Archaeology & Constellations

How might people in the Middle Ages and Early Modern period have celebrated Look-Up-at-the-Sky Day? 💫
Hard to tell—celestial observations were often recorded in verbal rather than numerical or geometrical forms, and are difficult to decode today.

But "Writing the Heavens" explores exactly that!
Download it (it’s open access!) and lose yourself in it under the stars 🌠

https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783111610863/html

https://ancientworldonline.blogspot.com/2026/04/meteorology-beyond-borders-ancient-and.html

Meteorology Beyond Borders: Ancient and Modern Reflections Meteorology Beyond Borders: Ancient and Modern Reflections Volume Editors: Giouli Korobili and Teun L Tieleman Euhormos: Greco-Roman St...

Remember to change those clocks! ⏰

Shelmarks: MS. Bodl. 421, fol. 004v
MS. Laud Misc. 570, fol. 28v
MS. Rawl. D. 1220, fol. 032r

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-are-mystified-by-these-2000-year-old-bodies-found-seated-upright-and-facing-west-in-france-180988425/

Archaeologists Are Mystified by These 2,000-Year-Old Bodies Found Seated Upright and Facing West in France Researchers previously discovered 13 sets of human remains buried in a similar manner at the same grave site in Dijon

The loss of dark skies is so painful, astronomers coined a new term for it 'Noctalgia' is a feature of the modern age.

All the Other Names for the Moon The "Supermoon" makes headlines, but it's a relatively recent entry in a long history of descriptions of the moon.

8 Books That Help You Decode the Heavens From Mary Roach's hilarious look at space travel to astronaut Scott Kelly's photos documenting a year off planet.

One of twelve stunning illustrations from a 16th-century treatise on comets — known as The Comet Book — created anonymously in Flanders (now northern France).

More info and images from the book here: https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/the-comet-book

How One of Science's Biggest Errors Persisted for 1,500 Years Ptolemy's compendium, later known as the Almagest, dominated Western astronomy for 15 centuries. It was also wrong, and it took the fall of an empire to fix it.

🌌✨ Dive into Italy's Meteorite Saga! 🇮🇹🌠

Step back to the 1500s & 1600s for two epic meteorite hits – Crema Bolide '11 & Milan Fall '33-'64. Witnessed by many, including monks! 🌩️💫

🤔 Yet, doubts linger. Explore these historical wonders with us, questioning the tales that still captivate. 📖🔍

🌠 Uncover cosmic mysteries! 🚀✨ 🌍🔭

JAHH, 26(4), 878–884 (2023) by Luca Nardi

https://www.sciengine.com/JAHH/doi/10.3724/sp.j.1440-2807.2023.11.81

https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/life-after-dark-ancient-night

Archaeologists Explore Life After Dark in the Ancient Night Studying our ancestors' nocturnal lives reveals the value of reclaiming darkness.