidl 1989, Abb 9, number 63.
  67. Original – Gavin White.
  68. Redrawn from Hinke 1907, fig 35 and Parker & Neugebauer 1969, fig 53.
  69. Original – Gavin White. Reconfigured version of the Circular Zodiac with original labelling.

165a. See fig 81 above.

  1. Original – Gavin White. Based on individual figures in As-Sufi 1954 with the exception of Taurus which is from Wellesz 1965, fig 15.
  2. Original – Gavin White.
  3. Original – Gavin White.
  4. Original – Gavin White.

 

 

 

 

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Bibliography for Babylonian Star-lore

Posted on April 11, 2012 by gavin664

BIBLIOGRAPHY OF SOURCES

Allen 1963. Star Names. Their Lore and Meaning. Dover.

Alster 1976. On the Earliest Sumerian Literary Tradition. Journal for Cuneiform Studies 28.

Annus 2002, The God Ninurta. Neo-Assyrian Text Corpus Project.

As-Sufi 1954. Uranometry or Suwaru’l-Kawakib. Osmania Oriental Publications.

Baigent 1994. From the Omens of Babylon. Astrology and Ancient Mesopotamia. Arkana.

Van Berg 1973. Corpus Cultus Deae Syriae. Brill.

Black, George & Postgate 2000. A concise dictionary of Akkadian. Harrassowitz Verlag.

Black & Green 1992. Gods, Demons and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia. British Museum Press.

Boehmer 1965. Die Entwicklung der Glyptik Wahrend der Akkad-Zeit. Walter De Gruyter & Co.

BPO2 = Reiner & Pingree 1981. Babylonian Planetary Omens part 2. Undena.

BPO3 = Reiner & Pingree 1998. Babylonian Planetary Omens part 3. Styx.

BPO4 = Reiner & Pingree 2005 Babylonian Planetary Omens part 4. Brill.

Brown 2000. Mesopotamian Planetary Astronomy-Astrology. Styx.

Bunson 1995. A Dictionary of Ancient Egypt. Oxford University Press.

Van Buren 1949. The Rod & Ring. Archiv Orientalni 17/2.

CAD = The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. Now available on line.

Carey 2001. Painting the Stars in a Century of Change: a 13th century copy of al-Sufi’s Treatise on the Fixed Stars. Phd Thesis SOAS; British Library Or.5323. 2 volumes.

CDA = Black, George & Postgate 2000. A concise dictionary of Akkadian. Harrassowitz Verlag.

Cohen (Mark) 1993, Cult Calendars of the Ancient Near East. CDL Press.

Cohen (Andrew) 2005. Death Rituals, Ideology and the Development of Early Mesopotamian Kingship. Brill-Styx.

Collon 1987. First Impressions. Cylinder Seals in the Ancient Near East. British Museum Press.

Cooper 1978. The Return of Ninurta to Nippur. Pontificum Institutum Biblicum.

Condos 1997. Star Myths of the Greeks and Romans: a sourcebook. Phanes Press.

Cunningham 1997. Deliver me from Evil. Mesopotamian Incantations 2500-1500 BC. Editrice Pontificio Istituto Biblico.

Dalley 1986. The God Salmu and the Winged Disk. Pages 85-101 Iraq vol 48.

Dalley 1989. Myths from Mesoptamia. Oxford University Press.

Van Dijk, Goetze & Hussey (editors) 1985. Early Mesopotamian Incantations and Rituals. Yale University Press.

Ellis 1989. An Old Babylonian Kusarikku. Pages 121-135 of DUMU E2-DUB-BA-A: Studies in Honor of Ake Sjoberg. Edited by Behrens et al. University of Pennsylvania Museum.

ETCSL – The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature; website run by the Oriental Institute of Oxford University.

Faulkes 1987. Edda of Snorri Sturluson. Dent & Tuttle for Everyman’s Library.

Finkel & Geller (editors) 1997. Sumerian Gods and their Representations. Styx.

Foxvog 1993. Astral Dumuzi. Pages 103-8 of The Tablet and the Scroll: Near eastern Studies in Honor of W H Hallo. Edited by Cohen et al. CDL Press.

Frankfort 1939. Cylinder Seals. Macmillan.

Freedman 1998-2006. If a City is set on a Height: Šumma Alu. University of Pennsylvania Museum.

Gelling & Davidson 1972. The Chariot of the Sun and other Rites and Symbols of the Northern Bronze Age. Littlehampton Books.

George 1986. Sennacherib and the Tablet of Destinies. Iraq 48, pages 133-45.

George 1999. The Epic of Gilgamesh. Penguin.

George 2003. The Babylonian Gilgamesh Epic: Introduction, Critical Edition & Cuneiform Texts. Oxford University Press.

Glassner 2003. The Invention of Cuneiform. Johns Hopkins University Press.

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Reference Notes to Babylonian Star-lore, 2nd Edition

Posted on April 11, 2012 by gavin664

NOTES TO BSL-2

Paragraphs (§) are numbered from the start of each gazette section and where the text continues they are numbered from the top of the page. The boxed sections are referred to as ‘Name-boxes’ and are not included in the paragraph count.

INTRODUCTION

  1. Page 7 §1: Exportation of Babylonian astrology. Koch-Westenholz 1995, page 44 ff. This is a good general introduction aimed at students and academics that covers the topic of celestial divination within a chronological framework.
  2. Page 7 §2: The Zodiac exported. Allen 1963, pages 1-6 gives a brief description of the Solar Zodiac in various ancient cultures.
  3. Page 8 §1: Babylonian star-lore in foreign star-maps & star-lore. See Appendix 1 of the present volume.
  4. Page 8 §2 : Changes that occur in cultural transmissions. Several such changes are noted in Appendix 1 under Greek Sources on page 251 of the present volume.
  5. Page 10 §3 : ‘If the King Star is radiant… SAA8 report 29, lines 1-3. I have retranslated ‘Regulus’ as the King Star.
  6. Page 10 §3: ’If the King Star sparkles… Gössmann 1950, section 240 B 1a (page 90)
  7. Page 10 § 3 :’If the Fish rises on time… ‘If the Fish rises late… BPO2 text X, line 23. I have slightly re-worked the first parts of both Fish omens in light of the other examples in this text.
  8. Page 11 §1 :Origins of mathematical astrology. Brown 2000, pages 161 ff. Brown presents the thesis that the new mathematical astrology, including zodiacal astrology and horoscopes, had its origins in the Neo-Assyrian court of the late 8th and 7th centuries BCE.
  9. Page 11 §4: Commentary of the Dream of Scipio. Stahl 1990, pages 124-148, commentary on chapters IX to XIV.
  10. Page 11 §5: Souls residing in the Milky Way. Stahl 1990, page 134, commentary on chapter XII, section 3.
  11. Page 12 §1: Pathways of dead souls and new-born babies. Scurlock 1995, pages 1886-1888.
  12. Page 12 §2: Nature of immortal soul. Stahl 1990, pages 127 ff, commentary on chapter X especially sections 6 & 7.

 

THE BABYLONIAN COSMOS

  1. Page 17 §2: Time before creation. Horowitz 1998, page 109. [Enuma Eliš I: lines 1-6]
  2. Page 17 §3: Primal Waters. Horowitz 1998, page 130. [Bilingual Creation of the World by Marduk CT 13, 35: lines 10-11]
  3. Page 17 §3: Male & female waters. Horowitz 1998, page 109. [Enuma Eliš I: lines 1-6]
  4. Page 17 §4: Creator god. Horowitz 1998, page 139. [NBC 11108, line 5]
  5. Page 17 §5: Birth of Heaven & Earth. Horowitz 1998, page 139. [NBC 11108, lines 8-9]
  6. Page 17 §6: Birth of Sun & Moon. Horowitz 1998, page 144. [Exaltation of Ištar lines 25-27]
  7. Page 17 §6: Stars like ‘oxen following a furrow. Horowitz 1998, page 145. [Exaltation of Ištar lines 29-30]
  8. Page 17 §7: Creation of the Earth. Horowitz 1998, page 130-131. [Bilingual Creation of the World by Marduk CT 13, 36: lines 17-18]
  9. Page 17 §7: Creation of the lands and beasts. Horowitz 1998, page 131. [Bilingual Creation of the World by Marduk CT 13, 37: lines 31-32]
  10. Page 17 §8: Sacrificial paradigm in Creation mythology. Horowitz 1998, page 112-122. [Enuma Eliš IV: lines 135-146 and tablet V: lines 1-130]
  11. Page 17 §9: Reed swamps in southern Mesopotamia. Oppenheim 1977, pages 35-48 give an overview of the geography and ecology of early Mesopotamia.
  12. Page 17 §9: Man-made islands for house construction. Oppenheim 1977, page 42.
  13. Page 18 §1: Use of reeds. Oppenheim 1977, page 42.
  14. Page 18 §1: Submarine springs. Horowitz 1998, page 132 in the discussion of the Akkadian term rāţu.
  15. Page 18 §2: Creation of man. The best known being found in the Sumerian myth Enki and Ninmah, lines 24-37 found on the ETCSL-website. In the Akkadian Atrahasis myth we have the motif of a slain god’s blood mixed in with the clay – see Dalley 1989, pages 14-18.
  16. Page 18 §2: Male & female semen. ETCSL Enki and Ninmah, lines 83-91.
  17. Page 18 §2: Sign for water. PSD under “A [water]”.
  18. Page 18 §3: Three-fold Heaven & Earth. Horowitz 1998, pages 3-19. [KAR 307]
  19. Page 18 §4: Heaven of Anu. Horowitz 1998, pages 9-11.
  20. Page 18 §5: Heaven of Bel. Horowitz 1998, page 12.
  21. Page 18 §6: Heaven of constellation. Horowitz 1998, pages 13-15.
  22. Page 19 §1: Blue stone as colour of sky. Horowitz 1998, pages 9 ff.
  23. Page 19 §2: Colours associated with Anu. Horowitz 1998, page 10, note 17.
  24. Page 19 §4: Location of planets. See Appendix 4, under the Gu-text, Mul-Apin and the Astrolabes.
  25. Page 19 §5: Upper Earth. Horowitz 1998, pages 16-17.
  26. Page 19 §6: The Abyss. Horowitz 1998, pages 17-18.
  27. Page 19 §7: Cosmological stairway. Horowitz 1998, page 144 & 66. Also Scurlock 1995, page 1886.
  28. Page 19 §8: Nature of demons. Black & Green 1992, page 63.
  29. Page 19 §8: Demons causing eclipses. Part of Udug Hul, the exorcist’s manual of incantations. An up-to-date treatment is by Kilmer 1976.
  30. Page 20 §1: Sources for the Map of the World. The principle illustration source for the tablet depicting the Babylonian Map of the World is Horowitz 1998, page 21, with discussion in pages 20-33.
  31. Page 20 §2: Mountains surrounding the mythic world. Horowitz 1998, pages 30-33 in the discussion of the Akkadian term nagû.

 

A BRIEF GUIDE TO THE STAR-MAP

  1. Page 24 §1: Dumuzi. Jacobsen 1976, pages 23-73. This chapter describes the religion of the 4th millennium BCE that was based around the goddess Inanna and her semi-divine lover Dumuzi.
  2. Page 40 §1: Souls and the ancestors. Scurlock 1995, page 1892. The whole article is of great value in gaining a perspective upon the afterlife and the nature of the soul in early Mesopotamian thought.
  3. Page 40 §3: The ancestral collective. Scurlock 1995, page 1892.
  4. Page 40 §4: Components of the soul. Scurlock 1995, page 1892.
  5. Page 40 §4: Souls descending to the underworld. Scurlock 1995, page 1892.
  6. Page 40 §5: Mythical Tree of Life. This motif appears in the myth of Etana – see Dalley 1989 pages 189-202, and in the Sumerian myth entitled Gilgamesh, Enkidu and the Netherworld, lines 36-46, best accessed on the ETCSL website.
  7. Page 40 §6: The Gates of Men and the Gods. Stahl 1990, pages 133 ff, commentary on chapter XII.
  8. Page 41 §2: Return of the soul to the stars. Stahl 1990, pages 136-137, commentary on chapter XII.
  9. Page 41 §2: Mysteries of Orpheus. Harrison 1980, page 473 ff.
  10. Page 41 §4: Brazier Festival and ancestral spirits. See Appendix 8 in the present volume under month 5.
  11. Page 41 §5: The water sign. PSD under A [water] – ‘water, semen, progeny’.
  12. Page 41 §5: The Bir-sign. CDA under kalītu, page 142. See also Labat 1988, page 187, under ELLAG2.
  13. Page 42 §2: Embodiment process of new-born souls. Stahl 1990, pages 134-136, commentary on chapter XII. Sections 4-11 discuss the embodiment of the soul and in section 7 mention is made of the Greek constellation Crater (called here the Bowl of Bacchus) whose intoxicating contents render the soul forgetful of its heavenly origins.

 

ABUNDANCE

  1. Page 45 §1: The name of the overflowing vase. CDA pages 113-114 under hengallu.
  2. Page 45 §1: The overflowing vase. Black & Green 1992, page 184 under ‘vase with streams’.
  3. Page 45 §2: The God of Abundance. Reworked translation based on Dalley 1989, page 270.
  4. Page 45 name-box: Meaning of Hegal. Labat 1988, pages 100-101 under GAN & HE2.
  5. Page 46 §1: Regents of star. The Star of Abundance is allotted to ‘the messenger of Ninlil’ in Mul-Apin (see Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin). The attribution to Ninlil and Şarpanitu is found in BPO2, page 57 in text IX line 7.

 

ANUNITUM

  1. Page 46 §2: The Cord of Pisces. Wallenfels 1993, page 287 ff, figs 15 & 21.
  2. Page 46 §2: The Fin of Anunitum. Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 271.
  3. Page 47 §1: Inanna as ‘Lady of Heaven’. Leick 1991, page 86. Gössmann 1950, section 27 (page 10)
  4. Page 47 §2: Location of Akkad. Oppenheim 1977, pages 398-399.
  5. Page 47 §2: Association of Anunitum with the Tigris. See VR 46 in Appendix 4 where Anunitum & Šinunutum are allotted to the Tigris & Euphrates respectively.
  6. Page 47 §3: ‘If Anunitum is dark… Gössmann 1950, section 27 (page 11)
  7. Page 47 §3: ‘If the Strange Star… Gössmann 1950, section 374 II A 11 (page 208)
  8. Page 47 §3: ‘The prince in the palace… Gössmann 1950, section 175 (page 72)
  9. Page 47 §4: Association of Anunitum with Venus. Leick 1991, page 163.
  10. Page 47 §6: ‘If Venus becomes visible… SAA8 report 357.
  11. Page 47 §8: ‘If the Fish approaches the Death Star… Gössmann 1950, section 133 II 2a (page 49)
  12. Page 48 §1: The Akkadian word for fish. CDA page 258 under nūnu. See also Wellenfels 1993, page 287 and note 75.
  13. Page 48 §2: For omens of the Fish. Gössmann 1950, section 218 (page 86-88)
  14. Page 48 §2: Myths of the Syrian Goddess. Condos 1997, pages 161-165 7 notes on pages 251-252.
  15. Page 48 §4: Arabic images of Andromeda. As-Sufi 1954, figures 20b, 20c & 20d between pages 129-133.
  16. Page 49 §2: Greek myths of fish-like goddess. For Derceto see Condos 1997, pages 163-164. Condos 1997, page 252 also points to Pausanius’ description of Eurynome as ‘a wooden idol tied up with gold chains, like a woman down to the buttocks and below like a fish’ Pausanius 8:41:6 translated by Levi 1971, page 473. See also Van Berg 1973.
  17. Page 49 §3: The mermaid Kulianna. Black & Green 1992, page 132 ff under ‘Mermen & Mermaid’. See also the ETCSL translation of Ninurta’s return to Nibru, lines 36 & 59, where Kulianna is translated as ‘mermaid’. For Kulianna as a mermaid see Wiggermann 1992, pages 182-3.

 

ANZU-BIRD

  1. Page 49 §1: The nature of Anzu. Black & Green 1992, pages 107-8 under Imdugud; Leick 1991 pages 9-10.
  2. Page 49 §2: Anzu is for cold weather. BPO2 text III, lines 11-11b.
  3. Page 49 §2: ‘If the front star of the Anzu-bird… BPO2 text XVI, line 10.
  4. Page 50 §1: Winds and souls. The connection is seen in lexicon where the LIL2-sign refers to ‘wind, breeze & ghost’ (PSD: lil) the Akkadian equivalent of LIL2 is given as zīqīqu meaning ‘wind, breeze’ also ‘nothingness & phantom’ (CDA). Another Sumerian term sisig refers to ‘ghost (?), storm, breeze, wind’ (PSD).
  5. Page 50 §2: Harpies associated with souls. Harrison 1980, pages 178-183. See also Livingstone 1986, page 152 where Anzu is associated with ghosts (text VAT 8917 lines 2 & 4); and page 147 where Anzu is equated with the horse that pulls the chariot of the dead god Enmešarra.
  6. Page 51 §1: Reiner 1995, page 116 for a medicinal text that associates Anzu with Pabilsag and month 9.
  7. Page 51 §2: Beneficent Anzu. Leick 1991, pages 9-10.
  8. Page 51 §: Anzu as cosmological symbol. ETCSL Lugalbanda & the Anzu-bird, lines 111-131.
  9. Page 51 §2: Anzu as decider of river’s destiny. ETCSL Lugalbanda & the Anzu-bird, lines 90-110.
  10. Page 51 §3: The Anzu-Epic. Leick 1991, pages 203-227. See also George 1986, page 133.
  11. Page 52 §4: Anzu identified with Kingu & Asakku. CAD anzu (d).
  12. Page 52 §4: The nature of Kingu. Black & Green 1992, page 153 under Qingu; Leick 1991 page 53 ff.
  13. Page 52 §4: The nature of Asakku. Black & Green 1992, pages 35-6 under Asag; Leick 1991 page 13.
  14. Page 52 §5: For the Slain Heroes. Black & Green 1992, page 165 under Slain Heroes. See also the gazette section on the Slain Heroes and Appendix 2.
  15. Page 52 §7: For the theory that the numinous was first symbolised in primarily animal then human forms. Jacobsen 1976, pages 128-9.

 

ARROW

  1. Page 54 Name-box: Arrow as Star of wealth. See Appendix 4 under VR 46. See also Livingstone 1986, page 52.
  2. Page 54 §1: Arrow as seasonal marker. CAD šukūdu (b)
  3. Page 54 §2: Arrow measures the depths of the sea. Gossmann 1950, section 212 I (page 83). See also Cohen 1993, page 444
  4. Page 54 §2: Seasonal aspects of Arrow. CAD šukūdu
  5. Page 54 §3: Arrow & the celestial beam. Livingstone 1986, pages 62-3. See also Annus 2002, page 208, line 9 where the Arrow is said to hold the lead ropes of heaven.
  6. Page 55 §1: Ninurta as Arrow Star. CAD šukūdu (c)
  7. Page 55 §2: General nature of Ninurta. Black & Green 1992, page 142-3. Leick 1991 pages 135-7.
  8. Page 55 §2: Name of Sesame. CDA under šamaššammū where šamû = ‘plant, grass, herb’ and Šamaš is the sun god. Postgate 1992, page 171 for sesame as a summer crop.
  9. Page 55 §2: Use of Arrow in rustic calendar. Reiner 1995, page 133-4, note 621. See also CAD šukūdu (b)
  10. Page 55 §2: ‘If the Arrow reaches the Eagle… Gossmann 1950, section 212 III B 2 (page 85)
  11. Page 55 §3: The Arrow is his name which sounds the battle-cry. Reiner 1995, page 19 and CAD šukūdu (c)
  12. Page 55 §3: ‘If the Arrow stands in the left horn of the Moon… Gossmann 1950, section 353 12 h (page 141)
  13. Page 55 §4: Ninurta as weapon god. Livingstone 1986, pages 54-7 and 59-60. See also Cooper 1978, pages 154-162.
  14. Page 56 §2: Ninurta and Anzu. Dalley 1989, pages 203-227. Leick 1991, pages 9-10.
  15. Page 56 §3: The Greek myth of the Cattle of Geryon. Graves 1992, page 494 ff, especially section 132:c.

 

BISON-MAN

  1. Page 57 §1: For the earliest references to the Bison-man and his pre-Early Dynastic association with the sun see Wiggermann 1992, page 174.
  2. Page 57 §3: Images of the Lion-Bull Conflict. Collon 1987, figs 54, 61, 76-87 for early 3rd millennium examples; figs 95-101 for Akkadian examples. See also Boehmer 1965, plates 2-7 and 9-24.
  3. Page 58 §2: Hartner 1965, pages 1-2.
  4. Page 58 §3: Bison-man & cosmic justice. Ellis 1989, page 125 note 31.
  5. Page 58 §3: Bison-man & Sun god. Ellis 1989, page 133.
  6. Page 58 §4: Bison-man as Door-keeper. Ellis 1989, page 131 and note 79.
  7. Page 58 §5: Bison-man in Gudea inscriptions. ETCSL The Building of Ninjirsu’s Temple (Gudea Cylinders A & B) lines 696-721.
  8. Page 58 §5: The head of the Bison-man as Solar symbol. Ellis 1989, page 130 note 66.
  9. Page 59 1§: Gudea installs the Bison-man’s head. Ellis 1989, page 131 note 79; also page 123 note 14.
  10. Page 59 §2: Bison-man in Middle-Assyrian legal texts. Ellis 1989, page 130.
  11. Page 59 §3: Bison-man and solar disk. Ellis 1989, page 122 note 13 and page 123
  12. Page 60 §1: Greek Centaurus sacrificing the Wild Beast. Condos 1997, page 79.
  13. Page 60 §2: Myths concerning Greek Centaurs & Hercules. Graves 1992, section 126 b & e, pages 475 ff.
  14. Page 60 §2: Incantation concerning man with the face of a Bison-man. Ellis 1989, page 124 note 21.
  15. Page 60 §3: Ninurta slays Bison-man in the sea. Cooper 1978, page 148-9; and Annus 2002, page 111.

