Start year
1993
Organizational Unit
Organizing institutions
Grants related:
General
Description
The main objective of this project is to study the importance of astronomy as a fundamental part of human culture and civilization from Paleolithic to the present day. Our interest is mainly devoted to the people of the ancient Mediterranean cultures from the Atlantic to the Middle East, with a special dedication to Spain, its geographical neighbourhood and ancient Egypt. However, we are also developing projects in Mesoamerica, Peru and the Pacific islands.
Members
Principal investigator
Juan Antonio
Belmonte Avilés
Project staff
César
Esteban López
Collaborators
Antonio
Aparicio Juan
Dr.
José Luis Escacena
Dr.
Magdi Fekri
Dr.
M.C. Gallegos
Dr.
Marco García Quintela
Dr.
Michael Hoskin
Dr.
Dimiter Kolev
Dr.
Migel Ángel Molinero Polo
Dr.
Mª Antonia Perera Betancor
Dr.
Manuel Pérez
Dr.
Andrea Polcaro
Dr.
Margarita Sanz de Lara Barrios
Dr.
Antonio Tejera Gaspar
Dr.
José María Vaquero
Dr.
Mauro Zedda
Results
- The summit of Gran Canaria has been considered as an excellent example of a Cultural Landscape worthy of being declared World Heritage site within the Astronomy and World Heritage Initiative of UNESCO and the IAU. In 2018 the memory has been completed and the process of evaluation by ICOMOS has begun.
- A rock engraving or petroglyph of the aboriginal era on the island of La Palma (Benahoare) has been interpreted as an island map where its major landmarks are represented for purposes of sympathetic magic. This is without doubt one of the finest examples of prehistoric map produced before the development of modern cartography.
- The megalithic monumental complex of Castillejo del Bonete stands as the first evidence of a solar marker (towards the winter solstice sunrise) in a megalithic site of the Iberian Peninsula, indicating that the precise location of the monument was carefully chosen (Benítez de Lugo Enrich, L., Esteban, C., 2018).
Scientific activity
Related publications
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Archaeoastronomy and Conflict: On the Orientation of Prehistoric Funerary Monuments in Western SaharaA variety of Prehistoric dry-stone monuments are ubiquitous in Western Sahara, a region delimited by the boundaries of the former Spanish colony. With either burial or ritual functions, these monuments are spread throughout the Sahara Desert creating sacred landscapes and housing the memory of millennia of occupation. Previous research has exploredRodríguez-Antón, A. et al.
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12023 -
Iluminación solar y el calendario aborigen en Cuevas del Barranco de La Angostura (Agüimes, Gran Canaria)We present the results of the monitoring of solar lighting inside cave n. 3 of the aboriginal archaeological site of Cuevas del Barranco de la Angostura (Agüimes, Gran Canaria). The cave has a cylindrical shape with a vaulted roof and topped by a skylight, similar to other caves where the existence of astronomical markers has been proposed. We findJuan Manuel Caballero Suárez et al.
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2023 -
An archaeology of the sky in Gaul in the Augustan periodAncient Gaul was transformed during the reign of Augustus (r. 31 BC–14 AD) through a major programme of city building. The new Roman cities were constructed according to topographic, health and ritual considerations, and we hypothesise that their orientations also reflect distinct celestial conceptions held by the Gauls and by the Roman emperorGarcía-Quintela, M. et al.
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22023 -
Archaeoastronomy and the alleged “Stonehenge calendar”In a recent Antiquity article, Darvill (2022) proposed that the mid third-millennium BC Stage 2 sarsen settings of Stonehenge (comprising the Trilithon Horseshoe, Sarsen Circle and the Station Stone Rectangle) were conceived in order to represent a calendar year of 365.25 days—that is, a calendar identical in duration to the Julian calendar. In theMagli, G. et al.
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62023 -
On the orientation of historic Christian churches of Fuerteventura: conciliating tradition, winds and topographyWe present the results of an analysis of the precise spatial orientation of colonial Christian churches located in the Canary Island of Fuerteventura (Spain). Our sample consists of 48 churches, most built during the period between the Castilian conquest led by the Norman Jean de Béthencourt in the early fifteenth century and the end of theMuratore, F. et al.
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72023 -
Bocapucheros (Almagro, Ciudad Real): nuevo tipo de enterramiento tumular en la Cultura de las MotillasResumen: Se presentan los resultados del estudio topográfico, antropológico-tafonómico y arqueoastronómico de Bocapucheros, un nuevo complejo monumental tumular del Bronce de La Mancha de la comarca Campo de Calatrava, muy próximo al poblado fortificado de La Encantada (Granátula de Calatrava). Los primeros análisis sobre restos humanos identificanPeña Romo, V. et al.
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102022 -
Land- and Skyscapes of the Camino de Santiago: An Astronomy and World Heritage Sustainable ApproachThe Romanesque churches dotted along the Way of Saint James are magnificent examples of cultural heritage, and their analysis from the perspective of cultural astronomy may, in an unobtrusive manner, provide information of hitherto unexplored facets of these treasures. This study aims to examine the pilgrimage road as a communication channel and toUrrutia-Aparicio, M. et al.
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32022 -
Ad orientem: Las iglesias románicas del Camino Francés en los reinos de Castilla y León bajo la perspectiva de la Astronomía Cultural*Ad orientem: Romanesque Churches of the French Way in the kingdoms of Castile and Leon from a Cultural Astronomy perspectRESUMEN: En este trabajo se examina, desde la perspectiva de la Astronomía Cultural, si las iglesias románicas del Camino de Santiago siguen un patrón de orientación común a todas ellas. Para ello, se ha obtenido la orientación Ambos reinos comparten orientaciones hacia la salida del sol el domingo de Pascua, probablemente obtenidas en su mayoríaBelmonte, J. A. et al.
