The ancient Egyptians were known stargazers. Image Credit: De Agostini Picture Library via Getty Images. Zodiac Ceiling at the Temple of Hathor, Egypt (c.Other spots on and near the bull resemble stars from the area of the sky that forms the Taurus (Latin for “bull”) constellation, suggesting that human association of that celestial region with the four-legged creature is older than originally thought. In one of the paintings near the cave’s entrance, for example, is a painting of a bull with what looks like the Pleiades star cluster above its shoulder. This would make them among the oldest astrological images in the world, suggesting that the people who painted the Lascaux caves were aware of the constellations before the ancient Greeks and Babylonians. The roughly 17,000-year-old cave paintings in Lascaux, France, are believed to incorporate ancient star maps, including some zodiac constellations. And in India, Vedic astrology draws on the same 12 zodiac signs as in the West but includes karmic interpretations and determines the timing of the star signs on the basis of the actual, physical positions of the sky’s constellations (as opposed to a fixed date, as in Western astrology).Īrtworks incorporating astrological images have been around for as long as astrology itself.
In China, for instance, astrology-which gained popularity during the Zhan Guo period (fifth century BCE)-is based on a lunar calendar and a 12-year cycle with a different animal (rat, rooster, dragon, and so on) holding sway each year it does not rely on observations of the stars. But other cultures developed their own astrological systems. In Western astrology, the beginnings of which historians trace to Mesopotamia from about 1900 BCE to 1700 BCE, personalities are said to be set by the positions of the 12 constellations in the region of the sky known as the Western Zodiac.
For those who believe in it, it can be a guide to understanding where we’re going and where we’ve been. As evidenced by cave paintings and other artifacts, humans were aware of lunar cycles as long as 25,000 years ago, and the ancient Egyptians based their calendar on the rising and setting of stars and constellations.Īstrology, a divination practice based on the positions of celestial bodies (as opposed to astronomy, a scientific discipline concerned with their physical properties), proposes that the placement of constellations at the time of our birth can lend insights into our characters and even predict our futures. People have always watched the night sky.
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