Astronomical Orientation

Apollo, the Sun God, is one of the most prominent deities in the Ancient Greek religion. The temples and the oracles dedicated to the cult of Apollo correlate the selection of their geographical site with their special orientation, as based on ancient astronomical practices of symbolic and ritual importance. By studying the Ancient Greek temples, as for example the temples of Apollo, various researchers in the field of Archaeoastronomy, as for example, Ranieri discovered their special, non-random orientation. In this paper the special orientations of thirteen temples of Apollo are studied by the application of a novel criterion, the criterion of the platonic gnomonic factor (fgp). The majority of the temples have special arithmetic values of their corresponding fgp, and this result leads us to suggest a hypothetical application of a methodology, relating to the value of the gnomonic factor and the orientation of the temple; implemented at the time of the definition of its construction. We find that for six out of thirteen temples of Apollo, a correlation between the gnomonic factors implied by the site selected for them, their specific orientation as well as the size of their basement, exists. This analysis of the sites and orientations from a gnomonic perspective could shed light to some cultural aspects of the ancient civilizations, and their symbolic relation with the cult of this Sun God.

The monograph presents the results of a systematic archaeoastronomical study of orientations in the lowland Maya architecture. Since the formerly available alignment data were deficient and of low precision, we accomplished field measurements of 271 buildings at 87 archaeological sites; both in fieldwork and in the analyses and interpretations of alignment data we employed more rigorous methodology than the one applied in previous studies. The analyses have shown that most of the important buildings were oriented to sunrises and sunsets on certain dates, whose concentrations and distribution reflect the use of observational calendars, which facilitated the scheduling of agricultural activities and related rituals. Also detected were two orientation groups referring to Venus and lunar extremes. The proposed interpretations concerning the use and significance of orientations are both novel and convincing, not only for being based on a large sample of reliable quantitative data, but also because they are supported by a wide variety of ethnographic, historical and iconographic evidence.

An archaeoastronomical study recently accomplished in the Maya area revealed that the architecture on the northeast coast of the Yucatán peninsula is characterized by some peculiar orientation trends, which we have not been able to explain in a satisfactory manner. In order to acquire additional information, in November 2015 we measured the orientations of 34 structures at 21 archaeological sites. The book presents the results of this work, as well as some analyses based on all the available data from the northeast coast. Their distribution shows that the percentage of orientations related to the Sun is notably lower than in other parts of the Maya Lowlands. The orientations to the major lunar extremes (also known as standstill positions), which are quite rare elsewhere, constitute the most prominent group on the northeast coast, most likely reflecting the fact that the worship of the goddess Ixchel, associated with the Moon, was very important in the region, particularly during the Postclassic period, when most of the buildings included in the study were constructed. The lunar alignments are regularly associated with those referring to the solstices; the analysis of declinations corresponding to both groups has disclosed that their referents must have been predominantly the major northerly extremes of the Moon on the western horizon and the southern (winter solstice) extremes of the Sun on the eastern horizon. It is thus possible to conclude that a special attention was paid to the full Moon extremes, considering that these phenomena are always visible around the solstices and can be observed almost simultaneously with those of the Sun, but on diametrically opposed horizons. The significance of lunar orientations can be accounted for by the Moon’s aquatic and fertility symbolism, which was likely based on the observed correlations between lunar cycles and the periodicity of climatic variations and other changes in natural environment, whereas the combinations of lunar and solstitial alignments are congruent with the conceptual relationship between the Sun and the full Moon, characteristic of the Mesoamerican world view. The solstitial orientations represent the second most important group on the northeast coast, conceivably because of their relation with lunar alignments. The remaining solar orientations probably allowed the use of observational calendars similar in structure to those that have been documented in other parts of Mesoamerica and whose purpose was to facilitate a proper scheduling of seasonal activities. For the third most significant group of orientations on the northeast coast we propose some stellar motives, but the hypothesis requires further testing. Finally, by analyzing the orientations of coastal structures, we note that many of them exhibit a rather close correspondence with the adjacent shoreline, but since they also pertain to astronomically significant groups, we argue that the seafront buildings must have often been erected on selected places, where both astronomical and topographic criteria could be met.

Apollo’s sacred island, Delos, is an extended archaeological site, which contains important
monuments dating from prehistoric to Hellenistic times. In this article the orientation
of some of the most significant monuments of the site are studied.
Each monument has been measured by means of modern accurate geodetic and astrogeodetic
methods and instrumentation so that its plan, its main (longitudinal) axis,
the profile of the perceptible horizon as seen from the monument and the astronomical
azimuth of the main axis are determined.
Special attention and study have been reserved to the Cave of Kynthos (Andron), as
the latter was considered as an ancient observatory.
This study attempts also a possible dating of the measured monuments based on
their orientation and its relation to special celestial bodies.
All data deduced by measurements and calculations, as well as historical information
have been used for the creation of a database in Macromedia software.

A recently accomplished systematic study of 271 architectural orientations measured at 87 archaeological sites in the Maya Lowlands led to several conclusions about the underlying astronomical motives. In order to test these proposals, we have performed a number of statistical analyses, employing kernel density estimations (KDEs) and cluster analyses without preconceived ideas on the directionality of the different buildings. Since most buildings have roughly rectangular ground plans, both north-south and east-west orientation axes were analyzed. Our KDE analyses, in which the errors assigned to alignment data were considered, are based on the assumption that the direction in which a particular orientation group was astronomically functional is indicated in histograms by narrower maxima with larger amplitudes. The distribution of azimuths and declinations suggests that the orientations were functional predominantly in the east-west direction, largely referring to the Sun, but the existence of alignments to the major extremes of Venus and the Moon on the horizon is also highly likely. The analyses of the distribution of sunrise and sunset dates corresponding to solar orientations, as well as of the intervening intervals, support the idea that the orientations recorded the dates separated by multiples of 13 and 20 days, allowing the use of easily manageable observational calendars intended to facilitate a proper scheduling of agricultural activities and the associated rituals. As revealed by cluster analyses, the East Coast and the Usumacinta basin share similar orientation trends, which are, however, notably different from those in the rest of the Maya Lowlands, probably reflecting regional variations observed also in other cultural elements.

The exact date of the foundation of the Katholikon of Daphni monastery is unknown. Based on
the stylistic data of its mosaic decoration the archaeologists suggest that its mosaics date to the end
of the eleventh century, which is either a terminus ante quem for the construction of the Katholikon
or the mosaic decoration is contemporary to this construction.
In this paper we attempt to determine the foundation date of the Katholikon of Daphni, on the
base of its astronomical orientation and by applying the general astrogeodetic method elaborated by
one of us (G. Pantazis) in this case. As results from our investigation, the Katholikon, which is
sacred to the Virgin Mary, was very likely founded on the day of the celebration of the Dormition
of the Virgin in 1153, i.e. in August 15, 1153 (±8years). If it is so, both the church and its famous
mosaic decoration date circa half a century later than it is generally accepted by the archaeologists.