 

BOW

  1. Page 61 §1: Bow Star represents Inanna-Ištar. Reiner 1995, page 88.
  2. Page 61 §2: ‘I am Inanna… ETCSL A balbale (?) to Inana (Inana F), lines 4-13.
  3. Page 61 §2: ‘Bow-Star who fells the mighty’. Cohen 1993, pages 445.
  4. Page 61 §2: Inanna & the Me. ETCSL Inana & Enki segment I, lines 35-40, 53-59, 89-94.
  5. Page 61 §3: ‘If the Bow comes close to the top of the Moon… SAA8 report 399 lines 3-4.
  6. Page 61 §4: ‘Bow Star to kill & rob’ Dalley 1989, page 256 (Tablet V)
  7. Page 61 §5: ‘If the Moon is surrounded by a halo… SAA8 report 295 lines r3-5.
  8. Page 62 §1: ‘If in Month 5, the Bow of Ištar… BPO2 text X, line 16, page 61.
  9. Page 62 §2: ‘If in Month 5 Venus descends… SAA8 report 246 lines 2-4; and SAA8 report 96.
  10. Page 62 §3: Ominous symbolism of the Bow. See Appendix 8 for Month 5, and Appendix 10 for stars of Elam.
  11. Page 62 §4: The Bow rises in Month 5, if it rises early…BPO2 text IX line 5, page 57.
  12. Page 62 §4: The Bow as name for the Furrow. GSL, line 41, page 189. See also the Frond note 12.

 

BRIDLE

  1. Page 63 §1: Bridle as alternative name for Lion. SAA8 report 81; and GSL line 136, page 193.

 

BRISTLE

  1. Page 64 §2: Venus as male & female. Reiner 1995, page 6 & note 15; see also Gossmann 1950, section 109 III 12 (page 41)

 

BULL OF HEAVEN

  1. Page 64 §2: Cattle in Mesopotamia. Oppenheim 1997, page 45 for a general historical perspective on cattle in Mesopotamia.
  2. Page 64 §3: ‘If the Bull of Heaven’s stars… BPO2 text XV lines 30 & 31, page 75.
  3. Page 65 §1: Bull-calves of the storm god. Black & Green 1992, page 47; and GSL lines 299-301, page 205.
  4. Page 65 §1: Cattle of the Moon god. Heimpel 1989, page 251. See also Hall 1986 for the cattle of the Moon god.
  5. Page 65 §2: Hathor & Horus. Bunson 1995, page 107 under Hathor.
  6. Page 65 §2: Cattle in the Rig Veda. O’Flaherty 1981, Hymn to Vena 10:123 pages 190-2; for the celestial cows and dawn cows see page 74; and for dawn cows see also intro to 1:92 on page 179; for the cow & the waters 1:164, verses 41-3 on page 80; for the solar calf 1:164 verse 9, page 81 and note 6; for bull as rain symbol 9:74 verses 3-4 on page 122.
  7. Page 65 §3: Source for fig 20. The illustration is copied from Glassner 2003, page 175.
  8. Page 66 §1: Inanna of sunrise & sunset. Glassner 2003, pages 175-6.
  9. Page 66 §2: Bull of Heaven in Gilgamesh. George 1999, page 52 (Tablet V lines 147-8).
  10. Page 66 §2: ‘If Venus stands in the sun’s crown… BPO3 page 59, omen 21 (text K148+)
  11. Page 66 §2: Text combining astrology & liver divination. Reiner 1995, pages 77-8.
  12. Page 66 §3: Pedestal from Teima. Dalley 1986, pages 85-8.
  13. Page 66 §4: Hero in Battle. George 1999, pages 166-175.
  14. Page 66 §4: Bull’s pasture on horizon . George 1999, page 171, lines 18 & 19.
  15. Page 67 §2: Mourning over the Bull’s haunch. George 1999, page 174 lines Ma 130-4; and pages 52-3 (Tablet VI lines 154-9)
  16. Page 68 §4: Images of the Bull & Winged Gate. Black & Green 1992, pages 47-8; see also Boehmer 1965 plates L-LII for a variety of Akkadian period illustrations.
  17. Page 69 §2: Ptolemy on the cut-off line of the Bull. Robbins 1998, page 47 (Tetrabiblos I: 9)

 

BULL’S JAW

  1. Page 71 §2: Bull as symbol of Adad. Slanski 2003, page 129, lines 17 & 18. ‘The Fierce bull-calf of Adad, son of Anu’
  2. Page 71 §2: GSL, lines 299-301, page 205 for ‘Deluge of the Sky’ and ‘Mountain-coverer’ the ‘two calves of Adad’.
  3. Page 71 §3: Greek lore on Hyades. Allen 1963, pages 387-8.
  4. Page 71 §4: ‘If Adad thunders… Reworked retranslation from SAA8 report 163; see also Gossmann 1950 section 200 III 4 (page 80)

 

CARGO-BOAT

  1. Page 72 §1: Location of Cargo-boat. Appendix 4 under Gu-text, line S.
  2. Page 72 §2: Cargo-boat in Egyptian celestial art. Parker & Neugebauer 1969, plates 47, 71 & 72.
  3. Page 72 §3: Symbol of the boat. Black & Green 1992, pages 44-45 under ‘Boats’ and ‘Boats of the Gods’ & 112 under ‘Journeys and Processions of the Gods’.
  4. Page 72 §3: Sun god in Gilgamesh. George 1999, page 78 (tablet X 79-86)
  5. Page 72 §3: Cargo-boat of Nanna. ……………… See also Koch-Westenholz 1995, page 77.
  6. Page 73 §1: Boat of Anu in Uruk. Cohen 1993, pages 215-20.
  7. Page 73 §1: Boat of the dead. ETCSL Ningišzida’s Journey to the Netherworld
  8. Page 73 §3: Boat carrying babies from the underworld. Scurlock 1995, page 1892. See also CAD makurru 2’ c where ‘the boat is detained in the harbour of death, the cargo-boat is detained in the harbour of distress’.
  9. Page 73 §3: Childbirth Incantations. Cunningham 1997, pages 69-75.

 

CATTLE-PEN

  1. Page 74 §1: Sources concerning the celestial cattle-pen. BPO2 text III 21-22b, page 43. See also note to line 22b. See also Horowitz 1998, pages 255-6 and note 14.
  2. Page 74 §2: Vedic notion of cattle-pen. O’Flaherty 1981, page 179, Hymn 1:92 verses 4 & 12.
  3. Page 74 §4: Vedic notion of celestial cattle.See note 6 on the Bull of Heaven.
  4. Page 75 §1: The Tu-sign. PSD utud.
  5. Page 75 §2: The Sumerian name for womb. PSD šagtur.
  6. Page 75 §3:The Tur3-sign. CDA tarbaşu.
  7. Page 75 §3: ‘If the Moon is surrounded by a halo… SAA8 report 41 for the King Star omen. SAA8 reports 273 & 376 for the Star Cluster omen.
  8. Page 75 §4: Cattle-pen in West African cultures. Goody 1962, page 78, 226 & 228 for scattering seeds on the corpse and the ancestral representation; pages 391-2 for birth and marriage ceremonies held to the cattle-byre; page 234 for installing the ancestral shrine in the cattle-byre.

 

CHARIOT

  1. Page 76 §1: General nature of chariots. Roaf 1966, pages 117 & 122. Oppenheim 1977 pages 45-6.
  2. Page 76 §2: ‘If the Moon climbs towards… Retranslated from SAA8 report 298.
  3. Page 76 §3: The reins of the Chariot as star-names. Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 271. See also incomplete star names in Appendix 4 under Normal Stars.
  4. Page 77 §1: Chariot marking stellar paths. SAA10 letter 363, line 14 ff.
  5. Page 77 §3: The Goat at Auriga’s shoulder. Condos 1997, pages 49-54.
  6. Page 78 §2: The New-Year festival. Black & Green 1992, pages 136-7 under New Year Ceremonies. There is a fuller description of the Akitu rites in Cohen 1993, pages 400-6; and further information on pages 306 ff & 327 ff.
  7. Page 78 §3: The akitu of Uruk. Cohen 1993, page 435.
  8. Page 78 §3: Procession = battle against Tiamat. Cohen 1993, pages 422-3.
  9. Page 78 §4: 2 Samuel 11:1.

 

CIRCLE

  1. Page 78: Different names in Ziqpu-stars. See Appendix 4 under Ziqpu-stars.

 

CRAB

  1. Page 79 §1: Description of Crab. Weidner 1967, page 75 & 76-7, lines 13-16 obverse.
  2. Page 79 §2: PSD kušû.
  3. Page 79 §4: Heaven of Anu. See Introduction, page 18.
  4. Page 79 §5: ‘If the stars of the Crab… BPO2 text XV lines 11 & 12, page 73.
  5. Page 79 §6:Crab omens in GSL. GSL lines 148-153, page 193-5.
  6. Page 80 §1: ‘If the Moon is surrounded by a river… SAA10 letter 113, lines 6-9.
  7. Page 80 §1: Crab called the Waters. Foxvog 1993, page 107.
  8. Page 80 Name-box: Crab as deceptive digger. O’halloran. Sumerian Lexicon. Website.
  9. Page 80 Name-box: The False Star is the Crab. BPO2 text III 7a, page 41.
  10. Page 81 §1: Hercules & Crab. Graves 1992, section 124, pages 469-472.
  11. Page 81 §3: Ninurta & Turtle. ETCSL Ninurta & the Turtle, segment B lines 36-46; see also Leick 1991, page 137.
  12. Page 81 §3: Turtle gnawing Ninurta’s feet. Cooper 1978, page 147 where Ninurta is described as the one ‘who trampled the Kušu in the tide pool’.
  13. Page 81 §5: Crab and ghosts. Gossmann 1950, section 294 IV (page 115)
  14. Page 81 §5: ‘If the Strange Star comes close … SAA8 report 101, lines 6-9.
  15. Page 82 §1: ‘If the Crab is dark… SAA8 report 477; see also Gossmann 1950, section 14 III B 3a (page 7)
  16. Page 82 §2: Hydra & entrance to the underworld. Graves 1992, section 124b, page 470.
  17. Page 82 §3: The goddess Allatum. Leick 1991, page 3.

 

CREATURES OF TIAMAT

  1. Page 82 §1: The Creatures in the Epic of Creation. Dalley 1989, page 237.
  2. Page 83 §2: Creation of primeval man. Dalley 1989, page 261.
  3. Page 83 §3: Binding of the Creatures. Dalley 1989, page 257; see also Horowitz 1998, page 108.
  4. Page 83 §4: General references to the Creatures. The various Creatures have their fullest description in Wiggermann 1992, pages 164-184; see also Horowitz 1998, page 108.
  5. Page 84 §1: The Great Storm-Demon. Black & Green 1992, page 85 under Galla.
  6. Page 84 §4: The roaring or snarling storm-demon. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.

 

CROOK

  1. Page 85 §1: Crook as single star. GSL line 222, page 199.
  2. Page 85 §2: Enlil as shepherd. ETCSL Enlil in the Ekur (Enlil A) line 93.
  3. Page 85 §2: King to lead his people in peace… As in a Sin-iddinam inscription found in Gadd’s Sumerian Reader, page 53.
  4. Page 85 §3: ‘If the appearance of the Crook… BPO2 text VI line 4b, page 49.
  5. Page 85 §3: ‘If the Crook carries radiance… SAA8 report 115, line 4.
  6. Page 85 §4: Menology for Month 1. See Appendix 8 under Month 1.
  7. Page 85 §5: ‘Grant him a royal throne… Jacobsen 1976, page 42.
  8. Page 87 §3: Greek goat Aega. Condos 1997, page 52.
  9. Page 87 §4: Myth of Atreus & Thyestes. Graves 1992, section 111c, page 406.
  10. Page 88 §1: The Greek sheep with a golden fleece. Graves 1992, section 111c-e, page 406-7.

 

CROWN OF ANU

  1. Page 88 §2: Anu as springtime rains. Jacobsen 1976, pages 95-96.
  2. Page 88 §4: Horned headdress. Black & Green 1992, pages 102-3 under Horned Cap.
  3. Page 89 §1: Appointed priest of Anu. Leick 1991, page 5.
  4. Page 89 §1: Symbolic nature of Month 1. See Appendix 8 under Month 1.
  5. Page 89 §1: ‘If the Moon is surrounded by a halo… SAA8 report 68.
  6. Page 89 §2: Ninurta holding a sceptre etc. Annus 2002, page 6.
  7. Page 89 §2: Nabu in Anu’s garden. Annus 2002, page 68.
  8. Page 89 §3: Anu’s death at the hands of Marduk. Livingstone 1986, page 117.
  9. Page 89 §3: The Crown of Anu is for the end of the dynasty. GSL line 161, page 194 – left untranslated by editor; see also BPO2 text VI, line 3, page 48, also left untranslated by the editors!

 

DEAD MAN

  1. Page 90 §1: Dead Man in esoteric texts. Livingstone 1986, page 61, line 11 of text.
  2. Page 90 §2: Dead Man = Asakku. See Appendix 4 under VR 46; see also Livingstone 1986, pages 65, line 5 of text & page 66.
  3. Page 90 §2: Nature of Asakku-demon. For Asakku see Leick 1991, page 13 under Asag; Black & Green 1992, pages 35-6 under Asag.
  4. Page 90 §2: Lack of natural resources in Mesopotamia. Oppenheim 1977, page 36.
  5. Page 91 §1: Dead Man as stone & Zababa as ‘Stone-Crusher’. Livingstone 1986, page 65, lines 1-5.
  6. Page 91 §2: Description of Enlil’s ziggurat in Nippur. ETCSL Enlil in the Ekur (Enlil A) lines 26-34.
  7. Page 91 §3: Image of vultures and headless man. Roaf 1966, page 45.
  8. Page 91 §5: Harpies and daughters of Pandareus. Harrison 1980, page 178-183; see also Graves 1992, section 108f, page 388.
  9. Page 92 §2: Ganymede & eagle. Condos 1997, pages 33-5.
  10. Page 92 §2: Antinous. Condos 1997, page 35.
  11. Page 92 §3: Constellations akin to writing. Reiner 1995, page 9; see also Rochberg-Halton 2004, pages 1 ff.

 

DESTROYER

  1. Page 93 §1: Description of Destroyer. See Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin.
  2. Page 93 §2: Destroyer omen. SAA8 report 491 lines r3-4. See Appendix 9 for full rendition of this omen.

 

DIGNITY

  1. Page 94 §3: For general information on Tišpak see Black & Green 1992, page 178 & Leick 1991, page 157 under Tešup.
  2. Page 95 §1: Tišpak as serpent god. Wiggermann 1997, pages 37-9.
  3. Page 95 §2: Hurrians in Mesopotamia. Roaf 1966, page 108.
  4. Page 95 §2: The Hurrians. Leick 1991, page 171 under Hurrians.
  5. Page 95 §3: Star of Dignity as name for Venus. Cohen 1993, page 445.

 

EAGLE

  1. Page 96 §1: Boehmer 1965, plate LVIII for various Akkadian examples of Etana’s flight.
  2. Page 96 §1: Myth of Etana. Dalley 1989, pages 189-202; Black & Green 1992, page 78; Leick 1991 pages 60-1.
  3. Page 97 §3: Eagle-stone & pregnancy. Reiner 1995, pages 123-4.

 

ELAMATUM

  1. Page 97 §1: Myth of Girra & Elamatum. Walker 1983, pages 145-152.
  2. Page 97 §2: The Fire god and anti-witchcraft magic. Black & Green 1992, page 127; see also Walker 1983, page 146.
  3. Page 97 §3: Elamatum as star discontinued. See Appendix 4 under Prayer to the Gods of the Night.
  4. Page 98 §2: Elamatum and Inanna-Ištar. Walker 1983, page 147.

 

ERIDU

  1. Page 98 §1: The city of Eridu. Leick 1991, page 170 under Eridu & page 40 under Enki; see also Black & Green 1992, page 77.
  2. Page 98 §2: Location of the Star of Eridu. See Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin and Gu-text.
  3. Page 98 §4: Hands of Eridu. Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 272.
  4. Page 99 §1: Menology for Month 6. See Appendix 8 under Month 6.
  5. Page 99 §2: ‘If the Star of Eridu sparkles… Gossmann 1950, section 306 III B (page 118)
  6. Page 99 §4: Kidney as name for Star of Eridu. BPO2 page 11 under BIR.
  7. Page 100 §1: Eridu possessed of wisdom. Cohen 1993, page 444.
  8. Page 100 §4: The A-sign. PSD under A meaning ‘water, semen, progeny’. See also ETCSL Enki & the World-Order, lines 253-260.
  9. Page 100 §4: Word for testicle. CDA kalītu.

 

EWE

  1. Page 101 §1: For the location of the Ewe see note 2 for the Wagon.
  2. Page 101 §3: The goddess Aya. Leick 1991, page 17 under Ayya.
  3. Page 101 §3: Marriage of Šamaš & Aya. Black & Green 1992, page 157 under Sacred Marriage.
  4. Page 101 §4: Hemerology for 20th day of the month. Langdon 1935, page 79.
  5. Page 101 §4: Symbolic numbers of the sun & moon. Brown 2000, page 56 & 57, under section A, for Sun and Moon. see also Livingstone 1986 pages 31-3 and 44-48 for a fuller examination of the numbers associated with various deities.
  6. Page 101 §4: Symbolic equation of number 20, the sun, king & man. Brown 2000, page 72.

 

EXALTED LION

  1. Page 102 §1: ‘If the stars of the Exalted Lion are brilliant… Gossmann 1950, section 168 II (page 69)
  2. Page 102 §1: Almost identical omen for King Star. SAA8 report 29.
  3. Page 102 §2: Marduk regent of King Star. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  4. Page 102 §2: Inanna as Lioness of Heaven. ETCSL A Hymn to Inana as Ninegala (Inana D), lines 1-8.

 

FIELD

  1. Page 103 §1: For a brief overview of irrigation farming see Oppenheim 1977, page 42 and Roaf 1966, pages 25-30. For more information see Postgate 1992, pages 157-9 and 167-72.
  2. Page 103 §3: ‘If Venus becomes visible in the Field… SAA8 report 357.
  3. Page 103 §3: ‘If the Field’s stars scintillate… BPO2 text IV, line 3a, page 45.
  4. Page 103 §3: If the Field’s stars rise & shine brightly… BPO2 text XII, line 7, page 65.
  5. Page 103 §5: The Abyss represented as a square enclosure. See Frankfort 1939, figs 66 & 67, on page 219. See also fig 54.
  6. Page 103 §5: Origin of the word ‘abyss’. Online Etymological Dictionary. Greek ābyssos meaning ‘bottomless’ came into English usage via Late Latin.
  7. Page 104 §1: The temple of Enki at Eridu. See Star of Eridu, note 1. See also Jacobsen 1976, page 115 and ETCSL Enki’s journey to Nibru which describes the temple.
  8. Page 104 §2: The Seven Sages. Black & Green 1992, page 163; SAA10 introduction pages XVII-XVIII.
  9. Page 105 §1: ‘The Lord (Enki) established a shrine… ETCSL Enki & the World Order, lines 285-298.
  10. Page 105 §2: The Field in the Babylonian New Year festival. Cohen 1993, page 444.
  11. Page 105 §4: ‘Marduk crossed over the heavens… My retranslation from Horowitz 1998, page 112; see also Dalley 1989, page 255 & Koch-Westenholz 1995, page 116.
  12. Page 105 §5: Four-corner Earth. Black & Green 1992, page 52 under Cosmology.
  13. Page 106 §1: The Four Quarters. Horowitz 1998, pages 298-9. The PSD also indicates the term ‘Four Quarters’ appears in the Akkadian period see PSD under anubda.
  14. Page 106 §2: Babylonian Map of the World. For an image of the tablet and a description see Horowitz 1998, page 20 ff.
  15. Page 106 §2: Layout of the city of Babylon. Roaf 1966, page 192.
  16. Page 106 §3: Names of Babylon. For E-KI being a by-name for Babylon see Labat 1998, page 297. For E meaning ‘dike or ditch’ see Labat 1998, page 141 under # 308.
  17. Page 106 §3: CDA īku.
  18. Page 106 §6: Field as a planetary name. See Appendix 9, and Brown 2000, page 59.
  19. Page 107 §2: ‘If the Moon is surrounded by a halo and the Field stands in it… SAA8 report 82, lines r6-8.
  20. Page 107 §2: ‘If the Moon is surrounded by a halo and the Field, behind which is the Star Cluster … SAA8 report 412, lines 7-8 & r1-4.
  21. Page 107 §4: ‘If the Field rises at its specified time… Slightly restructured from BPO2 text IX, lines 12, page 59.
  22. Page 107 §5: ‘If the Field rises in month 1 but the southern star… BPO2 text XII, line 1 ff.
  23. Page 107 §6: Many omens are invented. The editors of Šumma Izbu (the major collection of birth anomaly omens) come to very similar conclusions and map out the basic rules of omen creation in Leichty 1970, page 24. See also Brown 2000, page 130-9, especially the Conclusion on pages 138-9 for the creation of celestial omens.

 

FIRE STAR

  1. Page 107 §1: Gibil as the burning torch. Glassner 2003, pages 159-60.
  2. Page 107 §2: ETCSL A Hymn to Kusu, lines 34-39.
  3. Page 108 §1: Fire Star in early star-lists. See Appendix 4 under Prayer to the Gods of the Night.
  4. Page 108 §1: Menology for Month 3. See Appendix 8 under Month 3.
  5. Page 108 §1: Gossmann 1950, section 300 under NE-GI-NE-GAR identifies ‘The Burning Torch’ as Aldebaran (page 116).

