(sorry, wrong place - this post is a reply to Ritva)

Ritva: "It does seem that Sirius was at least associated with the New Year and the height of the Nile (hence inundation) rather early, since by the 6th dynasty the seasons were already out of whack"


Interesting quote Ritva, thanks for posting it!


The seasons and the calendar were in sync around 2771 - 2781 BC. At this time, the heliacal rising of Sirius coincided with 1 Akhet, the beginning of their calendar year, and also around the time of the annual inundation, the summer solstice, and also as icing on the cake, Thuban, the then Pole or North Star came closest to the North Celestial Pole, which means it appeared as the only stationary point of light in their sky, around which all other stars appeared to circle.


The crucial annual inundation may have played an important role in the formation of the AE calendar - the first season, Akhet (Axt), refers to the inundation, but the actual date of the inundation could vary considerably, which does not make it a suitable marker for the beginning of the year. The heliacal rising of Sirius however was a suitable astronomical marker for the beginning of the year.


The heliacal rising of Sirius (Egyp. spdt; Gr. Sothis) occurred on the first day of the inundation month (1 Axt) - the first day of the year, during a four year period from 136 - 39. Calculating backward according to the 'Sothic Cycle' of about 1453 years, it also fell on 1 Axt from 1317 - 1320 BC and again from 2771 - 2774 BC.


From the 'Degree of Canopus' (239 BC) written in three scripts, Egyptian hieroglyphs, Egyptian Demonic, and Greek:

Hieroglyphic text: m hrw pr(t) spdt Ddwt (sic) wp rnpt m rn.f Hr sSw nw pr anx ("on the day of the rising of Sirius called 'opener of the year' in the writings of the House of Life.")

Demonic text: n pA hrw ntj-jw spdt xa n-jm.f ntj-jw Dd n.f HAt rnpt (n) rn Hr nA sXw (n) pr anx ("on the day on which Sirius appears, which is called the beginning of the new year in the writings of the House of Life.")

The Greek text states that the rising "is considered to be new year by the sacred writings."

CT



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/16/2008 02:23PM by Chris Tedder.