Skywatchers, Shamans & Kings: Astronomy and the Archaeology of Power
E C Krupp
Language: English
Pages: 380
ISBN: 1630261661
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
Discover the celestial myths and cosmic rituals of ancient priests and kings . . .
Drawing on intimate knowledge of the more than 1,300 ancient sites he has visited, E. C. Krupp, acclaimed writer and preeminent researcher, takes you to the world's essential sacred places and celestial shrines. Join him on a rich narrative journey to see where the rulers of old communed with the gods of the sky.
""Highly recommended to everyone interested in the culture of astronomy and those peoples who practiced it in their own ways.""-Sky & Telescope
""A lively account of the ways in which our ancestors conceived of and used the heavens.""-New Scientist
""There can be no doubt that this imaginative and readable work by a widely read and widely traveled author will strike a chord in the minds of a great many modern readers.""-Isis
""The fact that the book is written by an expert in his field comes through on every page, as does his enthusiasm for the subject.""-Astronomy Now
""Krupp's indispensable volume is fascinating, well-illustrated, and covers much territory.""-Parabola
Known traditionally as the holy seat of kings, Ife was believed in Yoruba myth to be the place where Olorun, the high celestial god, first touched down when he descended to earth. It is also the place of Creation and the place where the first king took office. To the Yoruba, Olorun, who personifies the sky, is known as the Owner of the Sky. An essential but indifferent source of divine power, he is remote from earth, unresponsive to prayer, and interested in his own agenda.
not be touched. Its power could be tapped but not challenged. The sun, moon, and stars were powerful, supernatural agents of cyclical change. Their patterned movements made them the stage managers of the earth below. They decided where to locate stage left and stage right. They handled the lighting. They furnished the set, and the actors below followed their cues. Bargaining with the Spirits
for terrestrial order and are incorporated symbolically into everything from sandpaintings, ceramics, and architecture. Pueblo Bonito, a fivestory Dshaped complex of apartments, plazas, and ceremonial chambers at the west end of Chaco Canyon, is accurately oriented with the cardinal directions. So is Casa Rinconada, a large circular subterranean ritual structure onehalf mile across the canyon from Pueblo Bonito.
Sometimes the journey for power is compressed into a ritual path that represents the kind of long spiritual trail the Huichol followed to Wirikúta. This may be the best way to understand what look like ritual mazes in the Panamint Valley of California. Located in southeastern California's vast Mojave Desert, between Death Valley and China Lake, the Panamint is screened on the east by the Panamint Range and by Maturango Peak and the Argus Range on the west. Few have studied the
glared in the Irish sunshine. Probably more symbolic than ornamental, quartz is often Page 137 encountered in the prehistoric tombs and stone rings of western Europe. Just beyond the decorated curbstone in front of the entrance, O'Kelly also uncovered an enigmatic oval scattering of smaller quartz pebbles fenced by low thin slabs of stone.