 

FISH

  1. Page 108 §1: ‘If the Fish sparkles…Gossmann 1950, section 218 III B 1d (page 87).
  2. Page 108 §1: ‘If the Fish is dark… Gossmann 1950, section 218 III A 1c (page 87).
  3. Page 108 §2: The Fish rising in Month 12… BPO2 text X, line 23, page 61.
  4. Page 108 §2: The Fish rising outside its prescribed timeframe. BPO2 text XIII, line 6, page 67.
  5. Page 108 §3: Fish as marker for the South wind. Hunger & Pingree 1989, tablet 2 I 69 (page 87)
  6. Page 109 §2: The Syrian Goddess & the Fish. Condos 1997, pages 163-5.
  7. Page 109 §3: The Syrian Goddess & Pisces. Condos 1997, pages 161-2.
  8. Page 109 §4: Fish as planetary name. Brown 2000, page 60 under mul Ku6.

 

FOX

  1. Page 110 §1: Fox for breaking into houses. BPO2 text II, line 4, page 37.
  2. Page 110 §1: Proverb of the fox and 9 wolves. CAD šēlebu.
  3. Page 110 §3: The god Erra. Leick 1991, page 57 ff; see also Livingstone 1986, page 119, line 11 of text.
  4. Page 111 §2: Erra-Nergal identified with Hercules. Black & Green 1992, page 136.
  5. Page 111 §3: The Erra Epic – ‘The Star of Erra is twinkling…. Dalley 1989, pages 295-6.
  6. Page 111 §3: ‘If the Great God the Fox-star… Gossmann 1950, section 205 III B 2 (page 81)
  7. Page 111 §4: Fox helps Iškur escape from the underworld. Alster 1976 , page 125 note 52.
  8. Page 111 §4: Fox saves Enki from illness. Leick 1991, pages 41-2.
  9. Page 111 §5: Fox is for breaking into houses applied in omen lore. BPO2 text II, line 4, page 37; see also BPO2 text III, lines 8-8b, page 41.
  10. Page 111 §6: The lost Pleiad identified as the Fox. Condos 1997, page 171-2; see also De Santillana & Von Dechend 1977, page 385.

 

FROND OF ERUA

  1. Page 112 §1: On the palm-tree in Mesopotamia. Oppenheim 1977, page 312.
  2. Page 112 §1: The Gišimmar-sign. Labat 1988, page 165, #356.
  3. Page 112 §3: Vindemiatrix. Allen 1963, page 470.
  4. Page 112 §4: Şarpanitu as the ‘seed-producing’. Leick 1991, page 149.
  5. Page 112 §4: Erua’s name & pregnancy. Black & Green 1992, page 160.
  6. Page 112 §5: Şarpanitu brightest of stars. Cohen 1993, page 443.
  7. Page 112 §6: ‘If Sagmegar accompanies Venus… SAA8 report 244, lines r1-6.
  8. Page 113 §1: Erua holding date-palm frond. Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 125, note i 11.
  9. Page 113 §1: Erua holding whip. Weidner 1967, pages 76-77, lines 1-3 reverse.
  10. Page 113 Name-box: ‘If the Moon is surrounded by a river… See also SAA8 reports 295 & 155.
  11. Page 113 Name-box: Erua as the fertile seed. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  12. Page 114 §2: ‘If the Star Cluster approaches the Field… Gossmann 1950, section 279 IV B 7 b (page 111)
  13. Page 114 §3: ‘If the Fish comes near to the Bow’ = Mercury and the Furrow. SAA8 report 325; and BPO2 text XVI, line 17, page 77.

 

FURROW

  1. Page 115 §1: ‘If the Furrow is dark… Gossmann 1950, section 4 III B 1 (page 4)
  2. Page 116 §1: The farming cycle. ETCSL Farmer’s Instructions; see also Postgate 1992, pages 167-170.
  3. Page 116 §2: Menology for Month 8. See Appendix 8 under Month 8.
  4. Page 116 §2: Seed ploughs & furrows. ETCSL Farmer’s Instructions, lines 46-63.
  5. Page 117 §1: The Nidaba-sign. Labat 1988, page 173, #375.
  6. Page 117 §4: The Brazier festival. See Appendix 8 under Months 4 & 5.
  7. Page 117 §5: Demeter & Virgo. Condos 1997, page 205.
  8. Page 117 §6: Symbolism of Demeter. Harrison 1980, pages 221-276; the soul-bird is specifically mentioned on page 274.

 

GOATFISH

  1. Page 118 §1: Early depictions of the Goatfish. The earliest image can be found in Frankfort 1939, plate XXV fig d. See also Wiggermann 1992, page 184, section 10a. See also Wallenfels 1993, page 286.
  2. Page 120 §6: ‘If Mars rides the Goatfish… SAA8 report 104, lines r 5 ff.
  3. Page 120 §7: Head of the Goatfish = the She-Goat. Gossmann 1950, section 145 I B (page 60)
  4. Page 120 §7: Tail of the Goatfish = the Fish. Gossmann 1950, section 218 I (page 86)
  5. Page 121 §1: ‘If Venus approaches the Fish… BPO3 page 102, omen 23; see also Gossmann 1950, section 109 III B 17g (page 43)
  6. Page 121 §2: ‘If the Star of Ea is dark… Gossmann 1950, section 115 (page 43)
  7. Page 121 §2: ‘If the Fish stands close to the Raven… SAA8 report 73, lines r 1-4.
  8. Page 121 §3: Other identifications of the Goatfish. Identified as the Crab – BPO2 text III, line 28b, page 43. Identified as the Kidney – BPO2 text III 31a, page 45.

 

GREAT ONE

  1. Page 121 §3: Great One representing winter rain & floods. Porada 1987, page 289.
  2. Page 122 §2: The A-sign. Labat 1988, page 237 #579; see also PSD under A.
  3. Page 122 §3: Great One as Lord of Springs. Porada 1987, page 281.
  4. Page 123 §1: The nude hero. Porada 1987, page 282.
  5. Page 123 §2: Nude hero as doorkeeper. Porada 1987, page 284.
  6. Page 123 §2: Nude hero associated with Enki. Porada 1987, page 285.
  7. Page 123 §2: Standard form of the Great One as male figure with overflowing vases. Porada 1987, pages 287-8.
  8. Page 123 §4: Kidney as alternative name for the Great One. Gossmann 1950, section 56 III B 4 (page 17); see also Virolleaud 1905-12, Ištar XXI, lines 31-40.

 

GREAT TWINS

  1. Page 124 §1: Great Twins depicted as armed warriors. Wiggermann 1992, page 47, sections 3 & 6.
  2. Page 124 §1: Description of constellation figures. Weidner 1967, page 75 & 76, lines 4-7 obverse. See also Wallenfels 1993, page 283-4.
  3. Page 124 §2: ‘If Venus stands between the Great Twins…BPO3 page 105, omen 19.
  4. Page 124 §2: ‘If the Strange Star approaches the Twins… BPO2 text III, line 12a, page 43.
  5. Page 124 §3: Twins guarding the entrance to the underworld. Black & Green 1992, pages 123-4 under Lugalirra.
  6. Page 124 §3: Babies’ souls and ghosts & the underworld entrance. Scurlock 1995, page 1886.
  7. Page 125 §1: Twins & Nergal. Black & Green 1992, page 135 under Nergal.
  8. Page 125 §1: Lugalirra as the Mighty King. Black & Green 1992, page 123 under Lugalirra.
  9. Page 125 §1: Meslamtaea as One who has arisen from the underworld. Black & Green 1992, page 135 under Nergal.
  10. Page 125 §1: ‘If the Twins rise… Gossmann 1950, section 267 II 1 (page 103); see also BPO2 text IV, line 2a, page 45.
  11. Page 125 §2: Disease call Seizure by Lugalirra. Reiner 1995, page 102.
  12. Page 125 §2: Disease called Covering by the Twins. Reiner 1995, page 107.
  13. Page 125 §2: ‘Enlil will cause leprosy… BPO2 text IV, line 2a, page 45.
  14. Page 125 §3: Twins identified with Moon god & Gilgamesh. Livingstone 1986, page 191, lines 8-9 of text.
  15. Page 125 §4: Myths of the Greek Twins. Graves 1992, section 74j, page 248; see also Condos 1997, page 112.
  16. Page 125 §4: Nergal’s annual journey between the upper & lower worlds. Livingstone 1986, page 257.

 

HARNESS

  1. Page 125 §1: See Appendix 4 under Ziqpu-stars.

 

HARROW

  1. Page 126 §1: For use of the harrow. ETCSL Farmer’s Instructions lines 38-9; see also Postgate 1992, page 167 for a description of the farming year.
  2. Page 126 §2: Farming activities timed by unnamed stars & use of different ploughs. ETCSL Farmer’s Instructions, lines 30-63.
  3. Page 127 §1: Bull-headed figures & farming. See also Collon 1987, fig 615 where a bison-man guides a plough drawn by two lions.

 

HIRED MAN

  1. Page 127 §1: For general information on sheep-herding see Postgate 1992, pages 159-60.
  2. Page 127 §2: Hired Man as agricultural worker. ETCSL Farmer’s Instructions, lines 74-86.
  3. Page 127 §2: Dual nature of Hired Man’s name as referring to herding & farming. Also noted by Foxvog 1993, page 107.
  4. Page 128 §2: Hired Man known as the Ram. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  5. Page 128 Name-box for Ram: The Wild Sheep as planetary name. Gossmann 1950, section 139 (pages 52-6)
  6. Page 129 §1: Hired Man as final entry in star-lists. See Appendix 4 under Stars on the Path of the Moon and the Nippur Forerunner under Old Babylonian Star-lists.
  7. Page 129 §2: Rising date of Hired Man. See Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin the Rising Dates of 34 Stars.
  8. Page 129 §3: Earliest images of Sheep on Entitlement Stones. Seidl 1989, Table 1, under Schaf.
  9. Page 129 §4: Earliest images of Ram-headed staff. Black & Green 1992, page 169.
  10. Page 129 §4: Ram-headed staff called ‘Mum-symbol’. Slanski 2003, page 129, line iv 5 – ‘the mum-symbol & the Goatfish, the Great Sanctuary of Ea’. As the Ram-headed staff is the commonest symbol of Enki it is thus very likely that it is called the ‘mum-symbol’.
  11. Page 130 §3: Dumuzi as regent of the Hired Man. See Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin.
  12. Page 130 §3: For a broad discussion of Dumuzi’s character see Jacobsen 1976, pages 25-7.
  13. Page 130 §4: For a discussion of the Sacred Marriage see Black & Green 1992, pages 157-8; and Jacobsen 1976, pages 27-47.
  14. Page 130 §6: Death of Dumuzi. Jacobsen 1976, pages 47-63.
  15. Page 130 §7: Return of Dumuzi. Jacobsen 1976, pages 63-73.
  16. Page 130 §8: Hired Man & Kingu. Wallenfels 1993, page 282, note 18.
  17. Page 130 §8: Kingu in the Epic of Creation. Dalley 1989, pages 260-1.
  18. Page 131 §1: ‘If the Hired Man is faint… BPO2 text XV, line 26 & 27, page 73.
  19. Page 131 §3: ‘If the moon is surrounded by a halo… SAA8 report 412, lines 7 ff.
  20. Page 131 §5: ‘The Field that stands at the rising of the east wind… Horowitz & Oelsner 1978/9, pages 177-8.
  21. Page 131 §5: Hired Man to get a wife… Gossmann 1950, section 244 IV (page 92)
  22. Page 131 §6: Hired Man identified with Crook. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.

 

HITCHED YOKE

  1. Page 132 §1: For the location of the Hitched Yoke see note 2 for the Wagon.
  2. Page 132 §3: The An-sign referring to ‘heaven’ and Anu. Leick 1991, page 5.
  3. Page 133 §1: Anu & Antu associated with the Wagon. Reiner 1995, page 139.

 

HORSE

  1. Page 133 §2: Earliest evidence for the appearance of the horse. Collon 1987, figs 935 & 936 on page 192; see also Frankfort 1939, fig 28 on page 74; see also PSD where the Akkadian name for the horse (sisû) first appears in Old Akkadian.
  2. Page 134 §1: For al-Sufi’s images of the various stellar horses see As-Sufi 1954: Equuleus fig 18 to face page 118; Pegasus fig 19 (b) between pages 122 & 123; Pegasus Complete (ie the proposed Babylonian Horse) fig 19 (c) to face page 134. See also Wellesz 1965, figs 10 & 11; and Rogers 1998, figs 8 & 9.
  3. Page 134 §2: Association of Horse & Sun god. Black & Green 1992, pages 103-4.
  4. Page 134 §3: General nature of horse in the Rig Veda. O’Flaherty 1981, page 87, text 1:163 verses 1, 2, 5, 6 & 9.
  5. Page 134 §3: Horse’s mane as solar symbol. O’Flaherty 1981, page 87, text 1:163 verse 11 & note 14. See also page 190 text 1:50 verse 8: ‘Seven bay mares carry you in the chariot, O Sun god with hair of flame, gazing from afar’.
  6. Page 135 §2: Horse identified with Anzu-bird. GSL line 159, page 195; see also Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  7. Page 135 §2: ‘If a Wild Sheep come close to… SAA8 report 114, lines r1.

 

INHERITOR OF THE EXALTED TEMPLE

  1. Page 135 §1: Identified as Pole star. Reiner 1995, pages 20-1.
  2. Page 136 §4: Medical incantation attributing the star to the eldest son of Enlil. . Reiner 1995, page 20.
  3. Page 136 §4: Divine Judge as regent of star. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  4. Page 136 §5: Hemerology for 10th day. Langdon 1935, page 76.

 

KIDNEY

  1. Page 137 §1: Alternative name for the Star of Eridu. BPO2 page 11 under BIR; see also BPO2 text III, line 27a on page 43..
  2. Page 137 §1: ‘If the moon has a halo in Month 1… Gossmann 1950, section 56 III B 1 (page 17)
  3. Page 137 §1: ‘If the Kidney rises in Month 6… BPO2 text XIII, line 9, page 67 – slightly retranslated.
  4. Page 137 §2: Nergal & kidneys. Reiner 1995, pages 59-60.
  5. Page 137 §2: Jupiter & spleen. Reiner 1995, pages 59-60.
  6. Page 137 §2: Links between stars and man’s body in medical texts. Reiner 1995, page 60; see also notes 251-2 on page 60.
  7. Page 137 §4: ‘If the Kidney is very black…Gossmann 1950 section 56 III B 4a (page 17) and Virolleaud 1905-12, Ištar XXI, lines 31-40.

 

KING STAR

  1. Page 138 §1: Greek name of Regulus. Condos 1997, page 127 where Basilikos = ‘small king’.
  2. Page 138 §1: ‘If the King Star carries radiance… SAA8 report 29.
  3. Page 138 §1: ‘if the King Star sparkles… Gossmann 1950, section 240 IV B 1a (page 90)
  4. Page 138 §2: For a general description of Marduk see Leick 1991, pages 115-6; and Black & Green 1992, pages 128-9.
  5. Page 138 §3: King Star & Ninegal. Reiner 1995, pages 77-8.
  6. Page 138 §3: Ninegal as name for courtesan Inanna. George 1999, page 170 A i 9 and page 167.
  7. Page 138 §3: Ninegal & Sacred Marriage. George 1999, page 167.
  8. Page 139 §2: King Star as name for Jupiter. Brown 2000, page 62 & 66.
  9. Page 139 §2: ‘If the King Star rolls over the moon… Gossmann 1950, section 240 IV B 2c (page 90-1)
  10. Page 139 §4: Jupiter retrograding close to King Star. SAA8 report 502 and SAA10 letter 8.
  11. Page 139 §5: See my extended essay on the Babylonian Exaltations on Skyscript website.

 

LION

  1. Page 140 §4: General nature of lions. Black & Green 1992, page 118.
  2. Page 140 §4: ‘If Mars enters the Lion… SAA8 report 81.
  3. Page 140 §4: ‘If the Lion is dark… SAA8 report 324.
  4. Page 140 §5: Lion as symbol of king. CAD nēšu (2)
  5. Page 140 §5: ‘If a woman gives birth… Leichty 1970, page 46, Tablet II, line 1.
  6. Page 140 §5: ‘If a woman of the palace gives birth… Leichty 1970, page 71, Tablet IV, line 56.
  7. Page 140 §6: ‘If the Lion is black… SAA8 report 180; see also BPO2 text XV, line 14, and text XVI, line 15.
  8. Page 141 §1: ‘If the King Star is black… BPO2 text XVI, line 16.
  9. Page 141 Name-box: For Ur-Mah as name for Lion. BPO2 page 16.
  10. Page 141 §2: On Latarak. Black & Green 1992, page 116.
  11. Page 141 §3: Inanna-Ištar as Lioness of Heaven. ETCSL A Hymn to Inana as Ninegala, lines 1-8.
  12. Page 141 §3: The dog of Ištar. CAD nēšu (3)
  13. Page 141 §4: Inanna’s war-like nature. ETCSL Inana & Ebih, lines 1-6, 7-9 & 80-2.
  14. Page 141 §5: ‘If Venus stands inside the Lion… The omen concerning the east – BPO3 page 105 omen 21 and page 223 omen 15; the omen for the west – page 223 omen 16.
  15. Page 141 §5: ‘If Venus reaches her secret palce… Gossmann 1950, section 169 B 17a alpha (page 42); see also BPO3 page 233 omens 13-6.

 

LITTLE TWINS

  1. Page 142 §1: Description of constellation figures. Weidner 1967, pages 75 & 76, lines 8-12 obverse.
  2. Page 142 §3: See Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin the Rising Dates of 34 Stars. For them setting with the Great Twins see Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 51, tablet I iii 30.
  3. Page 142 §4: Nature of Alammuš & Ninezengud. ………………..
  4. Page 142 §5: ‘If the (Little) Twins stand… BPO3 page 127, section IV, omen 3.

 

LULAL & LATARAK

  1. Page 143 §1: For general appearances of these figures see Wiggermann 1992, page 52, section 21 & 22. See also Black & Green 1992, page 116.
  2. Page 143 §2: Lulal before the throne of Inanna. ETCSL A Hymn to Inana as Ninegala, lines 22-36.
  3. Page 143 §2: The Smiting God. Black & Green 1992, page 116; see also Wiggermann 1992, page 172 section e.
  4. Page 143 §3: Latarak’s name & whipping. Black & Green 1992, page 116. See also Frankfort 1939, plate XXXIII fig g.
  5. Page 143 §3: Men dressed in lion pelts. Black & Green 1992, page 33-4.
  6. Page 144 §1: Described as the twins that stand opposite to the True Shepherd. Hunger & Pingree 1989, tablet 1, ii 3, page 31.
  7. Page 144 §4: Cetus as dog-headed sea-monster. Allen 1963, page 161.
  8. Page 145 §2: Cetus with feet in Eridanus. See the star-map in Condos 1997, pages 215.

 

MAD DOG

  1. Page 145 §1: Description of the Mad Dog. Wiggermann 1992, pages 172-4.
  2. Page 145 §4: Paired with the Bison-man in association with the Sun god. Black & Green 1992, page 122 under Lion-Humanoid.
  3. Page 146 §1: The Greek figure of the Wild Beast. Condos 1997, pages 79-80.
  4. Page 146 Name-box: Readings of the Idim-sign. CDA under šegû.
  5. Page 146 §2: See CDA šangamāhu which is a term and /or title for ‘exorcist’ especially applied to Kusu. For Kusu’s association to Enlil see Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  6. Page 146 §2: The wise-men, scholars & magical experts associated with the Assyrian king. Brown 2000, pages 33-6.
  7. Page 146 §3: See CDA šangamāhu
  8. Page 146 §3: Kusu who knows the pure waters. Livingstone 1986, page 191, line 12 of text.
  9. Page 146 §4: ‘This water consecrates heaven… ETCSL A Hymn to Kusu (Kusu A), lines 34-9.

 

NINMAH

  1. Page 147 §1: Titles of Ninmah. GSL lines 38-9, page 189. See also Leick 1991, pages 42-3 under Enki & Ninmah, and page 134 under Ninmah. See also Black & Green 1992, pages 132-3 under Mother Goddesses, and page 141 under Ninmah.
  2. Page 147 §2: Location of Ninmah. See Appendix 4 under Gu-text under line H.
  3. Page 147 §4: Ninmah as giver of life. Cohen 1993, page 445: ‘the Star of Ninmah, who makes a gift of life’.
  4. Page 147 §4: ‘If Sagmegar comes close to the exalted Goddess… BPO4 page 69, omen 11.
  5. Page 147 §5: Ninmah losing child. ………….
  6. Page 147 §5: Prayer to Ninmah. Reiner 1995, page 22.
  7. Page 148 §1: ‘If the Strange Star approaches Ninmah… Gossmann 1950, section 374 II A 10 (page 208)
  8. Page 148 §1: Identified with Ninhursaga. Black & Green 1992, page 140 under Ninhursaga.
  9. Page 148 §1: ‘If Sagmegar scintillates… BPO4 page 77, omen 4.
  10. Page 148 §2: Myths of man’s creation. Leick 1991, pages 42-3; Black & Green 1992, page 141; ETCSL Enki & Ninmah.
  11. Page 149 §1:On the Mother Goddesses. Leick 1991, pages 119-21 under Mother Goddess.
  12. Page 149 §2: The meanings of the Im-sign. Labat 1988, page 185, #399. See also PSD under IM meaning ‘clay, mud, tablet’ also IM meaning ‘rain, rain-storm’ and the same sign read as TUMU meaning ‘wind’.

