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posted by Fnord666 on Monday October 30 2017, @08:20PM   Printer-friendly
from the lights-out dept.

Researchers have pinpointed the date of what could be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded. The event, which occurred on 30 October 1207 BC, is mentioned in the Bible, and could have consequences for the chronology of the ancient world.

Using a combination of the biblical text and an ancient Egyptian text, the researchers were then able to refine the dates of the Egyptian pharaohs, in particular the dates of the reign of Ramesses the Great. The results are published in the Royal Astronomical Society journal Astronomy & Geophysics.

The biblical text in question comes from the Old Testament book of Joshua and has puzzled biblical scholars for centuries. It records that after Joshua led the people of Israel into Canaan -- a region of the ancient Near East that covered modern-day Israel and Palestine -- he prayed: "Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon. And the Sun stood still, and the Moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies."

"If these words are describing a real observation, then a major astronomical event was taking place -- the question for us to figure out is what the text actually means," said paper co-author Professor Sir Colin Humphreys from the University of Cambridge's Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy, who is also interested in relating scientific knowledge to the Bible.

Colin Humphreys and Graeme Waddington. 'Solar eclipse of 1207 BC helps to date pharaohs.' Astronomy & Geophysics (2017). DOI: 10.1093/astrogeo/atx178.


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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 30 2017, @10:23PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 30 2017, @10:23PM (#589731)

    It's not weak in the slightest. Sure, there is a lot of naysaying, but when has that not been the case in any field of inquiry?

    Fine, the evidence for a massive catastrophe is weak. You know what's also weak? The evidence that these recognized ancient civilizations had anything to do with the megalithic architecture that they appropriated; indeed, Göbekli Tepe showed us that the "mainstream" view of the development of civilization is entirely wrong, a fact which is not disputed.

  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 31 2017, @01:06AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 31 2017, @01:06AM (#589806)

    indeed, Göbekli Tepe showed us that the "mainstream" view of the development of civilization is entirely wrong, a fact which is not disputed.

    I'll dispute it. You keep posting the same thing, pushing your "ancient global civilization" agenda with your only evidence being "go read a book that repeats my assertions". That's not evidence, it's conning people into wasting time reading your talking points.