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122021 -
Orientación solar del Traianeum de Italica (Santiponce, Sevilla, España)El Traianeum fue un gran complejo sacro del siglo II d.C. construido por el emperador Adriano en la antigua ciudad de Italica (Santiponce, Sevilla, España), situada en la provincia Baetica. Su nombre actual nace de la hipótesis de que dicho templo estuvo dedicado al culto imperial de Trajano. En este artículo se trabaja con esta interpretación. LosEscacena Carrasco, J. L. et al.
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42021 -
El espacio ordenado. Paisaje, orientaciones y astronomía en los albores de la época ibérica en Mazaleón (Teruel).Presentamos un estudio arqueoastronómico de la denominada habitación 2 del poblado preibérico de San Cristóbal de Mazaleón (siglos VII-VI a.C.) y de varios túmulos de la necrópolis contemporánea asociada. La habitación 2 presenta una orientación ajustada a los ejes cardinales y un marcador del orto solar en fechas alrededor de losEsteban, C. et al.
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12021 -
East or Easter? keys to the orientation of Romanesque churches along the way of Saint JamesThe pilgrimage along the Way of Saint James constituted the principal mechanism for the introduction of new currents of thought into the Iberian Peninsula, such as Romanesque architecture. Taking this into account, we examined whether the standard tradition on the orientation of Christian churches was followed. We measured the orientation of 108Urrutia-Aparicio, Maitane et al.
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82021 -
Archaeoastronomy/Cultural AstronomyArchaeoastronomy and cultural astronomy are often considered synonyms, but they actually express different concepts, the former being a sub-discipline of the latter. Cultural astronomy is a fascinating but controversial discipline, which serves as an auxiliary subject to social sciences such as history, archaeology, anthropology, and ethnographyBelmonte, J. A.
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2021 -
¿Atrapando el solsticio? Un análisis crítico de la orientación de los templos de Deir el-BahariResumen: Durante campañas realizadas la década pasada en el marco de la Misión Arqueoastronómica del Egipto antiguo se estudiaron los templos de Deir el-Bahari, en particular el de Mentuhotep II y el de Hatshepsut. Aunque grosso modo parecían pertenecer a la familia de los templos orientados a la salida del sol en el solsticio de invierno, dichaBelmonte, J. A. et al.
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12021 -
The River and the Sky: Astronomy and Topography in Caral Society, America's First Urban CentersAmerica's first urban centers may have been located in the Supe Valley, Peru. After investigating the location and the orientation of the main built structures, we show that it is not only the presence of the Supe River that determines their orientation but also that astronomical relationships within the orientation of the buildings dictate theirGonzález-García, A. César et al.
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32021 -
Determinación de orientaciones de ciudades romanas por medio de la varatio / Orientation layout of Roman towns by using the varatioEn el presente artículo se aborda la tan debatida cuestión de las orientaciones de ciudades romanas combinando dos procedimientos: un análisis estadístico de las orientaciones de una muestra significativa de ciudades romanas en la península ibérica, y los resultados de una investigación basada en la experimentación y reconstrucción de instrumentalOrfila Pons, M. et al.
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92020 -
Equinox in Petra: Land- and Skyscape in the Nabataean CapitalIn earlier works, we had shown the actual possibility that the Nabataeans had used the Equinox, or an astronomical event equivalent to this, as an important milestone to control the calendar, stablish festivals and perform pilgrimages to important sacred sites. In this paper we present evidence that this was indeed the case. In a research carriedBelmonte, J. A. et al.
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62020 -
Lunar Standstills or Lunistices, Reality or Myth?There is an intense debate in cultural astronomy on the importance of lunar standstills in prehistory or antiquity, and even on whether this elusive and difficult-to-understand phenomenon actually was then recognised. In the present paper, we seek to address those who advocate no longer using the terms "lunar standstill" or the related "lunistice"González-García, A. C. et al.
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32020 -
Cuando la ortodoxia no es lo más relevante: El paisaje de La Gomera y la orientación de sus iglesiasPresentamos un estudio de la relación entre astronomía y paisaje centrado en la orientación de las iglesias y ermitas cristianas de la isla de La Gomera, situada en el Archipiélago Canario (España). El trabajo de campo consistió en la medición de las coordenadas precisas de ubicación de 38 iglesias y ermitas, lo que representa la casiDi Paolo, A. et al.
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42020 -
The Penas Pasera tumulus field of the Celtiberian city of Aratis (Aranda del Moncayo, Zaragoza, Spain) and the Celtic calendarWithin the actions carried out by the Directorate General of Cultural Heritage of the Government of Aragon in relation to the judicial procedure on the pillage of the Celtiberian city of Aratis (Aranda de Moncayo, Zaragoza), a large area was located with several concentrations of tumular structures in the area of Penas Pasera, previouslyEsteban, C. et al.
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72019 -
Enduring Sacred Places: The Astronomical Orientation of the Iberian Cave-Sanctuary of Cueva Santa del Cabriel in SpainThis paper presents the results of an archaeoastronomical study of the Iberian Iron Age cave-sanctuary of Cueva Santa del Cabriel, near the town of Mira in the province of Cuenca, Castilla-La Mancha, central Spain, together with a review of the latest archaeological and ethnographical data about the site. We found that the cave's 12 m-long accessMachause López, Sonia et al.
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82019