 

NUMUŠDA

  1. Page 149 §1: Numušda as son of Nanna. Black & Green 1992, page 145.
  2. Page 149 §1: Numušda in form of Bison-man. Ellis 1989, page 128, note 52.
  3. Page 149 §2: Who brings enduring rains. Cohen 1993, page 444.
  4. Page 149 §2: ‘If Numušda stands all day… Gossmann 1950, section 305 III B 2 (page 117)
  5. Page 149 3§: Location of Numušda. The location is uncertain as the Neo-Assyrian Astrolabe (Horowitz 1998, page 176) places Numušda somewhere in the region of Aquarius and Pisces – diametrically opposite to the location suggested by Mul-Apin!
  6. Page 150 §2: Numušda rises and sets with Enki. Hunger & Pingree 1989, tablet I ii 26, page 36-7.
  7. Page 150 §2: The Astrolabe quote concerning Ninmah & the Mad Dog either side of Enki. BPO2 page 5, table III, lines 8-9.

 

NUSKU

  1. Page 150 §2: For a general description of Nusku see Leick 1991, pages 138-9; Black & Green 1992, page 145.
  2. Page 150 §2: Nusku as the Light of Enlil. ETCSL A Šir-gida to Nuska (Nuska B), line 7.
  3. Page 150 §2: Nusku entrusted with the powers of the E-kur. ETCSL A Šir-gida to Nuska (Nuska A), lines 1-14.
  4. Page 150 §2: Nusku organises plans for Heaven & Earth. ETCSL A Šir-gida to Nuska (Nuska A), lines 15-26.
  5. Page 150 §3: Survival of the cult of Nusku. Black & Green 1992, page 145.
  6. Page 150 §4: Symbol of lamp. Black & Green 1992, page 145.

 

OLD MAN

  1. Page 151 §1: The nature of a child born in Month 12. See Appendix 4 under Hittite Astrology Text.
  2. Page 151 §3: Ancestors of Enlil. Livingstone 1986, page 153.
  3. Page 151 §4: ‘Enmešarra, lord of the underworld… Livingstone 1986, page 164.
  4. Page 151 §5: Enmešarra dentified with Anu & Enlil. Livingstone 1986, page 191, lines 1-2 of text.
  5. Page 151 §5: Enmešarra’s mace and regal garment given to Anu & Enlil. Livingstone 1986, page 153.
  6. Page 151 §6: Van Buren 1949, page 434 where Anu & Enlil receive the rod & ring from Enmešarra.
  7. Page 152 §1: Identified with Lugaldukuga. Livingstone 1986, page 191, lines 1-2 of text.
  8. Page 152 §1: Identified with Kingu. Livingstone 1986, page 199 line 2 of second text. See also Livingstone 1986, page 145. See Anzu note 12 for Kingu references.
  9. Page 152 §1: Nature of Lugaldukuga. Horowitz 1998, pages 13 & 130.
  10. Page 152 §2: His binding & death in Hemerologies. Livingstone 1986, page 147.
  11. Page 152 §2: His corpse carried away in a chariot. Livingstone 1986, page 125, third text.
  12. Page 152 §2: Livingstone 1986, page 147 for Enmešarra’s ritual lamentations in month 10; for the same in months 9 or 10, see page 256.
  13. Page 152 §2: Guarded by the Moon god & Nabu in the underworld. Livingstone 1986, page 191, line 15.
  14. Page 152 §3: Father of the Sebitti or Seven Gods. Livingstone 1986, page 127, line 5.
  15. Page 152 §3: Šuzianna & Ennugi, the sons of Enmešarra. Livingstone 1986, page 200, lines 5-6 & 7-8 of text.
  16. Page 152 §3: ‘If the rising of Enmešarra… SAA8 report 549.
  17. Page 152 §4: Hemerology for the 19th day. Livingstone 1986, page 127, line 5.
  18. Page 152 §4: Enmešarra’s guts burned. Livingstone 1986, page 155 and page 191, line 5.
  19. Page 152 §4: Enmešarra’s ghost cries ‘I burn’. Livingstone 1986, page 83, line 10 of second text.
  20. Page 152 §6: Iconography of Perseus. Graves 1992, section 73g & h, page 239.
  21. Page 152 §6: Perseus & Medusa. Graves 1992, section 73h, page 239.
  22. Page 153 §1: The Arabic star-name Algol. Condos 1997, page 160; see also Allen 1963, page 332.
  23. Page 153 §3: The wooden pole of Enmešarra. BPO2 page 12 under Giš-Kak-Enmešarra translated as the ‘cart-pole of Enmešarra; see also BPO2 text XVI, line 11, page 75.
  24. Page 153 §4: Mercury directing dead souls with wand. Harrison 1980, pages 43-5.
  25. Page 153 §4: Springtime rites to dispel ghosts in Mesopotamia. Some minor support for this idea occurring in Mesopotamia can be found in Cohen 1993, page 272 where the Sippar Month-name Qāti-Erşetim – (Demons of the Underworld) occurs for the last month of spring.
  26. Page 154 §1: Martu-Amurru as regent of Old Man. Horowitz & Oelsner 1997/8, page 179, line labelled Anu 5.
  27. Page 154 §2: For a general description of Amurru-Martu see Leick 1991, page 4; and Black & Green 1992, pages 129-30.
  28. Page 154 §2: Description of the ‘primitive’ Amorites. ETCSL The Marriage of Martu, lines 126-41.
  29. Page 154 §3: Old Man called the ‘Star of the West’. See Appendix 4 under Prayer to the Gods of the Night.
  30. Page 154 §3: ‘If Mercury rises in the West… Gossmann 1950, section 139 II B 1b (page 57); see also SAA8 report 486 for a similar statement.
  31. Page 154 §4: Cult of Martu in Babylonian cities. Leick 1991, page 4.
  32. Page 154 §5: Old Babylonian dynasty claiming Amorite descent. …………… See also Roaf 1966, page 108 for Amorite royal lines.
  33. Page 154 §5: ’If the Old Man leaves the Crook behind…: BPO2 text XV, line 8, page 73.
  34. Page 154 §6: Exaltation of the Moon. Rochberg-Halton 1988b, page 55; see also Gossmann 1950, section 378 IV A (page 209)
  35. Page 154 §6: ‘If the star of the Old Man comes to the top of the moon… SAA8 report 30 and 408 – I’ve combined elements from 3 very similar omens!

 

PABILSAG

  1. Page 155 §2: Earliest images of horse-centaur. Black & Green 1992, page 51 under Centaur. See also Wallenfels 1993, page 286.
  2. Page 155 §2: The star-name ‘Miseh of Pabilsag’ is listed in Appendix 4 under Old Babylonian Star-lists.
  3. Page 155 §2: Akkadian scorpion-men. Wiggermann 1992, page 180, section a.
  4. Page 155 §2: Scorpion-men with snake-phallus. Black & Green 1992, page 161 under Scorpion-people.
  5. Page 155 Name-box: Epithets concerning his ‘burning tip or point’. Gossmann 1950, section 358 I (page 179)
  6. Page 156 §1: For a general description of Pabilsag see Black & Green 1992, page 147.
  7. Page 156 §2: Name of Pabilsag. See George 2003, page 74-5. See also the PSD under bilga and pabilga for Sumerian ancestor terms.
  8. Page 156 §3: Dream of Enkidu in Gilgamesh Epic. George 1999, pages 59-61, Tablet VII, lines 162-190.
  9. Page 156 §4: Depiction of Greek ghosts. Harrison 1980, page 43.
  10. Page 156 §4: Harpies & souls of the dead. Harrison 1980, pages 178-80.
  11. Page 156 §5: Mares impregnated by the wind. Graves 1992, section 1a. Pliny Natural History IV 35 and VIII 67.
  12. Page 156 §5: The Greek Tritopatres. Harrison 1980, pages 179-80.
  13. Page 157 §5: Omens for Pabilsag. BPO4 page 69, omen 9; & page 103 omens 17-19. SAA8 report 356, lines 3-5; Gossmann 1950, section 358 III B 1a & b; see also Reiner 1995, page 86 for the use of Pabilsag in rites to avert ill-boding portents.
  14. Page 158 §1: Arrow of Pabilsag = Arrow (Sirius). CAD šukūdu.
  15. Page 158 §1: Sting of Pabilsag = sting of Scorpion. SAA8 report 52, lines 4-6; SAA8 report 185, lines 5 ff.
  16. Page 158 §2: For the Miseh of Pabilsag. See Appendix 4 under Old Babylonian Star-lists; see also BPO2 page 13 under Mišeh Pabilsag.
  17. Page 158 §2: CDA mišhu.

 

PANTHER

  1. Page 159 §1: For the full name of the Panther. See BPO2 page 15, under Ud-ka-du8-a.
  2. Page 159 §2: For a general description of storm-demons. Black & Green 1992, page 121 under Lion-Dragon; Wiggermann 1992, pages 147-8 and figs 11d-f on page 188.
  3. Page 159 §2: Association of storm-demons with Adad & Iškur. Black & Green 1992, page 110-1 under Iškur.
  4. Page 160 §1: For general information on demons see Black & Green 1992, page 63.
  5. Page 160 §1: For a general description of Nergal see Black & Green 1992, page 135-6; Leick 1991, pages 127-8.
  6. Page 160 §1: ‘If the Panther rises in Month 1… BPO2 text XIII, line 5, page 67.
  7. Page 160 §2: ‘If the Panther rises early … BPO2 text IX, line 11, page 59.
  8. Page 160 §3: For Nergal & Eriškigal. See Leick 1991, pages 55-7 under Eriškigal.
  9. Page 160 §4: On the symbolic nature of Month 9, and Nergal’s annual journeying to and from the underworld. See Appendix 8 under Month 9; see also Livingstone 1986, page 257.
  10. Page 160 §5: Greek Cerberus. Graves 1992, section 134, pages 514-20.
  11. Page 161 §1: Panther pouring water onto the foot of the Stag. Gossmann 1950, section 144 III B 1b (page 59)
  12. Page 161 §1: The crown of the Panther. Horowitz & Oelsner 1997/8, page 179, line labelled Anu 4.
  13. Page 161 §1: The pedestal of the Panther. Perhaps a misunderstanding for the ‘basis of the left foot of the Panther’ seen in Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 274.

 

PLOUGH

  1. Page 161 §1: Early farming methods & technologies. Postgate 1992, page 167 ff; see also ETCSL Farmer’s Instructions, lines 41-63.
  2. Page 161 §1: The seed plough. Oppenheim 1977, page 314.
  3. Page 161 §2: First appearance of seed-ploughs in artwork. Collon 1987, page 145, fig 615.
  4. Page 161 §2: Seed-ploughs still used today. Postgate 1992, page 169 & fig 8.5
  5. Page 162 §1: Accepted location of Plough & Wolf. BPO2 page 10 & 16; see also Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 137. Many other modern works repeat this attribution such as Labat 1988 page 61 under APIN #56, and page 235 under UR-(BAR-RA) #575.
  6. Page 162 §4: Plough stands ‘before the Wagon’. BPO2 page 5, table III under Enlil 1; see Weidner 1915, page 78, column III lines 1-3, for an Akkadian transliteration of the complete text.
  7. Page 162 §4: Hemerology for 25th day of the month. Langdon 1935, page 80.
  8. Page 162 §4: Plough ‘stands all year’. Horowitz 1998, page 161.
  9. Page 163 §1: The Egyptian Bull’s Foreleg. Allen 1963, page 434. Many images of the Foreleg can be found in Parker & Neugebauer 1969.
  10. Page 163 §: The Arabic Wolf’s Claws. See the Wolf note 6.
  11. Page 163 §3: Ploughs hung in barn when not in use. Cohen 1993, page 97, note 2.
  12. Page 163 §3: ‘If the Crab comes close to the Plough… SAA8 report 452, lines 1-6.
  13. Page 164 §2: ‘If Venus comes close to the Plough… BPO3 page 95, omen 32; see also page 107, omen 2.
  14. Page 164 §2: Sexual symbolism of plough & furrow. Lapinkivi 2004, pages 39-40, text 13 DI-P and page 200; see also page 45 text 24; see also page 47 text 28; and page 48 for text 30.
  15. Page 164 §4: Plough attributed to Aššur in Assyria. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  16. Page 164 §5: ‘The first month is the month of father Enlil… Slightly retranslated from Koch-Westenholz 1995, page 155.
  17. Page 164 §6: Hunger & Pingree 1989, tablet I i 12 on page 21 for the description of Šupa.

 

RAINBOW

  1. Page 165 §1: ‘If a rainbow arches… SAA8 report 453, lines 5-6.
  2. Page 165 §2: Rainfall patterns in Mesopotamia. Roaf 1966, page 22.
  3. Page 165 §2: ‘The name of the Rainbow is Day of Abundance… Hunger & Pingree 1989, tablet II iii 33-34 on pages 112-3; see also GSL, line 167 on page 195.
  4. Page 165 §4: The term ‘dusky stars’. Rogers 1998, page 19 (bottom of page).

 

RAVEN

  1. Page 166 §1: For size & location of the Raven. See Appendix 4 under Gu-text, lines I, J & K. See also Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 275 where Tail of Raven is identified as alpha Crateris.
  2. Page 166 §2: Greek myth of Raven & water snake. Condos 1997, pages 119-23.
  3. Page 166 §2: For the serpent as symbol for deified river see Wiggermann 1997, page 43, note 89.
  4. Page 166 §4: ‘If the Raven’s stars are very bright…BPO2 text XVII, line 11, page 77.
  5. Page 166 §4: The sign for ‘wind’ (IM) used in Adad’s name. Labat 1988, page 185, under IM #399.
  6. Page 167 §1: Rain & storm predicted in omens involving Adad. SAA8 reports 31, 32, 43 & 53 lines 9 ff; see also SAA10 letter 69; and Leick 1991, pages 1-2.
  7. Page 167 §1: Greek crows as portent of rain. Kidd 1997, page 143, lines 960 ff.
  8. Page 167 §3: Location of Mercury’s exaltation. See Appendix 4 under Gu-text, line K.
  9. Page 168 §1: The Death Star. Gossmann 1950, section 133 (page 49)
  10. Page 168 §1: ‘If the Raven’s star is not red… Swerdlow 1999, page 32, omen A-8. See also Gossmann 1950, section 132 III B 1a (page 48)
  11. Page 168 §2: ‘If the Raven passes over the Seed-Furrow… Gossmann 1950, section 132 III 2d (page 48)
  12. Page 168 §2: Akkadian words for ‘raven’ & ‘locust’. CDA under erēbu II and erbû both on page 77.
  13. Page 168 §3: Raven & commodity markets. BPO2 text III, line 3, page 41.
  14. Page 168 §3: ‘If the Raven disappears in the north… Gossmann 1950, section 132 III B 2c (page 48)
  15. Page 168 §3: ‘If the Raven reaches the Path of the Sun… SAA8 report 82, lines 5-6.
  16. Page 168 §4: Akkadian word for ‘income’. CDA erbu on page 76-7.

 

RIVERS OF HEAVEN

  1. Page 169 §2: For annual river levels. See Appendix 7 under river levels.
  2. Page 169 §3: Greek ‘Waters’ as name for southern winter-time constellations. Kidd 1997, page 103, line 399.
  3. Page 169 §4: For annual river levels. See Appendix 7 under river levels.

 

ROOSTER

  1. Page 170 §1: General location of Rooster. See Appendix 4 under Gu-text lines A & B.
  2. Page 170 §1: Mercury associated with herald of the gods in Greece and Babylonia. Baigent 1994, page 152.
  3. Page 170 §1: Many specific examples of the Roman association of Mercury with cockerels can be found with a simple web-search. I’ve not found the attribution in any of the standard works on Roman or Greek mythology.
  4. Page 170 §2: Location of the Rooster. Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 275.
  5. Page 170 §3: Nature of the office of sukkal. Leick 1991, page 134 under Ninšubur.
  6. Page 170 §3: Nature of Ninšubur & other messengers of the gods. Black & Green 1992, pages 141-2 under Ninšubur.
  7. Page 170 §4: Walking Bird as symbol of god’s minister-messenger. Black & Green 1992, page 43 under Birds.
  8. Page 170 §4: Papsukkal as ‘Messenger of the Great Gods… Hinke 1907, page 56.

 

ROPES OF HEAVEN

  1. Page 171 §3: Yoke of the Sea as a name for Star of Eridu. Gossmann 1950, section 380 (page 211). See also Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  2. Page 171 §4: Stars of Ursa Major as threshing oxen. Allen 1963, page 431.
  3. Page 171 §6: The twisted rope to which heaven is secured. Alster 1976, page 122.
  4. Page 171 §6: Marduk creates Heaven & Earth from body of Tiamat. Dalley 1989, pages 254-5, tablet IV; Horowitz 1998, page 112.
  5. Page 171 §6: Marduk makes the great Bond from Tiamat’s tail. Dalley 1989, page 257, tablet V; Horowitz 1998, page 119.
  6. Page 172 §3: Marduk casts down lead ropes. Dalley 1989, page 257, tablet V; Horowitz 1998, page 119-20.
  7. Page 172 §3: Akkadian term for lead ropes. CDA under şeretu, page 336.
  8. Page 172 §3: Akkadian term for mooring rope. CDA under markasu, page 198.
  9. Page 172 §4: ‘Šul-a-zida, An’s herdsman grasped the cosmic tethering rope … ETCSL Inana and An, segment D lines 26-8. (This text was previously named A Mythic narrative about Inanna)
  10. Page 172 §5: ‘From now on, the normal length of daylight… ETCSL Inana and An, segment D lines 39-45. (This text was previously named A Mythic narrative about Inanna)
  11. Page 172 §7: Fixing the dates of the equinoxes. Hunger & Pingree 1989, tablet II ii 21-4, page 96-101.
  12. Page 173 §1: ‘On the 6th day of Month 1… SAA8 report 140.
  13. Page 173 §3: Egyptian images of celestial ropes. Parker & Neugebauer 1969, for example figs 2 & 14 etc.

 

SACRED MOUND AND HOLY MOUNTAIN

  1. Page 174 §3: The E-Kur in Nippur. Black & Green 1992, page 74.
  2. Page 174 §3: The assembly of the Gods. Black & Green 1992, page 36 under Assembly of the Gods.
  3. Page 174 §4: ‘Counting the days and putting the months in their houses… ETCSL Enki & the World Order, lines 17-31.
  4. Page 174 §5: Temples of Nippur reflects religious life of whole country. Cohen 1993, page 468.
  5. Page 174 §6: Nippur & four quarters. Horowitz 1998, page 299. See also ETCSL Enlil in the Ekur (Enlil A) lines 65-73.
  6. Page 174 §6: The E-Kur as mooring rope of Heaven & Earth. Black & Green 1992, page 74.
  7. Page 174 §6: The Ziggurat as bond of Heaven & Earth. Black & Green 1992, page 74.
  8. Page 174 §7: The Sacred Mound where sun rises and determines destiny. Cohen 1993, page 108.
  9. Page 174 §7: Bilingual incantation ‘Sun god when you rise from the Sacred Mound… Horowitz 1998, page 315-6.
  10. Page 175 §1: Mythic nature of Sacred Mound. Annus 2002, page 77-8.
  11. Page 175 §2: Sacred Mounds found in many temples. Cohen 1993, page 108.
  12. Page 175 §2: Offering to the Sacred Mound in Month 7. Cohen 1993, page 109 & 111.
  13. Page 175 §4: Mons Maenalus. Ian Ridpath’s Star Tales website www.ianridpath.com/startales/monsmaenalus.htm.

 

SCALES

  1. Page 175 §1: Ptolemy’s ‘Claws of the Scorpio’n as name for Pans of the Scales. Robbins 1998, Tetrabiblos I 9, page 51.
  2. Page 175 §1: Claws of the Scorpion in Arabic star-lore. Allen 1963, page 269, 275 & 276.
  3. Page 175 §1: Arabic name of Northern & Southern Claws still applied today. Moore 1997, page 202.
  4. Page 175 §2: The mechanism of the scales. Wallenfels 1993, page 285.
  5. Page 176 §1: ‘If the moon and the sun are in balance… Retranslated from SAA8 report 15, lines 1-3.
  6. Page 176 §1: ‘As day breaks, as the sun god rises… ETCSL A Hymn to Hendursaga (Hendursaga A) segment B, lines 29-55.
  7. Page 176 §2: Weights and measures sacred to the sun. original reference lost but see CAD abnu 4 d & I, where mention is made of weighing stones of the sun god.
  8. Page 176 §2: Mythic nature of the Sun god. Leick 1991, pages 147-8 under Šamaš; Black & Green 1992, pages 183-4 under Utu.
  9. Page 177 §2: Serrated saw symbol. Black & Green 1992, page 184 under Utu.
  10. Page 177 §2: Nabu and Sun god’s saw. Finkel & Geller 1997, page 5.
  11. Page 177 §4: Inter-related names for Saturn, the Scales and the Sun. Reiner 1995, page 141 where the Scales (Libra) is called ‘the Star or House of Šamaš’ – see note 674; see also Hunger & Pingree 1989, Tablet II i 39. As ‘Path of the Sun’ see SAA8 report 49, lines 4-6. Brown 2000, pages 68-70 for the names of Saturn; and pages 61 & 57. Summarised in Koch-Westenholz 1995, pages 122-5.
  12. Page 177 §4: Earliest example of Sun-Saturn association goes back to 13th century BCE. Koch-Westenholz 1995, page 123 note 3.

