Ancient Astronomy
 

     Astronomy, considered to be the oldest of the physical sciences, is believed first developed to satisfy man’s need for recording time over the long term.  By plotting the movement of the stars, sun, and moon, proper seasons and time periods could be recorded and predicted.  Navigation also learned the value of astronomy.
     Following the orthodox view of history, all this occurred in order of a timeline with the first big breakthrough coming with Galileo Galilei, (1564-1642). He was the first to use the telescope in astronomical observation and discovered craters on the moon, the true nature of planets, and the details of the sun.  He also contradicted the ancient belief of the perfection of the heavens and found himself the target of the Inquisition.  He was eventually forced to deny the truths he had discovered.
     The ancient civilizations, from all that science reveals, knew only the basics.  There is a sun, the moon, and stars that move with regularity through the sky.  They did not know they were on a planet orbiting a sun, which, itself, is a star.  They knew nothing about the other planets and only what the human eye could detect about the moon.
       But, were ancient civilizations as ignorant as the experts would have us believe?  Did the ancients know considerably more and how did they learn it?  Were they visited by beings who taught them what we only discovered in modern times?  Or did all that knowledge just miraculously appear, then disappear?

The Great Pyramid and Star Catcher at Giza
     The Great Pyramid of Giza and the Giza complex itself display a knowledge of astronomy not even possessed by the culture to which it's construction is attributed. 
     Great Pyramid At Giza - Star Alignment
     The Great Pyramid - Symbolism Summary
     Khufu's Shafts
     Star Shafts in the Great Pyramid
     Star Hopping in the Great Pyramid

Stonehenge
     One of about 900 megalithic circles in the British Isles
     Sir J. Norman Lockyer's Stonehenge Alignments
     Was Stonehenge a Stellar Observatory

 Light box tombs
     Tombs from primitive cultures are accurately aligned to capture the light from the Sun and the Moon.
     The Light Box Tomb at Carrowkeel
     The Crantit Light Box Tomb and Here
     Maeshowe and the Winter Solstice
     The Newgrange Neolithic Complex in Ireland

Stone Circles
     Stone circles are found all over the world, but are heavily concentrated by the thousands in Europe.
     Callanish: Stonehenge of the North
     Alastair's Stone Circle Pages
     Stone Circles of The Gambia
     British Stone Circles
     Stone Circles and Cairns of Scotland

North American Ancient Astronomy
     Astronomical knowledge was an integral part of the ancient cultures of North America.
     Poverty Point, Louisiana, An Earthen Stonehenge
     Mystery Hill - America's Stonehenge
     Astronomy at Chaco Canyon
     Solar Astronomy in the Prehistoric Southwest
     Crack Cave in Colorado and Solar Alignments
     Native American Star Knowledge
    
Mayan Astronomy
     The Mayan culture had a knowledge of stars far beyond their primitive time.
     The Maya Astronomy Page
     Maya Astronomy and the Dresden Codex
     Mayan Astronomy

Archaeoastronomy
     The study of ancient astronomical knowledge and practice in ancient cultures.
     Introduction to Archaeoastronomy
     Archaeoastronomy Links
     Archaeoastronomy, Ancient Astronomy and Ethnoastronomy Links
    Archaeoastronomy in Gotland Sweden