Ancient Astral Science in Transformation

The introduction of the zodiac in the 5th century BCE was a turning point in the history of astral science, as well as in science, and culture at large. The zodiac became the central concept for interpreting, predicting, computing and representing celestial phenomena. The “zodiacal turn” was accompanied by a “mathematical turn” in predictive astronomy, and a “personal turn” in astrology with the emergence of practices such as horoscopy that cater to private individuals. From Babylonia, zodiac-based astral science – astronomy, astrology, and related practices – spread to Egypt, the Greco-Roman world, and beyond, shaping subsequent cultures until the modern age. Since astral science was connected to social practices, religious doctrines, philosophical theories and iconographic expressions, its cross-cultural diffusion can be compared with that of Christianity, Islam, or Copernican astronomy. But how was zodiac-based astral science able to move across the ancient world between linguistically and religiously different cultures and take root there? What explains this cross-cultural phenomenon of global scope?

ZODIAC aims to answer these questions by setting out from the hypothesis that zodiac-based astral science offered universally appealing, readily adaptable solutions to social, religious and political needs that emerged in multi-cultural empires. Accordingly, ZODIAC uses an interdisciplinary approach that pays full attention to all aspects that shape transmission, by conceiving astral science as a package or toolbox of interconnected astronomical, astrological, mathematical and other practices. ZODIAC carries out the first in-depth, comprehensive study of cross-cultural transformations in textual and iconographic sources. The aim of this approach is to reveal strategies that foster acceptance of astronomical and astrological practices in new contexts. A key element was the reliability of ancient predictions. ZODIAC uses modern astrophysical data to analyse their accuracy. In the second stage of the project, recent scholarship on ancient empires will contextualise astral science in a new framework that transcends microhistorical approaches. This will be developed in dialogue with existing models of innovation, transmission, and theory change, thus connecting ancient astral science to contemporary narratives of globalisation.

Stage 1 of the project (months 1-30) focused on the objective of uncovering how concepts, theories, and practices of ancient astral science are represented in texts, images and artefacts, and how they were cross-culturally transformed between Babylonia, Egypt, and the Greco-Roman world. During regular weekly meetings (plus further additional focus sessions, see 1.2 below), various aspects of knowledge transfer and of astrological doctrines were discussed and new findings were made. A first major achievement was the launch of the first ever cross-cultural glossary for ancient zodiac-based astral science (2023), accessible at zodiac.fly.dev. Team members have contributed to it by entering lemmata and discussing its results. A second one was the workshop "Imagining the Sky: The Zodiac and related Astral Imagery in the Ancient World" (2022), proceedings of which are being prepared for publication. A third one consists of new findings made in the ancient sources. In the field of Babylonian astronomy new editions of over 100 astronomical tables were prepared for publication. In the field of Babylonian astrology, a new categorization of its genres was developed and several important discoveries were made in astrological doctrines. In the field of Egyptian astral science an astrological manual was prepared for publication. A new finding concerns the role of images as an early vehicle for knowledge transfer between Egypt and its neighbours. In the field of Greco-Roman astral science, the re-edition of 60 papyri with Greek astrological treatises is, as planned, nearly finalized and will come out soon. A major discovery concerning the astrological doctrine of the chronokratores ("Time Rulers") was made. Preparations were made for two international workshops to be held in 2024 on astronomical computation and on cross-cultural knowledge transfer.

The most important innovative aspects of the project are 1) a new hypothesis as the point of departure for the first comprehensive account of the emergence, development and transmission of ancient zodiacal astral science, to be developed in dialogue with existing models of innovation, transmission and theory change. The new account will significantly advance scholarship on ancient astral science by relating it to the global history of science and culture. Moreover, it aspires to set a benchmark for future research on innovation and transmission in ancient science. 2) Interdisciplinarity across the divide between the humanities and natural science (astronomy, astrophysics) as well as within the humanities through close collaboration between historians of science, Assyriologists, Egyptologists and specialists of Greco-Roman science. 3) An integrative approach to astral science that pays full attention to text, image, artefacts and their interactions. Other areas that will be significantly advanced are Assyriology (the first comprehensive investigation of Babylonian zodiacal astrology), Egyptology (integration of ancient Egypt into the global history of astral science; first cross-cultural investigation of Egyptian zodiacs), Greco-Roman and classical studies (significant contribution to longstanding debates about the interactions between Babylonian, Egyptian and Greco-Roman science and culture) and science and technology studies (upgrading models of innovation, transmission and theory change to account for the emergence and spread of zodiacal astral science in the ancient world).

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - ZODIAC (Ancient Astral Science in Transformation)

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