 

SCORPION

  1. Page 177 §1: ‘If the Scorpion comes close to the front of the moon… SAA8 report 430.
  2. Page 177 §1: ‘pinchers extended like the horns of a wild bull… Retranslated from Freedman 1998-2006, page 159, tablet 31, text E lines r5-12.
  3. Page 178 §1: Nature of scorpion-men. Wiggermann 1992, pages 180-1.
  4. Page 178 §1:Scorpion-people in Gilgamesh Epic. George 1999, page 71 ff, tablet IX lines 38 ff.
  5. Page 178 §2: Scorpion-men and the Sun god. Wiggermann 1992, pages 180-1. Black & Green 1992, page 161 under Scorpion-people.
  6. Page 178 Name-box: Sword of heaven. GSL line 36, page 189.
  7. Page 179 §1: Regents of the Scorpion’s stars. See Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin.
  8. Page 179 §2: General nature of Išhara. Black & Green 1992, page 110; Leick 1991 pages 94-5.
  9. Page 179 §2: Cannabis as aromatic of Išhara. Reiner 1995, page 35.
  10. Page 179 §2: Išhara of the ocean (Išhara Tiamat) GSL line 35, page 189.
  11. Page 179 §2: Queen of the inhabited world. Hinke 1907, page 59.
  12. Page 179 §3: Not to hear him in the midst of battle. Hinke 1907, page 59.
  13. Page 179 §3: Mother of the Sebitti (Seven Gods) Black & Green 1992, page 110; Leick 1991 pages 94-5.
  14. Page 179 §4: ‘The Scorpion rises in Month 8… Abbreviated from BPO2 text IX, line 9, page 57.
  15. Page 179 §5: ‘If Nergal stands in the Scorpion… SAA8 report 502, lines 11-2.
  16. Page 179 §5: ‘If the Plough comes close to the Scorpion… SAA8 report 502, lines r1-4; see also SAA8 report 219, lines 1-6.
  17. Page 180 §1: Scorpion in ritual ploughing scene may be calendrical in nature. See also Collon 1987, fig 615 dated to the late Early Dynastic period. See also Appendix 8 under Month 8 for the seeding festival.
  18. Page 180 §2: Scorpion is favourable for the price of oil. Horowitz & Oelsner 1997/8, page 179.
  19. Page 180 §2: ‘If the Scorpion rises in Month 8: the market for wool & oil… Abbreviated from BPO2 text X, line 19, page 61.
  20. Page 180 §3: A child born in Month 8 will… See Appendix 4 under Hittite Astrology Text.
  21. Page 180 §3: The Scorpion is for the market. BPO2 text II, line 9, page 37.
  22. Page 180 §3: ‘If Sagmegar reaches the head of the Scorpion… BPO2 text II, line 9a, page 37.
  23. Page 180 §3: If the Scorpion reaches the sting of the Scorpion… Swerdlow 1999, page 27, text K35, line 25.

 

SCORPION’S BREAST

  1. Page 180 §2: Nature of Lisi. Black & Green 1992, page 122 under Lisin.
  2. Page 180 §2: Name of Lisi. Livingstone 1986, page 57. See also Labat 1988 page 91 #113, and page 111 #172.
  3. Page 181 §1: Lisi’s epithets ‘who burns with fire’ etc Livingstone 1986, page 57 lines 36-42, and page 60.
  4. Page 181 §2: Lisi as generic name for lamentation goddesses. Leick 1991, page 165 under Weeping Goddesses.
  5. Page 181 §3: Lamentations for dying gods. Jacobsen 1976, page 47-63.
  6. Page 181 §3: The use of the fire-brazier in ancestral rites. See Appendix 8 under Month 5.
  7. Page 181 §4: Lisi & donkeys. Jacobsen 1976, page 106.
  8. Page 181 §4: Scorpion associated with west wind & donkeys. GSL line 298, page 205. For the Scorpion as marker for the west wind see Hunger & Pingree 1989, tablet II, i 69, page 87.

 

SCORPION’S CLAWS

  1. Page 181 §1: Listing of Scorpion’s Claws or Horns in star-lists. Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 33, tablet I, ii 11.
  2. Page 181 §2: ‘If the Horns of the Scorpion are twisted… SAA8 report 218.
  3. Page 181 §3: ‘If the Horns of the Scorpion carry radiance… BPO3 page 247, omen 42.
  4. Page 181 §3: The concept of ‘carrying radiance’. Brown 2000, page 92, note 229.
  5. Page 181 §3: SAA8 report 547, and 218, the latter of which first mentions Saturn.
  6. Page 181 §3: Saturn unfavourable elsewhere in the Scorpion. SAA8 report 386.

 

SCORPION’S STING

  1. Page 182 §1: Ninurta & weapons. Cooper 1978, pages 154-62; for weapons of Ninurta see pages 128-34; see also Livingstone 1986, pages 54-61 for the Weapon Exposition.
  2. Page 182 §1: Ninurta & his maces and ‘Šarur made the storm-wind rise to heaven… ETCSL Exploits of Ninurta, lines 251-64.
  3. Page 182 §2: ‘If Šarur and Šargaz gain radiance… SAA8 report 370 & 502.
  4. Page 182 Name-box: For different English renditions of Šarur’s & Šargaz’s names see Livingstone 1986, page 55, lines 7-12; and ETCSL Ninurta’s Return to Nibru, lines 128-34. Šarur either ‘mows down’, ‘reaps’ or ‘gathers’ a multitude; Šargaz either ‘slays’ or ‘crushes’ a multitude. In my opinion all are equally valid.
  5. Page 182 §3: ‘The Sting of the Scorpion is the great lord Pabilsag. SAA8 report 502.

 

SERPENT

  1. Page 183 §1: Figure of death has a head of a serpent-dragon. Wiggermann 1997, page 35.
  2. Page 183 §2: Summertime season of death. Jacobsen 1976, page 47.
  3. Page 183 §2: Serpent related omens. For instance Gossmann 1950, section 279 IV B 13 (for a reduced harvest); BPO3 page 154, omen 2 (for field-pest); BPO3 page 147, omen 13 (for reduction of business). BPO4 page 59, omen 3 for (defeat & epidemic)
  4. Page 183 §2: Death related festivals of high summer. See Appendix 8 under Months 4 & 5.
  5. Page 183 §2: Greek Hydra & the underworld. Graves 1992, section 124b, page 470.
  6. Page 183 §4: Two different serpents among the constellations. See Appendix 4 under Prayer to the Gods of the Night.
  7. Page 183 §4: Serpent-dragons born in the sea & among the host of Tiamat. Horowitz 1998, page 35.
  8. Page 183 §5: On the different serpent creatures see Wiggermann 1992, pages 166-9 & 186-8.
  9. Page 184 §1: Description of the Bašmu-serpent. Wiggermann 1997, pages 34-5.
  10. Page 184 §2: Nature of Ningišzida. Leick 1991, page 131 under Ningišzida.
  11. Page 184 §2: Ningišzida as serpent-dragon. ETCSL A Balbale to Ningišzida (Ningišzida B) lines 8-15.
  12. Page 184 §3: Status of Ningišzida in underworld. Wiggermann 1997, page 40.
  13. Page 184 §3: Gods of the underworld. Black & Green 1992, pages 180-2 under Underworld.
  14. Page 184 §3: Nature of Eriškigal. Lambert 1980, pages 53-8.
  15. Page 184 §3: Ningišzida’s cult centre. Leick 1991, page 131. See also Wiggermann 1997, page 40.
  16. Page 184 §4: Name of Ningišzida. Wiggermann 1997, page 39.
  17. Page 184 §4: Dying gods descend to the underworld at mid-summer. Wiggermann 1997, page 41.
  18. Page 184 §4: Souls of newborn babies travel from underworld. Scurlock 1995, page 1886. Thus Ningišzida is called the ‘god of much good progeny (or seed)’ in Wiggermann 1997, page 40.
  19. Page 184 §4: Bašmu as ‘serpent with a womb’. See Wiggermann 1992, page 168 where bašmu is translated as ‘Birth-goddess Snake’.
  20. Page 185 §3: Myth of Adapa. Black & Green 1992, page 27, and 139-40 under Ningišzida. Leick 1991, pages 2-3. Dalley 1989, pages 182-8.

 

SHE-GOAT

  1. Page 185 §1: Gula as goddess of health & medicine. Black & Green 1992, page 101. See also Leick 1991, pages 132-3 under Ninisina.
  2. Page 185 §1: Gula originally concerned with pregnancy & childbirth. …………..page 107. See also ETCSL A sir-gida to Ninisina (Ninisina A) lines 1-14 & 74-82.
  3. Page 185 §1: ’If Sagmegar stands with the She-Goat… BPO4 page 105, omen 19.
  4. Page 185 §2: Gula as great healer & bestower of the breath of life. Livingstone 1988, page 59.
  5. Page 185 §2: Temple of the Plant of Life. …………………………. page 103.
  6. Page 185 §2: Medical practices in Mesopotamia. ……………………….. See also ETCSL A sir-gida to Ninisina (Ninisina A) lines 15-26 for practical medical arts.
  7. Page 185 §2: Dog figurines discovered at her temple. Black & Green 1992, page 70 under Dogs.
  8. Page 186 §1: Dog as symbol of Gula. Black & Green 1992, page 70.
  9. Page 186 §1: Description of She-Goat & Sitting Dog as constellations. Weidner 1967, page 76-7, lines 14-6.
  10. Page 186 §1: The Crook of the She-Goat. Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 275. See also Appendix 4 under Ziqpu-stars.
  11. Page 186 §2: Why Gula is called the She-Goat. Reiner 1995, page 129 where Gula is described as ‘you are the one who created mankind’. See also CAD under tarbaşu for ‘the She-Goat is the Cattle-pen of Gula’. These references show that her symbolism is informed by the metaphor of ‘Cattle = Man’.
  12. Page 186 §2: Scapegoat. Livingstone 1986, pages 173-4.
  13. Page 186 §3: Preparation of medicines. Reiner 1995, pages 48-55. See also Reiner 1985, page 594.
  14. Page 186 §3: Use of magic circle. Reiner 1995, page 58.
  15. Page 187 §1: Disease from stars, demons & gods. Reiner 1995, page 8. Black & Green 1992, page 67 under diseases & medicine. The stars are sometimes said to rain dew down upon earth; see Reiner 1995, pages 102 & 59.
  16. Page 187 §1: Gula asked to intercede and find cause of illness. ….. page 160. See also ETCSL A sir-gida to Ninisina (Ninisina A) lines 36-45.
  17. Page 187 §1: Magical causes & cures for illness. Reiner 1995, pages 8, 128-9. Black & Green 1992, page 67 under diseases & medicine.
  18. Page 187 §2: Hemerology for the 9th day of month 7. Langdon 1935, page 104.
  19. Page 187 §3: ‘O Bright One, may your angry heart be appeased… Reiner 1995, page 129.
  20. Page 187 §4: Star of the Sorceress. Gossmann 1950, section 146 (page 62)
  21. Page 187 §4: May she afflict his body… Hinke 1907, page 59 under Gula a & b.
  22. Page 187 §5: Look upon the transgressor with anger… Hinke 1907, page 67.
  23. Page 187 §5: Prevent his corpse from being buried. Hinke 1907, page 59 under Gula c.
  24. Page 187 §5: Gula & Hecate. Reiner 1995, 52-3.
  25. Page 187 §6: Hemerology for 19th day. Langdon 1935, page 79.
  26. Page 188 Name-box: Lady of divination. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  27. Page 188 §1: Bright star of the She-Goat. Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 26, tablet I i 26.
  28. Page 188 §1: Nature of Lamma figure. Black & Green 1992, page 115 under Lama.
  29. Page 188 §2: Nature of Errgal. Dalley 1989, page 321. See also Cohen 1993, page 53.
  30. Page 188 §3: She-Goat and the life of cattle, and as name for Venus. BPO2 text II line 12c. GSL line 28, page 189.
  31. Page 188 §3: Wild Sheep are for the death of cattle. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  32. Page 188 §3: ‘If the She-Goat reaches the Wolf… Gossmann 1950, section 145 III 4 (page 62) See also BPO3 page 95, omen 39.
  33. Page 188 §4: The She-Goat identified with the head of the Goatfish. Gossmann 1950, section 145 I B (page 60)

 

SITTING DOG

  1. Page 189 §1: Dog as symbol of Gula. Black & Green 1992, page 70 under Dogs.
  2. Page 189 §1: ‘Temple of the Dog’. Livingstone 1988, pages 54-60.
  3. Page 189 §1: Numerous dog figurines in her temple. Reiner 1995, page 52-3. Livingstone 1988, page 58.
  4. Page 189 §1: Dogs as amulets. ………. See also Reiner 1995, page 135 for a magical figurine cast into a river; and page 93-4 for an effigy cast into a river.
  5. Page 189 §2: Dogs kept in her temple. Reiner 1995, page 53. See also Livingstone 1986, page 225, line 18 of text.
  6. Page 189 §2: Ritual injunction to touch Gula’s dog. CAD kalbu 2’ f.
  7. Page 189 §3: ‘If a dog urinates on the bed of a man… Leichty 1970, page 194, Tablet XXIV, line 26.
  8. Page 189 §4: Description of the Sitting Dog. Weidner 1967, page 76-7, lines 10-3 reverse.
  9. Page 189 §4: Names of stars in Sitting Dog. Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 272.
  10. Page 190 §1: Egyptian Anubis. Bunson 1995, pages 25-7.
  11. Page 190 §1: Greek Cerberus. Graves 1992, section 134, pages 514-20.
  12. Page 190 §2: Dog licking wounds. ………
  13. Page 190 §3: Rabies in Mesopotamia. Black & Green 1992, page 70 under Dogs.
  14. Page 190 §4: Hounds Tongue as medical plant. Reiner 1995, page 29.

 

SITTING GODS

  1. Page 190 §1: The E-Kur & the assembly of the gods. Black & Green 1992, page 74 under Ekur, & page 36 under Assembly of the Gods.
  2. Page 190 §1: Attributed to Enlil & Anu. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  3. Page 190 §2: Composed of 9 principle stars. Weidner 1967, pages 76-7, line 12.
  4. Page 190 §2: Location of constellation. Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 56, line V. See also Horowitz 1998, page 176 for the Neo-Assyrian Astrolabe CT 33-9 where the Sitting Gods are located in the Path of Anu and rise in Month 8.
  5. Page 191 §1: Greek Ophiuchus. Condos 1997, pages 141-5.
  6. Page 191 §2: Boehmer 1965, plate XLIX for Akkadian period images of the snake-gods. Wiggermann 1997, page 53, figs 4b & d
  7. Page 191 §2: Serpent god Nirah as protective deity of E-Kur. Wiggermann 1997, page 43. Also Black & Green 1992, page 166 under Snake Gods.
  8. Page 191 §2: Serpent gods with legs replaced by serpents. Black & Green 1992, page 166 under Snake Gods. Livingstone 1986, page 112 for snake-footed gods.
  9. Page 191 §3: Greek Giants as snake-footed beings. Grimal 1990, page 161 under Giants.
  10. Page 192 §1: Symbolic nature of serpent gods. Wiggermann 1997, page 41.
  11. Page 192 §1: Serpent gods & fertility of land. Wiggermann 1997, pages 38-9; see also figs 3c & d on page 52, and fig 4 a on page 53.
  12. Page 192 §2: Serpent gods & the underworld. Wiggermann 1997, page 45.
  13. Page 192 §4: For the dying gods identified with grain. See Livingstone 1986, pages 162-3 on Dumuzi.

 

SLAIN HEROES

  1. Page 193 §1: The Slain Heroes. Black & Green 1992, pages 164-5.
  2. Page 193 §2: Slain Heroes absorbed into cult of Ninurta. Black & Green 1992, page 165.
  3. Page 193 §2: Images of fighting gods. Boehmer 1965, plates XXV to XXIX.
  4. Page 193 §4: Slain Heroes & Labours of Hercules. Black & Green 1992, page 165; see also Annus 2002, pages 111-3.
  5. Page 193 §5: Descriptions of the Slain Heroes. Black & Green 1992, pages 164-5; Annus 2002, pages 109-121; Cooper 1978, pages 141-54; ETCSL Ninurta’s Exploits, lines 122-34; ETCSL Ninurta’s Return to Nibru, lines 30-40.
  6. Page 194 §1: Warrior Dragon as counsellor of Tišpak. Wiggermann 1997, page 39.
  7. Page 194 §2: Arabic image of Argo. De Santilana & Von Dechend 1977, fig of Arabic Argo between pages 300 & 301.
  8. Page 194 §6: Strong Copper is heir of Enlil. ETCSL Debate between Copper & Silver, lines 99-128.
  9. Page 194 §6: Strong Copper as a bell. Black & Green 1992, page 41 under Bell.
  10. Page 194 §9: Samana. Black & Green 1992, pages 159-60.
  11. Page 194 9: Palm-tree King. Black & Green 1992, page 147.
  12. Page 194 §9: Lion as Slain Hero. ETCSL Gudea A, XXVI line 7. See also Annus 2002, page 113 under Ur-Mah.

 

SLAYERS OF HEAVEN & EARTH

  1. Page 195 §1: Textual reference for the Slayers. GSL lines 245-8, page 201.
  2. Page 195 §3: Annual journey of Nergal to and from the underworld. Livingstone 1986, page 257.
  3. Page 195 §4: For more information on the solstice gateways. See Introduction and Thematic Indexes under Ancestors and the Afterlife.

 

STAG

  1. Page 196 §1: For more images of the stag + vegetation. See Collon 1987, figs 249-253, & 277.
  2. Page 196 §2: For images of the stag & solar chariot in Bronze Age of Northern Europe. See Gelling & Davidson 1972.
  3. Page 196 §2: The Cerynian Hind. Graves 1992, section 125a, page 472.
  4. Page 196 §3: Shining Horn as name for stag. PSD under simul.
  5. Page 196 §4: The sun-hart from the Sun Song. Auden & Taylor 1983, page 187. Norse Poems. Faber & Faber.
  6. Page 198 §1: For Enki as Stag of the Abyss. ETCSL Enki & the World Order, lines 100-22.
  7. Page 198 §1: For Enki’s boat. ETCSL Hymn to Nanna (Nanna A), lines 49-55.
  8. Page 198 §1: ‘Nabonidus who established justice… CAD lulim 1 b.
  9. Page 198 §3: Arabian Camel constellation. Rogers 1998, pages 23-4 for Arabian Horse & Camel. For the Arabian Wolf see Appendix 1 under Arabic Sources.
  10. Page 198 §5: Enmešarra & the Stag. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  11. Page 198 §5: Anu & the Stag. BPO2 text III lines 32-32a, page 45.

 

STANDING GODS

  1. Page 199 §2: For the Ziqpu-stars. See Appendix 4 under Ziqpu-stars.
  2. Page 199 §2: Composed of 3 bright stars. Weidner 1967, page 76-7, line 12.
  3. Page 199 §2: Corona Borealis has 3 bright stars. Condos 1997, pages 87 & 89.
  4. Page 200 §1: The Kneeler of Aratus. Kidd 1997, page 77, lines 64-71.
  5. Page 200 §1: Greek mythical figures attributed to the stars of Hercules. Condos 1997, pages 115-8.
  6. Page 200 §2: Hercules & the Golden Apples. Condos 1997, pages 115-7.
  7. Page 201 Name-box: PSD under anguba & luguba.
  8. Page 201 §3: Sin & Šamaš regents of Standing Gods. GSL line 154, page 195. See also VR 46 in Appendix 4 where the Standing Gods are allocated to Sîn & Nergal.
  9. Page 201 §4: The parayer to Rim-Sin. ETCSL A Prayer to Nanna for Rīm-Sîn (Rīm-Sîn A), lines 31-48
  10. Page 201 §4: The Great Gate where destiny is determined. ETCSL Lament for Eridu, lines 8-14.
  11. Page 201 §4: The Great Gate that faces sunrise. ETCSL Enmerkar & Ensuhgirana, lines 206-221.

 

STAR CLUSTER

  1. Page 202 §1: Pleiades as star group. Moore 1997, page 234.
  2. Page 202 §2: The various series of Lunar Mansions. Allen 1963, page 7-10.
  3. Page 202 §3: See Appendix 4 under Stars on the Path of the Moon.
  4. Page 202 §3: The rising date of the Star Cluster. See Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin the Rising Dates of 34 Stars.
  5. Page 202 §4: Constellation represented as seven stars or seven circles. Black & Green 1992, page 162 under Seven (Gods)
  6. Page 202 Name-box: ‘If the Star Cluster rises at its appointed time… BPO2 text IX line 13, page 59.
  7. Page 203 §2: ‘If the Star Cluster is apart & has no light… Gossmann 1950, section 279 IV B 14 (page 112); see also BPO2 text XV line 29.
  8. Page 203 §2: ‘If Mars, Mercury, Venus or Saturn reach the Star Cluster… Gossmann 1950, section 171 II 1 (page 70) See also BPO2 text IV line 4b ‘If a Wild Sheep approaches/reaches the Star Cluster: the Seven Gods will devour the land’.
  9. Page 203 §3: Close association of Nergal with Mars. BPO2 page 15 under UGUR. See also Gossmann 1950, section 302 (page 116)
  10. Page 203 §3: The Seven Gods are for the devouring of cattle. BPO2 text IV line 4, page 45.
  11. Page 203 §3: Mars and the destruction of cattle. Reiner 1995, pages 6-7; Rochberg-Halton 1988c, page 326.
  12. Page 203 §3: ‘If Mars approaches the Star Cluster… Gossmann 1950, section 274 II A 4 (page 207)
  13. Page 203 §4: Description of the Seven Gods. Black & Green 1992, page 162 under Seven (Gods)
  14. Page 203 §4: The weapons of the Seven Gods. See also Wiggermann 1992, page 46, sections 2-6.
  15. Page 203 §4: ‘The Seven Gods …who carry bow & arrow… Koch-Westenholz 1995, page 134.
  16. Page 203 §5-6: ‘Their birth was strange and full of terrible portents… Dalley 1989, pages 286-7.
  17. Page 204 §1: The eclipse demons. Kilmer 1976, lines 12-29, and 136 –140. See also Koch-Westenholz 1995, page 160 note 3, and page 110.
  18. Page 204 §3: ‘Seven Warriors the sons of one mother… George 1999, page 162-3, Bilgamesh and Huwawa version B, lines 36-46.
  19. Page 204 §4: Favourable for the price of grain. Horowitz & Oelsner 1997/8, page 179.
  20. Page 204 §5: Pleiades in Hesiod’s poem ‘Works and Days’. Wender 1973, page 71, lines 383-4.
  21. Page 204 §6: Star Cluster used in intercalation. Hunger & Pingree 1989, pages 89-90, Tablet II Gap A, lines 8-9. See also Oppenheim 1974, page 205.
  22. Page 205 §2: Omens for the Star Cluster & Moon. Gossmann 1950, section 279 IV 4a-d (page 111)
  23. Page 205 §2:’If the star Cluster comes close to the top of the Moon… SAA8 report 296, lines 1-2.
  24. Page 205 §2: ‘If the Star Cluster goes into the Moon… Gossmann 1950, section 279 IV 4b (page 111)

 

STELLAR PATHS OF ENLIL, ANU & EA

  1. Page 205 §1: Trinity of Anu, Enlil & Ea. Livingstone 1986, page 78.
  2. Page 205 §3: Path of Enlil. Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 88, tablet II Gap A 3-4.
  3. Page 206 §1: Path of Anu. Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 88, tablet II Gap A 1-2 and 5-6.
  4. Page 206 §2: Path of Ea. Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 88, tablet II Gap A 7.
  5. Page 206 §3: ‘If Venus becomes visible in the Path of Enlil… BPO3 page 221, omens 7-9.

 

ŠULLAT & HANIŠ

  1. Page 206 §1: Šullat & Haniš as attendant gods. Dalley 1989, pages 328 & 323.
  2. Page 206 §1: Location in Centaurus. Ellis 1989, page 128 note 51.
  3. Page 206 §1: representing sun & moon. BPO4 page 115, omen 1-2.
  4. Page 207 §1: ‘At the very first glimmer of brightening dawn… George 1999, page 91, tablet XI lines 97-101.
  5. Page 207 §2: Periodic disasters sent by gods to reduce human population. See Atrahasis Epic in Dalley 1989, pages 1-38.

 

ŠUPA

  1. Page 207 §1: Holding the rod & ring. Cohen 1993, page 444 but this statement should be applied to the Hitched Yoke. Nevertheless, Šupa is so closely associated with the Yoke and the celestial ropes that the material concerning the rod and ring is still highly relevant to his symbolism.
  2. Page 207 §1: The rod & ring. Van Buren 1949, pages 449-50.
  3. Page 207 §2: Enlil who decrees the destiny of the lands. See Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin.
  4. Page 207 §2: Šupa, ruler of the supreme gods. Cohen 1993, page 444.
  5. Page 207 §2: Reiner 1995, page 143 where Šupa is called ‘mountain of the Igigi-gods’, which again relates him to Enlil, the ‘Great Mountain’.
  6. Page 207 §3: Chaplet of beads. Van Buren 1949, page 445.
  7. Page 208 Name-box: Meaning of Šupa. CDA under šūpû, page 387; see also Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 125, note i 12.
  8. Page 208 §2: ‘When his word relates to heaven… ETCSL Enlil in the Ekur (Enlil A) lines 139-55.
  9. Page 208 §3: ‘If in its rising, Šupa flares up again and again… BPO2 text XVII, omen 2 – see Akkadian note at bottom of page (page 77)
  10. Page 208 §3: Omens for the Yoke. Hunger & Pingree 1989, pages 118-21.
  11. Page 208 §3: Identity of Šupa and the Yoke. BPO2 text III, line 27a, page 43.
  12. Page 208 §4: General nature of Enlil. Black & Green 1992, page 76; Leick 1991, pages 45-7.
  13. Page 208 §5: General nature of tablet of destiny. Black & Green 1992, page 173. George 1986, pages 133-45.
  14. Page 208 §5: Tablet worn as part of royal apparel. George 1986, page 139.
  15. Page 208 §5: Tablet as bond of supreme power. George 1986, page 134.
  16. Page 208 §5: Tablet as bond that unites cosmic layers. George 1986, page 142.
  17. Page 208 §5: Tablet impressed with seals of the gods. George 1986, page 139-40.
  18. Page 208 §5: Holding tablet confers office of ‘King of the Gods’. George 1986, page 138.
  19. Page 209 §1: Rod & ring as measuring line. Alster 1976, page 118 & 119. Van Buren 1949, pages 434-450.
  20. Page 209 §2: For use of rod & ring in temple building. Van Buren 1949, page 434.
  21. Page 209 §2: Marduk measures out Heaven & Abyss. Dalley 1989, page 255 – see the Field for a more detailed examination.
  22. Page 209 §5: Ropes of Heaven = harness-work of Wagon. George 1986, page 139, where the wagon is called ‘the bond of heaven’.
  23. Page 209 §5: The ‘Yoke’ at the southern horizon. This refers to the ‘Yoke of the Sea’ – an alternative name for the Star of Eridu. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  24. Page 210 §1: Greek symbolism of Bootes. Condos 1997, page 59. Allen 1963, page 92-8.
  25. Page 210 §1: Philomelus. Condos 1997, page 58.

 

SWALLOW

  1. Page 211 §1: Images of the Swallow. Wellenfels 1993, pages 287-8.
  2. Page 212 §1: ‘If the Fish stands close to the Raven… SAA8 report 73, lines r1-4.
  3. Page 212 §2: Ointment for month 11. Reiner 1995, page 117.
  4. Page 212 §3: Doves sacred to Syrian Goddess. Condos 1997, pages 161-2 & 163-5.
  5. Page 213 §1: Semiramis. Grimal 1990, page 397-8.
  6. Page 213 §2: Birds in the Flood story. George 1999, page 93, tablet XI, lines 147-56.
  7. Page 213 §2: Egg as cosmological symbol. O’Flaherty 1981,,, page 27, and page 40 note 10.
  8. Page 213 §2: The egg & the Syrian goddess. Condos 1997, page 162.
  9. Page 213 §3: The Piscean cord. Wallenfels 1993, page 287.
  10. Page 213 §5: ‘A fish is held in her hand… ETCSL A Balbale to Nanše (Nanše B) lines 1-12; see also Wallenfels 1993, page 287.

 

SWINE

  1. Page 214 §1: ‘If a wild pig enters… Leichty 1970, page 191, tablet XXII, line 20.
  2. Page 214 §2: ‘If the Swine returns… Gossmann 1950, section 371 III 1 (page 184)
  3. Page 214 §3: For pigs in Mesopotamia. Postgate 1992, page 166.
  4. Page 215 §1: Component stars of the Swine. Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 275.
  5. Page 215 §2: ‘If Damu is red… BPO2 text XVII line 5, page 77.
  6. Page 215 §3: Nature of Damu. Black & Green 1992, page 57; Leick 1991, page 30.
  7. Page 215 §3: The death and lamentation of Damu. Jacobsen 1976, pages 63-73.
  8. Page 215 §3: Cult of Damu & Dumuzi. Black & Green 1992, page 57.
  9. Page 215 §4: Return of the Dying god. Jacobsen 1976, page 27.
  10. Page 215 §5: The boar in Norse myth. Edda by Snorri Sturluson. Translated by Faulkes 1987, page 75 & 97.

 

TAILS

  1. Page 216 §1: Bright star of the ribbon of the Fishes. See Appendix 4 under Normal Stars.
  2. Page 216 §2: Cord originally represented the Tigris & Euphrates. GSL lines 146-7, page 193; and Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  3. Page 216 §4: River levels in relation to irrigation farming. See Appendix 7 under river levels.
  4. Page 216 §4: ‘If the Wild sheep approaches the Tigris star… SAA8 report 253, lines 6-7.
  5. Page 216 §4: ‘If Jupiter stands in the Tails… SAA10 letter 160, lines 14-6.
  6. Page 217 §1: The Tails in the Stars on the Path of the Moon. See Appendix 4 under Stars on the Path of the Moon.

 

TRUE SHEPHERD OF ANU

  1. Page 218 §2: True Shepherd as royal title. For instance ETCSL The building of Ningirsu’s temple (Gudea A & B) line 173. One of many references to Gudea as ‘True Shepherd’.
  2. Page 218 §2: ‘If Ištar stands in the position of the True Shepherd… Gossmann 1950, section 348 III B (page 131 ff)
  3. Page 218 §2: ‘If the True Shepherd stands in front of the moon… BPO2 text XVIII, line 11, page 79.
  4. Page 218 §2: If the True shepherd stands in the moon… Gossmann 1950, section 352 part 13 (page 161)
  5. Page 218 §3: Component stars of the True Shepherd. Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 276.
  6. Page 218 §3: The True Shepherd is often used as the principle star of Month 3. Reiner 1995, page 116 & 80.
  7. Page 218 §4: Šitaddaru, who was struck by a weapon. GSL line 163-4, page 195.
  8. Page 219 §1: ‘You loved the shepherd… Dalley 1989, page 79; see also George 1999, page 49, Tablet VI lines 58-63.
  9. Page 219 §2: Papšukkal as regent. See Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin, Stars of Anu.
  10. Page 219 §2: Ninšubur as regent. Horowitz & Oelsner 1997/8, page 179 under line labelled Enlil 4.
  11. Page 219 §3: General nature of Ninšubur. Black & Green 1992, pages 141-2; Leick 1991, page 134.
  12. Page 219 §3: Name of Ninšubur. Leick 1991, page 134.
  13. Page 219 §3: Masculine Ninšubur as messenger of gods. Black & Green 1992, page 141.
  14. Page 219 §4: Depiction of Ninšubur. Black & Green 1992, pages 141-2.
  15. Page 219 §4: Statue of Ninšubur in brick box. Black & Green 1992, page 142.
  16. Page 219 §5: Female Ninšubur as messenger of Inanna. Black & Green 1992, page 142.
  17. Page 219 §5: Ninšubur in Descent of Inanna. Leick 1991, pages 91-3 under Inanna’s Descent to the Underworld.
  18. Page 220 §1: Ninšubur in underworld. ……….

 

WAGON

  1. Page 220 §1: Description of the Wagon. Weidner 1967, page 76-7, lines 4-7.
  2. Page 220 §1: Concerning the locations of the Ewe, Hitched Yoke and Fox. Note 1 describes the Wagon as having three stars on its shaft. One of these stars is known as the Fox – according to Mul-Apin it is located ‘at the shaft of the Wagon’. The identification of the Ewe and Hitched Yoke with the other two stars of the shaft is a logical inference. I have argued that the Ewe is depicted on the Dendera Zodiac as the tiny sheep perched underneath the Bull’s Foreleg – this identifies it as the star closest to the Wagon-box. The Hitched Yoke is logically the bright star at the end of the shaft where the yoke and harness-work of the Wagon is necessarily located.
  3. Page 221 §1: Sledges as means of human transport. See images in Roaf 1966, page 123.
  4. Page 221 §2: ‘If Venus flares up and stands before the Wagon… Gossmann 1950, section 109 III B 17d (page 42)
  5. Page 221 §3: Marker for North wind. Hunger & Pingree 1989, tablet II i 68.
  6. Page 221 §3: Ninevah city gate. ………….
  7. Page 221 §4: Wagon in Homer. Homer Odyssey V 273 and Illiad XVIII 569.
  8. Page 221 §4: Wagon in Aratus. Kidd 1997, page 75, line 27.
  9. Page 221 §5: Arabic funeral biers. Allen 1963, page 432.
  10. Page 221 §5: Al-Faritan. Jurdaq 1950, page 97.
  11. Page 222 §1: Wagons in Germanic star-lore. Allen 1963, page 420 & 428.
  12. Page 222 §1: Hittites & Mesopotamian culture. Koch-Westenholz 1995, page 45-6, and page 46 note 8.
  13. Page 222 §2: Ninlil & the winds. Leick 1991, page 133 under Ninlil. See also Livingstone 1986, page 75 where Ninlil is associated with the North wind.
  14. Page 222 §3: General nature of Ninlil; and her children. Black & Green 1992, pages 140-1; Leick 1991, page 133.
  15. Page 222 §3: Ninlil as ‘Mother of the Gods’. Horowitz 1989, page 244 note 4
  16. Page 222 §4: Celestial ropes & the Wagon. George 1986, page 139 where ‘the Wagon = the Bond of Heaven’.
  17. Page 223 §1: Menology for 25th day. Langdon 1935, page 80.
  18. Page 223 §2: Divination from shooting stars & Wagon. Reiner 1960, pages 27-8.
  19. Page 223 §3: Wagon in medicinal magic. Reiner 1995, page 56.
  20. Page 223 §3: Celestial radiation. Reiner 1995, page 55.
  21. Page 223 §3: Hellenistic papyri. Reiner 1995, pages 56 & 76.
  22. Page 223 §4: All-night vigil & dream magic. Reiner 1960, page 27.
  23. Page 223 §5: Dream magic & journeys. Reiner 1995, pages 71-2.
  24. Page 223 §6: Sorcery & the Wagon. Reiner 1995, page 107.
  25. Page 223 §6: ……… See also Reiner 1995, page 102-3 for a case of this affliction associated with the Arrow.
  26. Page 223 §6: Cures through agency of the Wagon. Reiner 1995, page 107.
  27. Page 223 §7: Physician’s dream about his patient. Reiner 1995, page 71.
  28. Page 224 §1: Wagons as funerary carriages. Cohen (Andrew) 2005, page 76-8.
  29. Page 224 §2: Wagon is for eclipses. BPO2 text III line 1, page 13.
  30. Page 224 §2: Eclipses mean death of the king. Brown 2000, page 145-6.
  31. Page 224 §2: The fullest description of the substitute king ritual can be found in Parpola 1983 Excursus XXII to XXXII.
  32. Page 224 §3: Quadrants of the moon. Brown 2000, page 150.
  33. Page 224 §3: ‘If an eclipse occurs & Jupiter is present… SAA8 report 300, line 12.
  34. Page 224 §4: ‘If the sky above the Wagon is black… BPO3 page 223, omen 33.

 

WAGON OF HEAVEN

  1. Page 225 §2: Wagon of Heaven & its rope. See Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin, Stars of Enlil.
  2. Page 225 §3: Nature of Damkianna. Black & Green 1992, page 56-7 under Damgalnuna. Leick 1991, pages 29-30 under Damkina.
  3. Page 225 §5: Ritual observance for 7th day of 7th month. Reiner 1995, page 114.
  4. Page 225 §5: The Day of Gladness. Langdon 1935, page 104.

 

WIDOW’S OVEN

  1. Page 226 §1: Occurrence in early star-lists. See Appendix 4 under Old Babylonian Star-lists.
  2. Page 226 §1: Name for Venus. See Appendix 9.
  3. Page 226 §1: Stars of Widow’s Oven equivalent to tail of Sitting Dog. GSL line 155, page 195.
  4. Page 226 §2: The Oven is Gula… BPO2 text II line 7, page 37.
  5. Page 226 §2: The Oven is for acquiring descendants. BPO2 text VIII lines 5-5a, page 51.
  6. Page 226 §3: Widow’s Oven = Venus. GSL line 29, page 189.
  7. Page 226 §3: Star of Women for taking a wife… BPO2 text IV line 7, page 47.
  8. Page 226 §4: Extinguished ovens & fire-braziers. Van der Toom 1999, page 142, 143 & 146.

 

WILD BOAR

  1. Page 226 §1: Wild Boar close to Abyss on star-map. Gossmann 1950, section 123 III A 4 (page 45)
  2. Page 227 §3: Nature of Ninurta-Ningirsu. Black & Green 1992, page 138 under Ningirsu and 142-3 under Ninurta. Leick 1991, pages 130-1.
  3. Page 227 §3: Ninurta as farmer and canal-builder. Leick 1991, page 136.
  4. Page 227 §4: ‘Ninurta put the holy plough in good order… ETCSL Išme-Dagan & Enlil’s Chariot (Išme-Dagan I) lines 82-7.
  5. Page 227 §5: ‘If the Wild Boar flickers… SAA8 report 158, lines r7-8.
  6. Page 227 §5: ‘If the Wild Boar rises in month 7… BPO2 text X line 18, page 61.
  7. Page 227 §7: Piglets sacrificed to Demeter. Harrison 1980, page 123.
  8. Page 228 Name-box: Meaning of Wild Boar’s name. Gossmann 1950, section 123 (page 45)
  9. Page 228 §2: Ninurta slays Bison-man in the sea. Annus 2002, page 111 under Gud-Alim.
  10. Page 228 §2: Greek myth of Erymanthian Boar. Graves 1992, section 126, pages 475-8.

 

WOLF

  1. Page 229 §1: ‘If a woman gives birth to a wolf… Leichty 1970, page 32, tablet I, line 6 but should read ‘head of a wolf’.
  2. Page 229 §1: ‘If a child has the head of a wolf… Leichty 1970, page 46, tablet II, line 2.
  3. Page 229 §1: Wolf in birth omens. Leichty 1970, page 201, omen 3; and page 205, omen 38.
  4. Page 229 §2: ‘If the She-Goat reaches the Wolf… BPO3 page 95, omen 39.
  5. Page 229 §4: Arabic constellations of the Camel & Complete Horse. Rogers 1998, pages 23-4.
  6. Page 229 §4: Arabic constellation of the Wolf’s Claws. Carey 2001, SOAS Phd, Appendix 3, page 269 under point 3 Draco.
  7. Page 230 §1: ‘Bitch or lioness’ as component of ploughs. PSD under nig referring to some kind of ‘strap or band’.
  8. Page 230 §1: Norse wolf Fenrir. Faulkes 1987, page 27-9. (Snorri Edda section 34)
  9. Page 230 §2: Anu as regent of Wolf. See Appendix 4 under VR 46.
  10. Page 230 §2: Nature of Anu. Black & Green 1992, page 30; Leick 1991, pages 4-6.
  11. Page 230 §3: For more information of the eclipse demons see the Star Cluster note 17.
  12. Page 230 §3: Death of Anu & his underworld myths. Livingstone 1986, page 83, line 11 of text.
  13. Page 230 §3: Lamaštu. Livingstone 1986, page 89.
  14. Page 231 §1: The Bar-sign. Labat 1988, page 69-70, #74.
  15. Page 231 §1: CDA mašrû, page 203.
  16. Page 231 §2: ‘The Wolf star is for wealth. BPO2 text II line 13b, page 39.
  17. Page 231 §2: ‘If the Wolf reaches the sun… SAA8 report 48; see also BPO2 note to text II, line 13b.
  18. Page 231 §2: ‘The Wolf is the Moon god’. BPO2 text II line 13a, page 39.
  19. Page 231 §3: Name of Ašimbabbar. Leick 1991, page 126 under Nanna.

 

WORM

  1. Page 231 §1: Worm as alternative name for Anunitum. GSL line 165, page 195.
  2. Page 231 §1: Worm used as name for Anunitum when Venus is present. Brown 2000, page 62 under Mul Tultum.
  3. Page 231 §2: Worm omens. BPO2 text III line 10a; and text XV line 24.

 

YOKE

  1. Page 231 §2: Pulling the yoke of the Assyrian king’s chariot. CAD nīru (A) section 2’ on page 261.
  2. Page 232 §2: ‘If Sagmegar scintillates & surrounds the Yoke: arable land… BPO4 page 77, omen 5.
  3. Page 232 §3: ‘If the Yoke keeps flaring up… Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 118, tablet II Gap B, line 8.
  4. Page 232 §3: If the Yoke is dim.. Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 118, tablet II Gap B, line 7.
  5. Page 232 §3: If the Yoke is very low in the sky & dim… Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 119, tablet II, line iv 2.
  6. Page 232 §4: ‘If Sagmegar scintillates & surrounds the Yoke: important men… BPO4 page 139, omen 39.
  7. Page 232 §4: ‘If a star flares up from the west… Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 115, tablet II, iii 43.
  8. Page 232 §5: Ranking scheme of planets. Rochberg-Halton 1988c, page 323-328.
  9. Page 232 §5: ‘If Venus at her appearance stands… BPO3 page 41, omens 7 & 6.

 

ZABABA

  1. Page 233 §1: Components stars of Zababa. Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 277.
  2. Page 233 §2: King of battles. H inke 1907, page 57.
  3. Page 233 §2: Zababa & Kiš. Black & Green 1992, page 187.
  4. Page 233 §2: Dynasties of Kiš. Leick 1991, page 172 under Kish.
  5. Page 233 §3: Zababa as stone-crusher. Livingstone 1986, page 65 lines 1-5 of text & page 66.
  6. Page 233 §3: Zababa as regent of the Eagle. Astrolabe B section A. An Akkadian transliteration can be found in BPO2 page 82 iii 25. See also Weidner 1915, page 87 line 25/30, and page 88 Kolume III line 11.
  7. Page 234 §1: Zababa identified with Ninurta. Black & Green 1992, page 187.
  8. Page 234 §1: Maces of Zababa. Wiggermann 1997, page 36, note 29.
  9. Page 234 §2: Hemerology for 25th day of month 8. Langdon 1935, page 134.

 

APPENDIX 1

  1. Page 237 §1: See Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin for the star-lists and rising dates of various stars. For the full text and philological commentary see Hunger & Pingree 1989.
  2. Page 238 §1: For images of the Bull of Heaven & Star Cluster see Reiner 1995, page 11; see also SAA8 fig 23 (page 252) for a better photo.
  3. Page 238 §1: For an interpretation of the figures in the lunar disk see Kilmer 1976, page 374.
  4. Page 238 §2: For images of the Lion see Reiner 1995, page 10; see also SAA8 fig 2 (page 22) for a better photo.
  5. Page 238 §3: For images of the Šala and the Raven see Reiner 1995, page 10; see also SAA8 fig 15 (page 182) for a better photo.
  6. Page 239 §1: Left-to-right reversal of images. Noted in Wallenfels 1993, page 285 ,note 50.
  7. Page 238 §2: The majority of these images are drawn from Wallenfels 1993; the remainder are redrawn from Wallenfels 1994 as follows Taurus – plate 72, Virgo – plate 51 and the first image of Aquarius – plate 5.
  8. Page 240 §1: For a general description of Entitlement Stones see Black & Green 1992, pages 113-4 under Kudurrus. For illustrations of these monuments see Hinke 1907 and Seidl 1989. For a more up-to-date examination of the inscriptions on these monuments see Slanski 2003.
  9. Page 240 §3: A table of the symbols and their associated gods found on Entitlement Stones can be found in Rogers 1998b, page 13; for a fuller table of attributions see Iwaniszewski 2003, page 82 (available on the web).
  10. Page 241 §2: See Appendix 4 under Mul-Apin for the star-lists and rising times of 34 stars; for setting and culmination dates of the Babylonian constellations see Hunger & Pingree 1989.
  11. Page 242 §1: A photo of the Circular Zodiac can be found in Parker & Neugebauer 1969, plate 53 and a line illustration in Hinke 1907 fig 35. A photo of the Square Zodiac can be found in Parker & Neugebauer 1969, plate 60 and a line illustration in Hinke 1907 fig 34.
  12. Page 244 §2: Figures of the Egyptian Orion depict him with a long staff, looking back over his shoulder while taking a wide stride. Images refs
  13. Page 246 §3: Very few of the Dendera images are seen in earlier Egyptian astronomic art. Parker & Neugebauer 1969, reference lost!
  14. Page 248 §1: The most accessible editions detailing the Arabic versions of the Greek constellations are As-Sufi 1954; and Wellesz 1965. See also Rogers 1998.
  15. Page 248 §5: For the Wolf’s Claws in Draco. Carey 2001, Appendix 3, page 269, under point 3 Draco.
  16. Page 249 §1: For a different view of the origins & creation of the Greek star-map. Rogers 1998b, pages 79-89.
  17. Page 249 §1: On Eudoxus & Aratus. Rogers 1998b, page 81.
  18. Page 249 §2: The creation of Ursa Minor. Allen 1963, page 448; and Rogers 1998b, page 84.
  19. Page 249 §3: For cultural & trading contacts between Mycenean Greece and Mesopotamia. Penglase 1994, page 5 ff. For a brief statement see also Homer 1991, page XXXIV.
  20. Page 249 §4: Near eastern influence on Hesiod. Penglase 1994, page 5 ff.
  21. Page 249 §6: The Uranometry, As-Sufi 1954.
  22. Page 252 §1: For the Phoenician theory see Allen 1963, page 22. For a proposed Minoan influence on the Greek constellations see Rogers 1998b, page 80.

 

APPENDIX 2

  1. Page 258 §4: For Anzu-bird omens see BPO2 text III line 11b (page 41); and text XVI line 10 (page 75)
  2. Page 259 §2: For images of gods slaying each other. Black & Green 1992, page 57 under Dead Gods, see also Black & Green 1992 figs 50 & 71. For many images of gods slaying one another see Boehmer 1965 plates XXV to XXIX.

 

APPENDIX 3

  1. Page 262 top line: The historical and technological details are taken from standard works on the history and culture of the Ancient Near East. Foremost among these volumes are Roaf 1966, Van der Mieroop 2004, Oppenheim 1977, Jacobsen 1976, and Black & Green 1992. I have largely based my chronology on Black & Green 1992, page 22; and on Brown 2000, pages 245-64.
  2. Page 263 for 5500-4000: Proposed creation of oldest constellations. This proposition is formulated in Appendix 2 on the Age of the Star-map.
  3. Page 263 for 4000-3100: First evidence of constellations – See the Bull of Heaven and fig 20, and note 8. Venus as morning & evening star – Cohen 1993, page 209. Leick 1991, page 163. Brown 2000, page 246, section 1.
  4. Page 263 for 3100-2390: First month names – Cohen 1993, page 8; and 23 ff. Luni-solar calendar – Brown 2000, pages 247-8, section 4. 360-day ideal year – Brown 2000, page 113.
  5. Page 263 for 2390-2210: Establishment of the Four Regions – See Appendix 10, notes 1 & 2. Possible use of stars in rustic calendar – See the Scorpion, fig 118, and note 17. See also Brown 2000, page 246, section 1, which suggests that the use of stars in a rustic calendar is part of the archaic Sumerian tradition. Proposed reform of the constellations – See Appendix 2.
  6. Page 263 for 2210-1950: First constellations in literature – See the Field & Star Cluster. Earliest star-lists (unpublished) – CDLI website under CBS 11925 proposed date in Ur III period. Gudea inscriptions – Brown 2000, page 246-7, section 3.
  7. Page 263 for 1950-1651: Old Babylonian star-lists – See Appendix 4 under Old Babylonian Star-lists; see also Brown 2000, page 250, section 10. Records of Venus observations – Brown 2000, page 249-50, section 9. 10-star Astrolabes – Brown 2000, page 252-3, section 16; see also pages 257-8 section 26; and page 115 for an assertion that the Astrolabes originated in the Old Babylonian period. Prayer to the Gods of the Night – Brown 2000, page 250, section 11. Prototype EAE – Brown 2000, page 248-9, section 7. Definite use of stars in rustic calendar – See the Arrow and note 9. Use of 360-day ideal year in astrology – Brown 2000, page 249, section 8.
  8. Page 263 for 1651-1157: 12-star Astrolabes – Brown 2000, page 252-3, section 16. Appearance of entitlement stones – Black & Green 1992, pages 113-4. Canonical version of EAE – Brown 2000, page 254-6, section 21. Hittite astrology text – See Appendix 4 under Hittite Astrology text; see also Brown 2000, page 251, section 13. Probable composition of Mul-Apin – Hunger & Pingree 1989, pages 10-12. Brown 2000, page 259, section 30.
  9. Page 263 for (883-612): Earliest copies of Mul-Apin – Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 9. State Archives of Assyria – See Appendix 4 under State Archives of Assyria; see also Brown 2000, page 258, section 27. Weidner star-list – See Appendix 4 under Weidner Star-text. Records of eclipses – Brown 2000, page 259, section 32. Paradigm shift from omen-based astrology to mathematical astrology – Brown 2000, pages 161 ff.
  10. Page 263 for 625-539: Star list VR 46 – See Appendix 4 under VR 46. The Gu-text star-list – See Appendix 4 under Gu-text. Astrological Diaries – Brown 2000, page 259, section 32.
  11. Page 263 for 550-331: Creation of zodiac – Brown 2000, page 264, section 49. Koch-Westenholz 1995, pages 162 ff. Rochberg 1998, pages 28-9. First horoscopes – Brown 2000, page 264, section 48. Rochberg 1998, page 3. Mathematical astrology – Brown 2000, page 263, sections 44 & 45.
  12. Page 263 for 331-64: Uruk constellation figures – See Appendix 1.

 

APPENDIX 4

  1. Page 264 Astrolabes §4: ‘The Fish rises in Month 12… Reconstructed from BPO2 text X line 23.
  2. Page 264 Astrolabes §7 Section B: See Appendix 13 for a fuller treatment of these identifications.
  3. Page 265 Astrolabes §2 Section C: For the 12 names of Venus see Weidner 1915, pages 118-21.
  4. Page 271 Normal Stars lines 6 & 7: The missing term ‘rein’ is supplied by me via Hunger & Pingree 1999, page 271.
  5. Page 273 Old Babylonian Star-lists §1: Concerning the Star of king Šulgi. Foxvog 1993, page 105.
  6. Page 274 Prayer to the Gods of the Night §3: See Bibliography under Lambert 1987.
  7. Page 274 Stars on the Path of the Moon §1: For such star-lists beginning with the Pleiades and ending with Aries see Foxvog 1993, page 106.

 

APPENDIX 5

  1. Page 278 §2: Date of invention of cuneiform writing system. Glassner 2003, pages 29-47.
  2. Page 280 §3: Esoteric analysis of planet & star names. See Appendix 4 under VR 46 where these esoteric readings are made in the latter part of the text starting from ‘Sagmegar (Jupiter) – the giver of signs’.
  3. Page 281 Name-box for Wild Sheep: ‘The Wild Sheep are for pestilence’ BPO2 text I line 5 (page 35)
  4. Page 281 Name-box for Wild Sheep: ‘The Wild Sheep are for the death of cattle’. See VR 46 in Appendix 4.
  5. Page 281 Name-box for Sagmegar: ‘bringer of signs to the inhabited world. See Brown 2000, pages 64-5.
  6. Page 282 §2: ‘He is Gilima who establishes the cosmic bond of the gods… Dalley 1989, pages 270-1.
  7. Page 282 §3: The meanings of the Gil-sign. Labat 1988, page 65, #67.
  8. Page 283 §2: The Bar-sign. Labat 1988, page 69-70, #74.
  9. Page 283 §6: The Tower of Babel. Genesis II verses 1-9.
  10. Page 284 §1: The ziggurat of Marduk in Babylon. Black & Green 1992, page 179 under Tower of Babel.

 

APPENDIX 6

  1. Page 285 §3: ‘If the sky is covered in red… SAA8 report 309.
  2. Page 285 §3: ‘If one dog eats another dog… Leichty 1970, page 194, omen 31.
  3. Page 285 §4: Divination depends on phenomena conforming or not to a ‘normal pattern’ of behaviour. Leichty 1970, page 7.
  4. Page 285 §6: The advisors of the king. SAA10 introduction pages XIII to XXIX; see also Brown 2000, pages 33-52.
  5. Page 286 §3: ‘The Scorpion rises in month 8… BPO2 text IX line 9, page 57.
  6. Page 287 §2: ’If the Moon is red at its appearance… SAA8 report 263.
  7. Page 287 §2: ‘If the constellation of the Fish is dark…Gossmann 1950, section 218 III B 1c (page 87)
  8. Page 287 §3: ‘If the Sting of the Scorpion gains radiance… Abbreviated from SAA8 reports 370 & 502.
  9. Page 287 §3: ‘If the Scorpion sets dull-lighted… Gossmann 1950, section 94 IV B 1b (page 32)
  10. Page 287 §4: ‘If the Moon wears a crown… SAA8 report 252.
  11. Page 287 §4: ‘If the Moon is surrounded by a sheepfold… SAA8 report 494, lines 1-2.
  12. Page 287 §6: ‘If Sagmegar comes near to the Bull of Heaven… SAA8 report 49, lines 10 ff.
  13. Page 287 §6: ‘If the Bull of Heaven’s stars are faint… BPO2 text XV line 30, page 75.
  14. Page 288 §1: ‘If the Star Cluster reaches the Destroyer… SAA8 report 491 lines r 3-4.
  15. Page 288 §2: ‘If the Fish stands close to the Raven… SAA8 report 73 lines r1-4.
  16. Page 288 §2: Use of the omen above to represent other celestial phenomena. Gossmann 1950, section 133 II 2a (page 49) I make the presumption that this is an alternative version of the omen quoted in note 15 above.
  17. Page 288 §5: ‘If the Moon is surrounded by a halo and the King Star… SAA8 report 41.
  18. Page 288 §5: ‘If the Moon is surrounded by a halo and the Star Cluster… SAA8 reports 273 & 376.

 

APPENDIX 7

  1. Page 290 Table – Barley. For barley farming in ancient Mesopotamia see Postgate 1992, pages 167-70. See also ETCSL Farmer’s Instructions.
  2. Page 290 Table – Other Crops. For other crops see Postgate 1992, pages 170-2.
  3. Page 290 Table – Rivers & Rainfall. For river levels and rainfall see Cohen 1993, pages 7-8; and Oppenheim 1977, pages 40-1; and Roaf 1966, page 22 for a map of the local climate conditions.

 

APPENDIX 8

  1. Page 291 §1: The timing of the New Year. Foxvog 1993, page 106.
  2. Page 291 §2: The luni-solar year. Cohen 1993, page 3 ff.
  3. Page 291 §3: Methods of intercalation. Hunger & Pingree 1989, for the Pleiades Intercalation scheme – Tablet II, Gap A, lines 8-11 on pages 89-90; for the Stellar Rising Date scheme – Tablet II Gap A, lines 12-15 & ii 1-6 on pages 90-3; for the Shadow Length scheme – Tablet II ii lines 21-42 on pages 96-101.
  4. Page 291 §4: The ideal year and ideal month. Brown 2000, pages 113, 249 section 8, and 114 note 290.
  5. Page 291 §4: Intercalation after stars a month late. Hunger & Pingree 1989, Tablet II Gap A, lines 12-15 & ii 1-6 on pages 90-3.
  6. Page 291 §5: The sacred role of the king. SAA10 introduction pages XVI to XVII, and XX to XXIV.
  7. Page 291 §5: Neo-Assyrian King directly involved in intercalation. SAA8 report 98 lines 8-10; and SAA10 letter 253 lines 15-r2.
  8. Page 291 §6: Earliest sources for month names. Cohen 1993 uses numerous such texts to reconstruct the various calendar systems used in the earliest periods.
  9. Page 292 §1: Single calendar system adopted throughout Mesopotamia. Cohen 1993, pages 7, 11 & 78.
  10. Page 292-3 Throne of the Sanctuary: Cohen 1993, page 81.
  11. §1-2: Cohen 1993, pages 306-7.
  12. §3: Cohen 1993, page 306.
  13. Page 293 Horned Oxen march forth: Cohen 1993, page 84.
  14. §1: Cohen 1993, pages 84-5 & 89-91.
  15. §2: Cohen 1993, page 310.
  16. Page 293 Brick-mould: Cohen 1993, pages 92-3.
  17. §1: Cohen 1993, pages 95 & 310-1.
  18. §2: Cohen 1993, page 314.
  19. Page 293-4 Casting of Seed: Cohen 1993, page 96.
  20. §1: Cohen 1993, pages 315, 316-7; Livingstone 1986, pages 117, 136, 139 & 121 line 19 of text.
  21. §2: Cohen 1993, page 315.
  22. §3-4: Cohen 1993, pages 318-9; Livingstone 1986, pages 255 & 257.
  23. Page 294 Braziers: Cohen 1993, page 100.
  24. §1: Cohen 1993, pages 101, 103, 320 & 390.
  25. §2: Cohen 1993, pages 319-20.
  26. §3: Cohen 1993, pages 103-4, 320-1 & 463 for the Maqlu ceremony.
  27. Page 294 Work of the Goddesses: Cohen 1993, pages 104-5.
  28. §2: Cohen 1993, page 322,
  29. §3: Cohen 1993, pages 105 & 322.
  30. Page 295 Sacred Mound: Cohen 1993, page 106.
  31. §1-2: Cohen 1993, pages 6, 107 & 328.
  32. §3: Cohen 1993, pages 327-8.
  33. Page 295-6Release of the Plough: Cohen 1993, page 112.
  34. §1: Cohen 1993, pages 97, 112, 331-2.
  35. §2: Cohen 1993, page 331.
  36. Page 296 Clouds: Cohen 1993, page 114.
  37. §1-2: Cohen 1993, pages 333-4.
  38. §3: Cohen 1993, page 334.
  39. Page 296 §1: Cohen 1993, page 78, 116 & 319.
  40. §2: Cohen 1993, page 335.
  41. §3: …….. Išum
  42. Page 297 Festival of Emmer Wheat: Cohen 1993, page 119.
  43. §1: Cohen 1993, page 119.
  44. §2: Translated from BPO2, page 82, lines 25-34 in reference to Weidner 1915, page 87, lines 25-34.
  45. Page 297 Barley harvest: Cohen 1993, pages 120-1.
  46. §1-2: Cohen 1993, pages 120-1 & 124.
  47. §3: Cohen 1993, page 340.

 

APPENDIX 9

  1. Page 298 §2: ‘If the Star Cluster reaches the Destroyer… SAA8 report 491 lines r3-4.

 

APPENDIX 10

  1. Page 300 §1: For the Four regions see Horowitz 1998, pages 298-9.
  2. Page 300 §1: Roaf 1966, page 82 for Sumer and Akkad known at the end of the Early Dynastic period; page 108 for Amurru occurring in the last centuries of the 3rd Millennium and for Subartu being known in the Akkadian period.
  3. Page 300 §2: Types of phenomena associated with the Four Regions. Brown 2000, pages 139-40.
  4. Page 300 §3: ‘If Venus rises in the path of Enlil… BPO3 page 221 omen 3.
  5. Page 300 §4: The 12 stars of Akkad, Elam & Amurru. GSL lines 201-21, pages 197-9.
  6. Page 300 §8: Astrologers report. SAA8 report 491, lines r7-13.

 

APPENDIX 12

  1. Page 302: Basic information on the Four Winds can be found in Horowitz 1998, pages 195-8. The deity attributions can be found in Livingstone 1986, pages 74-6. The animal attributions are from GSL lines 295-8 on pages 203-5. The stars marking the Four Winds are found in Hunger & Pingree 1989, Tablet II i 68-71 on page 87.

 

APPENDIX 13 – Page 303. General note: I intend to expand and reorganise this section in a future edition.

  1. Head of Goatfish = She-Goat. See Goatfish note 4
  2. Tail of Goatfish = Fish. See Goatfish note 5
  3. Fish = Anunitum & Swallow. See Anunitum & Swallow
  4. Wagon = Chariot. Implied in BPO3, page 101 omen 4, as Chariot is adjacent to Old Man.
  5. Arrow = Arrow of Pabilsag. See Pabilsag note 14
  6. Šarur & Šargaz = Pabilsag. See Pabilsag note 15
  7. Crook = Hired Man. See Appendix 4 under VR 46
  8. Scales = Crab. See SAA8 report 39 lines 1-5 for an omen usually used for Saturn in the Scales being applied to Saturn in the Crab
  9. Star Cluster = Frond of Erua. Upon rechecking I no longer advocate this proposition.
  10. Star of Eridu = Kidney = Great One. See Kidney note 1
  11. Field = Furrow. See Field
  12. Bow = Furrow (+Frond). See Bow
  13. Field behind which is the Star Cluster = Hired Man. See Hired Man
  14. Yoke = Goatfish. See BPO3 page 195 omen 7 commentary.
  15. Crook = Widow’s Oven. See BPO2 text VIII line 5 – given only in Akkadian.
  16. Kidney = Goatfish. See BPO2 text III line 28b.

 

APPENDIX 14

  1. Widow’s Oven – Tail of Sitting Dog. See GSL line 155, page 195.
  2. Crook – Chariot. See Chariot.
  3. Bison-man – Wild Boar. See Appendix 2.
  4. Anzu-bird – Horse. See GSL line 159, page 195.
  5. Lion – Bridle. See SAA8 report 81, and GSL line 136, page 193.
  6. Claws of Scorpion – Scales. See Scorpion’s Claws.
  7. Anunitum – Maggot or Worm. See GSL line 165, page 195.
  8. Anunitum & Swallow – Tails. See the Tails.
  9. Abundance – Front Harness. See Appendix 4 under Ziqpu-stars.
  10. Dignity – Rear Harness. See Appendix 4 under Ziqpu-stars.
  11. Standing Gods – Circle. See Appendix 4 under Ziqpu-stars.
  12. Yoke – Šupa. See Appendix 4 under Ziqpu-stars.
  13. Bull’s Jaw – Crown of Anu. See Mul-Apin in Appendix 4
  14. Sitting Dog – Doublets & Triplets. See Appendix 4 under Ziqpu-stars.

 

APPENDIX 16 – Page 308

  1. §1: For an alternative examination of the Exaltations. See also Rochberg-Halton 1988b, pages 53-7; and Koch-Westenholz 1995, pages 134-6. I have subsequently written a fuller account of the Babylonian Exaltations which is available on the Skyscript web-site.
  2. §1: For three of the Exaltations See Appendix 4 under Gu-text.
  3. §1: For the Exaltations in Neo-Assyrian inscriptions. Reiner 1995, pages 74 & 75.
  4. §2: ‘If the Scales’ position is stable… SAA8 report 547.
  5. §2: ‘If the Bow reaches the Arrow… BPO2 text XVI line 17.
  6. §3: The underpinning calendrical theory of the Exaltations. Hunger & Pingree 1989, page 147.
  7. §4: For the use of ‘secret house’ in horoscopes. Rochberg 1998, pages 46-50.
  8. §4: The second Exaltation of Venus. BPO3 page 233, omen 13.

 

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MUL-APIN

Posted on October 25, 2011 by gavin664

Mul-Apin is a composite text that can be thought of as a general compendium dealing with many diverse aspects of celestial divination.The first sections of tablet 1 list all the mainstream Babylonian constellations along with the deities associated with them. Various other sections give the rising dates for the stars and provide further useful information that helps to locate the constellations in relation to each other and as such it is the single most important resource for reconstructing the overall plan of the Babylonian starmap.
Even though the earliest copy so far discovered was only written shortly after 700 BCE, the text was probably composed sometime between 1200 and 1000 BCE.
The following lists are derived from ‘Mul.Apin, An Astronomical Compendium in Cuneiform’ by Hermann Hunger and David Pingree, 1989. The locations of the Babylonian stars in terms of the Greek stars are my own attributions.

Mul-Apin divides the stars into northern, equatorial and southern paths:

33 Northern stars on the path of Enlil
The Plough, Enlil, the lead star of the stars of Enlil  (Most of Draco)
The Wolf at the seed funnel of the Plough  (Head & middle of Draco)
The Old Man, Enmesharra  (Perseus)
The Crook, the Crouching god  (Auriga)
The Great Twins, Lugalirra and Meslamtaea  (Gemini)
The Little Twins, Alammush and Ninezengud  (Canis Minor)
The Crab, the seat of Anu  (Cancer)
The Lion, Latarak  (Leo)
The stars that stands in the breast of the Lion, the King Star (The star Regulus in Leo)
The dusky stars that stand in the tail of the Lion, the Frond of Erua, Zarpanitu  (Coma Berenices & the western part of Virgo)
Shupa, Enlil, who decrees the fate of the land  (Bootes)
The star before him, the Star of Abundance, the messenger of Ninlil  (A star in the western part part of Bootes)
The star behind him, the Star of Dignity, the messenger of Tishpak (A star in the eastern part of Bootes)
The Wagon, Ninlil  (The 7 principal stars of Ursa Major)
The star at the shaft of the Wagon, the Fox, Erra, the strong one among the gods  (The star Zeta in Ursa Major)
The star at the front of the Wagon, the Ewe, Aya  (Probably the star Epsilon in Ursa Major)
The Hitched Yoke, Anu, the great one of the heavens  (the star Eta in Ursa Major)
The Wagon of Heaven, Damkianna  (Ursa Minor)
The star on its rope, the Heir of the Sublime Temple, the first ranking son of Anu  (The star Polaris in Ursa Minor)
The Standing Gods of the E-kur, the Sitting Gods of the E-kur  (The western part of Ophiuchus; Corona Borealis)
The She-Goat, Gula  (Lyra)
The star before the She-Goat, the Sitting Dog (Most of Hercules)
The bright star of the She-Goat, Lamma, the messenger of Baba  (The star Vega in Lyra)
Two stars behind her, Ninsar and Erragal (The stars Beta & Gamma in Lyra)
The Panther, Nergal  (Most of Cygnus & probably part of Cepheus)
The star to his right, the Swine, Damu  (Probably Delphinus)
The star to his left, the Horse (front legs of Pegasus & Lacerta)
The star behind him, the Stag, messenger of the Star Cluster  (Cassiopeia & part of Andromeda)
The dusky stars at the breast of the Stag, Harriru, god of the Rainbow (The spiral galaxy M31 in Andromeda)
The bright red star at the kidney of the Stag, the Destroyer (The star Gamma in Cassiopeia)

23 Equatorial stars on the Path of Anu
The Field, the seat of Ea, which leads the stars of Anu  (The 4 stars of the Square of Pegasus)
The star at the Field, the Swallow (The head & neck of Pegasus, & the western fish of Pisces)
The star behind the Field, Anunitum (The northern fish of Pisces)
The star behind it, the Hired Man, Dumuzi  (Aries)
The Star Cluster, the Seven Gods, the great gods  (The Pleiades)
The Bull of Heaven, the Bull’s Jaw, the Crown of Anu  (Taurus, or at least its head)
The True Shepherd of Anu, Papsukal, the messenger of Anu and Ishtar  (Orion)
The Twins who are opposite the True Shepherd of Anu, Lulal and Latarak (Cetus & part of Eridanus)
The star behind him, the Rooster (Lepus)
The Arrow, the arrow of the great god Ninurta  (The star Sirius & probably other stars in Canis Major)
The Bow, the Elamite Ishtar, the daughter of Anu  (Puppis)
The Serpent, Ningishzida, lord of the Underworld  (Hydra)
The Raven, the star of Adad  (Corvus)
The Furrow, Shala with her ear of barley  (The eastern part of Virgo)
The Scales, the Horn of the Scorpion  (Libra)
Zababa (The eastern part of Ophiuchus), the Eagle (Aquila) and the Dead Man (Sagitta)

15 Southern stars on the Path of Ea
The Fish, Ea, the lead star of the stars of Ea  (Pisces Austrinus)
The Great One, Ea (Aquarius). The Star of Eridu, Ea  (Vela)
The star to his right, Ninmah (Vela)
The Wild Boar, Ningirsu  (Most of Centaurus)
The star to its side, the Harrow, the weapon of Mar-biti, within which one sees the Abyss (The western part of Centaurus)
The two stars that are behind him, Shullat and Hanish, Shamas and Adad  (Two stars in Centaurus)
The star behind them, rises like Ea and sets like Ea, Numushda, Adad  (Unknown, possibly part of the Milky Way)
The star to the left of the Scorpion, the Mad Dog, Kusu  (Lupus)
The Scorpion, Ishhara, the governess of the lands  (Scorpio)
The Breast of the Scorpion, Lisi and Nabu (The star Antares in Scorpio)
The two stars on the Stinger of the Scorpion, Sharur and Shargaz (The stars Lambda and Nu in Scorpio)
The star behind them, Pabilsag (Sagittarius)
The Cargo-Boat (Corona Australis)and the Goatfish (Capricorn) 

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BABYLONIAN STAR-LORE

Posted on October 25, 2011 by gavin664

PUBLISHER’S UPDATE: ‘Babylonian Star-Lore’ is to be updated and republished with full text and illustration references by late 2014

___________________________________________________________

BABYLONIAN STAR-LORE
An Illustrated Guide to the Stars & Constellations
of Ancient Babylonia

by Gavin White

Today our most obvious link to the ancient cultures of Babylonia is through the twelve constellations that make up the zodiac. The zodiac is, however, but a part of a much larger system of star-lore that could reveal so much about ancient man and his beliefs. Knowledge of this lore could provide many profound insights into how early civilizations viewed the gods, the nature of the universe and the destiny of mankind.
This book is the first of its kind, specifically written for the layman, to explore the constellations and star-lore of ancient Babylonia. It presents the idea that the constellation figures as a whole amount to a pictorial calendar that integrates various seasonal festivals – concerned with the mythic life-cycle of the sun, the farming and herding year, the institution of kingship and various rites directed towards the dead – into an elegant system that ultimately represents an archaic image of time itself.

The Introductory section describes the structure of the archaic cosmos, and then goes on to give an overview of the whole star-map.
The main body of the book is comprised of an A-Z gazette, which explores the names, appearances ans associated lore of each star and constellation in greater detail.
A set of appendices furnishes additional background information on the reconstruction of the Babylonian star-map, the history of star-lore in Mesopotamia, the calendar, the cuneiform writing system and the use of the stars in divination texts.

Beyond the familiar figures of the zodiac, the Babylonian constellations have laid in almost total obscurity for the last two thousand years. Here for the very first time the complete star-map is reconstructed and many of its secrets revealed, so that now the whole system of celestial symbolism can be restored to something approaching its former glory.

Pages: 324
Illustrations: 169 black & white drawings

10-digit ISNB: 09559037-0-X            13-digit ISNB: 978-0-9559037-0-0

Recommended Retail Price: $29.95     £16.95    Euro:18.95

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A Brief Guide to the Babylonian Constellations

Posted on October 25, 2011 by gavin664

    The following notes describe the essential meanings of the 50 or so mainstream constellations found in the Babylonian tradition. For more information on these and other less well-known stars and constellations the reader is referred to ‘Babylonian Star-lore, An Illustrated Guide to the Star-lore and Constellations of Ancient Babylonia’ by Gavin White.

Anunitum (Northern fish of Pisces) Anunitum was the patron goddess of the city of Akkad. She was closely affiliated to Inanna-Ishtar, who as the ‘Syrian Goddess’ was envisioned holding her sacred fish and dove. As a seasonal symbol the fish of Anunitum represents the spring floods when river carp swim upstream in swollen rivers to their spawning grounds. As a mythic symbol the fish guides the sun on its ascending path from the darkness of winter towards the spring.
Arrow (Sirius & probably other adjacent stars in Canis Major) Although closely associated with the constellation of the Bow, the Arrow is always treated separately in Babylonian tradition. The annual rising of the Arrow marked the summer solstice when the sun was at its maximum height above the horizon. The Arrow was probably chosen for this role as it is the man-made object that can reach highest into the heavens. Similarly, the bird on a high perch, which is often seen besides the Arrow in ancient artwork, can also be thought of as representing the sun at its highest station.
Bow (Puppis – the poop deck of the Argo) The Bow depicts Inanna-Ishtar in her aspect of war goddess and granter of victory. Her star rises in high summer, when campaigns started in the spring come to their natural fruition. Mythical texts often describe the goddess in gory detail in the midst of battle.
Bull of Heaven (Taurus) The Bull of Heaven symbolizes the fecund powers of the spring-time skies – rain and sunshine – which bring life and growth to the earth. The Bull also represents the Golden Calf of biblical fame, which symbolizes the new-born sun emerging from the cosmic waters of creation just as the new-born calf emerges from the waters of the womb.
Cargo-Boat (Pisces Australis) The mythic function of the Cargo-Boat is probably to transport the souls of new-born children from the ancestral realms towards the realms of living. The ‘Cargo’ refers to various objects carried in the boat that symbolize the sex of the child – boys are represented by throwing sticks and axes, girls by spindles, hair-clasps and needles.
Crab (Cancer) The Crab symbolizes the summer-time drought. Like the adjacent Serpent it was thought to withhold the waters of heaven thus preventing any rain from falling during the hot summer months.
Crook (Auriga) The Crook depicts a shepherd tending a goat-kid. It naturally symbolizes the spring-time when the majority of calves, lambs and kids are born in the cattle-folds. The shepherd also symbolizes the king, who figuratively guides his people on the paths of safety and security. The Crook therefore appropriately rises in the first month of the year when the king was enthroned and empowered to rule for another year.
Eagle & Dead Man (Aquila & Sagitta) The Dead Man, carried by the Eagle, represents the souls of the dead traveling into the afterlife. Ir rises just before the winter solstice which is the time when the earth-bound dead were thought to journey to the realm of the ancestors.
Eridu (Vela – the sails of Argo) The Star of Eridu rises in the autumn months when the summer-time drought is broken by the arrival of the rainy season. Her overflowing vases, a common symbol of fertility in artwork, represents the returning rains and the rising water levels in the rivers and canals.
Field (The Square of Pegasus) The Field represents a barley field divided by a series of irrigation ditches. The constellation rises as the barley is regularly irrigated and starts to ripen. In astrology its omens naturally foretell the nature of the coming harvest.
Fish (Pisces Austrinus) Like Anunitum, the Fish symbolizes the season of flooding, which commences in the early spring. Like other creatures of the Abyss, fish were thought to be symbols of wisdom and were accordingly held sacred to Enki, the god of creative intelligence, incantations and magic.
Frond (Coma Berenices & western part of Virgo) The Frond is represented in the heavens by the figure of the goddess Erua holding her sacred branch of the Date-palm. Her constellation rises in the autumn months as the dates are ripening on the fronds.
Furrow (Eastern half of Virgo) The Furrow is obviously the origin of our modern Virgo with her familiar ear of barley. The constellation rises in the autumn when the fields have been prepared and are ready to be sown with the coming season’s barley seed.
Goatfish (Capricorn) The Goatfish rises after the winter solstice, when it announces the welcome return of the sun. I believe that the Goatfish is one of the relatively new constellation figures and can be best understood in terms of two older constellations – the Stag which announces the returning sun, and the Fish which guides the sun through the darkness of winter.
Great One (Aquarius) The Great One with his overflowing vases symbolizes the rains of heaven and the swollen rivers that characterize late winter and early spring. In the context of the star-map he can also be regarded as the ‘Irrigator’ who waters the barley fields that are represented on the star-map by the adjacent constellation known as the Field.
Great Twins (Gemini) The Great Twins are closely related to Nergal, the king of the dead in Mesopotamia tradition. The Twins stand guard, weapons at the ready, at the entrance to the underworld – their divine role being to prevent the living from descending to the realm of the dead, and perhaps more importantly to prevent the dead from rising up to overwhelm the realm of the living.
Harrow(Vela – the sails of the Argo) The Harrow is another seasonal star closely associated with the Furrow. Harrows were used to break down the large clods of earth produced by ploughing; they are used in the early autumn just before the fields are seeded.
Hired Man (Aries) The Hired Man is the Babylonian name for the familiar ram of Aries. The name is really a literate pun, which overtly refers to the hired labour employed in the spring to bring in the barley harvest, but with a little literary license the name can also be understood as something like ‘the sheep of atonement’. It rightly symbolizes the spring-time when the harvest is brought in and the lambs are born in the cattle-folds.
Horse (Front legs of Pegasus & Lacerta) In many ancient cultures the horse is allocated the divine duty of pulling the chariot of the sun. There seem to be two principle reasons underpinning this solar association – one is his great speed, and the other is that his flowing mane was thought to be a fitting symbol of the rays of light emanating from the sun.
Lion (Leo) The Lion has two main strands of symbolism. Firstly as a seasonal star it represents the ferocious heat of summer – its radiant mane stands for the overbearing radiance of the summer sun. Secondly, as the sacred beast of the war goddess Inanna-Ishtar, the Lion represents victory and war. The bright star at its breast (our Regulus) is known as the King Star – here representing the favourite of the goddess to whom she grants victory.
Little Twins (Canis Minor) The Little Twins no doubt share the same symbolism as their larger counterparts – the Great Twins. In astrology both sets of Twins are were thought to predict war and the outbreak of hostilities.
Lulal & Latarak (Cetus & part of Eridanus) The Lion-headed figures known as Lulal and Latarak are probably best regarded as protective deities who have been set at the juncture of the old and new years. Their divine role would therefore be to banish the influences of the past year and to purify the coming calendrical cycle.
Mad Dog (Lupus) The Mad Dog is probably a relic of an ancient star configuration which included the now derelict Bison-man. Together they constituted a version of the ‘Lion-bull’ conflict, which is widely thought to symbolise the seasonal conflict between summer and autumn. Here the bull, who represents the autumn rains slays the lion of summer.
Ninmah (Vela – the sails of Argo) The mother goddess is represented among the stars by Ninmah – the ‘Exalted Lady’. Her star rises in late summer just after the great ancestral festival celebrated in month 5. Just as the winter stars depict the souls of the dead traveling to the underworld, here in late summer new souls destined for birth journey from the ancestral worlds towards the realm of men.
Old Man (Perseus) The Old Man rises in the final month of the year and is appropriately associated with Enmesharra – an ancestral god who resides in the underworld in the form of a ghost.
Pabilsag (Sagittarius) Pabilsag is the direct forerunner to the centaur-archer that we know today as Sagittarius. His name can be translated as the ‘Chief Ancestor’ or ‘Forefather’, and he can be best compared to the Wild Hunter of western folklore who guides the souls of the dead to the afterlife over the course of the winter months.
Panther (Cygnus & part of Cepheus) Like Pabilsag, the Eagle and Dead Man, which all rise at the time of the winter solstice, the Panther is closely associated with the realm of the dead and the afterlife. It is the sacred beast of Nergal, the Babylonian lord of the dead, and it has probably been set among the winter-time stars to guard the entrance to the underworld. A memory of the Panther may well live on in the guise of Cerberus, the three-headed hound that guarded the entrance to the Greek underworld.
Plough (Most of Draco) For the 8 months of the year that the seed-plough was not in use it was suspended from a peg and hung from the rafters of a barn. This farming tradition seems to inform the location and symbolism of the Plough-constellation. The celestial Plough is located in the circumpolar regions – ie the ‘heights of heaven’ that correspond to the barn’s rafters. Like its terrestrial counterpart the celestial Plough is also suspended from a peg, which here represents the pole of the ecliptic – the eternal centre point of the heavens.
Rainbow (M31 Galaxy in Andromeda) The Rainbow is considered a sign of good fortune bringing rain and abundance to the land. It rises in early spring when the rains water the ripening crops.
Raven (Corvus) The Raven is sacred to Adad, the god of rain and storm. Appropriately enough the Raven rises as the summer dry season comes to an end and the storm clouds of autumn start to gather.
Rooster (Lepus) The Rooster is the animal symbol belonging to the herald of the godswho appears in his human form in the adjacent figure known as the True Shepherd of Anu. The Rooster was probably assigned the role of herald to the gods as it announced the coming of dawn each day.
Scales (Libra) The Scales are held sacred to the god Shamash, who was not only the sun god of ancient Mesopotamia but was also the god of truth and justice. His scales symbolised the principle of justice as in the judge ‘weighing up’ the evidence before issuing a commensurate verdict and a fair sentence. The sun god’s all-seeing eye made him the infalliable witness to all deeds and as such men called upon him as the upholder of righteousness and petitioned him to rectify the inequities they suffered.
Scorpion (Scorpio) In astrology the Scorpion’s armoured body segments and its array of weaponry predisposed it to become a creature symbolizing war and the martial prowess of the king. However a different meaning is attached to it in mythic texts such as the Gilgamesh Epic where Scorpion-men and women guard the sacred mountain through which the hero has traverse on his quest for immortality. The Scorpion-people are said to guard the sun at his rising and setting and because Gilgamesh is a favourite of the sun god they allow him to travel the subterranean path that the sun travels every night under the mountain.
Serpent (Hydra) In many cultures the world over the snake is regarded as one of the primary symbols of death and the underworld. In Babylonian lore, the constellation of the Serpent is held sacred to the god Ningishzida, who is a major god of the underworld. He is generally portrayed with a pair of horned serpents arising from his shoulders. In astrology the Serpent is thought to bring plague and pestilence to the land.
She-Goat (Lyra) In astrology the omens of the She-Goat foretell the fate of cattle. However for unknown reasons the constellation is not represented by a goat but by the figure of an enthroned goddess known as Gula. She is the patron of healing and medicine and as a benevolent goddess she naturally has the power to restore the health and life of men. But she also has a darker side as she also has the power to inflict disease and death to man and beast alike.
Sitting Dog (Most of Hercules) The Sitting Dog is the sacred animal of Gula (the regent of the She-Goat). It reflects the darker side of the goddess as it is widely considered to be a harbinger of death and disease. The underlying meaning of the dog is revealed in many cultures where it is simply known as the ‘eater of corpses’ – a rather grisly symbol of all-devouring death. For this reason the dog or wolf is often stationed at the entrance to the underworld in world mythology.
Sitting Gods (Most of Ophiuchus) The serpent-bodied men known as the Sitting and Standing Gods  represent the ancestors of Enlil, the ultimate leader of the whole Babylonian pantheon. They dwell in the Sacred Mound, which is at once a burial mound and an image of the primeval earth. As such the serpent-bodied gods represent the dual powers of the earth as an abode of the dead and as the source of all earthly fertility.
Stag (Cassiopeia & part of Andromeda) In world mythology the stag is frequently associated with the sun and the rekindling of fire – sometimes it is even portrayed pulling the chariot of the sun instead of the more familiar horse. The constellation of the Stag rises just after mid-winter and is no doubt stationed in this region of the heavens to symbolize the rebirth of the sun after its winter-time death.
Standing Gods (Corona Borealis) See the section on the Sitting Gods above.
Star Cluster (Pleiades) The 7 principle stars of the Star Cluster represent seven war-mongering demons found in the entourage of Erra – the ferocious and unpredictable god of war, wild-fire and plague. They are typically portrayed carrying bows, axes and daggers, and in astrology their presence portends the death and destruction brought by war.
Shupa (Bootes) Shupa probably represents the high god Enlil, who is considered to be the leader of the Babylonian pantheon. As a mark of his exalted status he holds the symbol known as the ‘rod and ring’. He is closely associated with the ‘Ropes of Heaven’, which figuratively bind together the various levels of the cosmos and regulate the temporal movement of the heavens.
Swallow (Head & neck of Pegasus plus the western fish of Pisces) The Swallow or ‘Exalted bird’ may be identified with the dove that appears in Greek myths surrounding the Syrian goddess. Her characteristic myth recounts how a dove brooded an enormous egg that two fish found floating in the Euphrates, and that the Syrian goddess herself was born from this egg.
Swine (Probably Delphinus) The Swine is sacred to Damu, ‘the Child’. His cult is closely related to tat of Dumuzi who died every summer and was subsequently reborn every winter. Myths relate how Damu escaped from the underworld via a river and it is thus appropriate that his sacred constellation should rise just after mid-winter.
True Shepherd of Anu (Orion) The True Shepherd represents the herald of the gods, variously called Papshukkal or Ninshubur. Small statues of him were sometimes deposited in a brick box beneath the main cult statue in a temple as if to relay messages between the gods and mankind.
Wagon (The 7 principal stars of Ursa Major) In astrology the Wagon is said to portend eclipses, which are thought to cause the violent death of the king. Various other references in Babylonian literature effectively identify the Wagon as a funeral bier carrying the corpse to the burial ground. Such a meaning has evidently been transmitted to Arabian star-lore where these same stars are envisioned as a group of mourners pulling a funeral bier.
Wagon of Heaven (Ursa Minor) See the description of the Wagon above.
Wild Boar (Most of Centaurus) The Wild Boar is sacred to Ningirsu, a local form of Ninurta, who is a god closely associated with farming. Indeed the boar’s habit of churning up the earth as it forages for food may ultimately be the historical inspiration for the invention of the plough, which allowed early societies to adopt a sedentary lifestyle.
Wolf (Head & middle of Draco) The Wolf gnaws at the harness-work that suspends the Plough to the centre of heaven. When it finally tears the rope asunder, the different levels of the cosmos that the rope unites will collapse bringing about the end of a world-era.
Zababa (Eastern part of Ophiuchus) Zababa was a little known war god sometimes called the ‘king of battles’. He was associated with the city of Kish in northern Babylonia, which produced four dynsties of overlords in the ages immediately after the Great Flood.

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Map 2. Full Reconstruction of the Babylonian Star-Map

Posted on October 25, 2011 by gavin664

Map 2 draws on a wide range of sources including the Greek Star-map, the Dendera Zodiacs and medieval Arabian traditions, to produce a complete reconstruction of the Babylonian heavens. This is, I believe, the first concerted attempt to reconstruct the Babylonian Star-map in the modern era.
The basic meanings of the constellations are summarised in A Brief Guide to the Babylonian Constellations.
For more information the reader is referred to ‘Babylonian Star-lore, An Illustrated Guide to the Star-lore and Constellations of Ancient Babylonia’ by Gavin White.

Copyright Gavin White 2007

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