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Mercury in Ancient Cultures
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The early
Chinese were accomplished astronomers. In fact, they made the first
record of a solar eclipse in 2136 BC. Although the Chinese knew of the
five visible planets, much of their early astronomy was focused on the
records and predictions of supernovas and comets.
For more information check out the following website:
http://www.spacetoday.org/China/ChinaAstronomy.html
The early Egyptians also gazed at the night skies and became skilled
in astronomy. The names they applied to the planets were those
of their gods. Mercury was called Thoth,
the great measurer - a divinity associated with knowledge, and
the inventor of speech, writing, and arithmetic.
For more information, check out the following web resource:
http://emuseum.mnsu.edu/prehistory/egypt/dailylife/astronomy.html
Early Greek civilization,
from 1400 to 200 BC, made many contributions to astronomy. Unlike
other early astronomers who were astrologers as well, Greek astronomers
were often considered philosophers and mathematicians, as we know
from the works of those such as Plato and Eudoxus.
Around 450 B.C. the Greeks started studying the motions of the planets
and using geometry to measure the size of the Earth, Sun and Moon.
Mercury was known by two different names, associated with its evening
and morning appearances. These were Apollo (god of truth, the arts,
archery, plagues, and divination) and Hermes (god of writing and messenger
to the other gods). Plato and Eudoxus reported that the synodic
and sidereal periods of Mercury
were 110 days and 1 year respectively. Later Greek astronomers made
detailed star charts and determined planetary motions, often building
on earlier work. In 200 AD the Greek astronomer Ptolemy
completed his Almagest,
a comprehensive text of mathematical astronomy. Translated into Latin
around 1400 AD, Ptolemy's work was considered by Europeans to be the
authority on astronomical understanding until the early 1600’s.
Ptolemy's model of the solar system was geocentric, or Earth-centered.
The Sun and planets were thought to travel around the Earth from east
to west, with the planets moving on more complicated cyclic paths
about their average positions.
For more information, check out the following web resources:
http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/HistTopics/Greek_astronomy.html
http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/greeks/science/astronomy/index.htm
http://www.crystalinks.com/greekastronomy.html
As did other ancient civilizations,
the Hindus interwove astronomy and astrology. They believed that the
location of the planets in the sky at the time of birth determined
a person’s future. The Hindus called the planets collectively
“navagrahs” and references to them can be found on temple
markings. As in other early cultures, the planets were given the names
of divinities; Mercury was called Budha.
For more information, check out the following web and print resources:
http://www.bharatvani.org/books/ait/ch22.htmhttp://www.hinduwebsite.com/hinduism/navagrahas.htm
A Concise History of Science in India, D.M. Bose, S.N.
Sen & B.V. Subbarayappa (Indian National Science Academy, New
Delhi, 1971).
The Mayas lived in an area of
Central America that now includes Guatemala, Belize and El Salvador,
as well as parts of Mexico, Honduras and Nicaragua.
Mayan astronomers
were primarily interested in the “Zenial Passages” –
times when the Sun crossed over certain Mayan latitudes. Mayan astronomy
is thought to have developed in the period from 1500 BC to 800 BC.
Much of what we know of it is found in writing known as the Dresden
Codex, a band of paper 3.5 meters long arranged in 39 sheets. This
contains information regarding the calendar system, astronomical data
and sky mechanics, as well as tables of multiple integers thought
to have been used in the calculations of planetary movements.
The Mayas were also deeply
interested in the planet Venus, believing it to be as important as
the Sun. But the Mayas charted the motion of the planet Mercury as
well; records of their detailed observations are found in the Dresden
Codex. These include the appearance of Mercury as a morning star in
733 B.C. and as an evening star in 727. The Mayans also calculated
that Mercury would rise and set in the same place in the sky every
2,200 days.
Images from
the Dresden Codex
For more information, check
out the following web resources:
http://www.michielb.nl/maya/astro.html
Mesopotamia is a region in present-day Iraq between the Tigris
and Euphrates rivers. Translated from its Greek origin, it means
“between the rivers”. Some archeologists believe that
the world’s earliest cities emerged in this region around
6000 B.C.
The inhabitants of Mesopotamia from about 3500 B.C. to about 2000
B.C. are referred to as Sumerians. This civilization developed
a written language using signs for words and syllables; their
writing is preserved on clay tablets.
They are thought to have studied the movements of the Sun, the
Moon and the visible planets, although no written records of such
observations from this early period remain. In this, as in many
other early cultures, the motions of celestial objects were of
great interest because of their religious significance, and particularly
because they were thought to give clues about the future course
of human events. We now call this belief astrology and distinguish
it from astronomy, the scientific study of the heavens.
The Sumerians named the Sun, the Moon and the visible planets - including
Mercury - after their greatest seven gods. Translations from surviving
cuneiform tablets reveal that Mercury was designated by many names,
including that transcribed by archaeologists as MulUDU.IDIM.GU.UD.
Mercury was often associated with Nabu, or Ninurta, the god of water
and writing. Later, in Akkadian, it became known as Shikhtu, meaning
“jumpy”.
The Sumerian civilization was succeeded by the Babylonians, a culture
that inherited writing, astronomy, and mathematics from the Sumerians.
Early Babylonian astronomers (2000 – 1000 B.C.) may have recorded
their observations of the sky: Although no records from that period have survived,
tablets from the 7th century B.C. refer to observations of Venus supposedly made much
earlier, during the reign of King Ammisaduqa (1702 – 1682 B.C.). We also know that
from 800 B.C. onward the Babylonians cataloged stars, kept records of records of
solar eclipses and the time intervals between new moons, and were able to
predict some astronomical phenomena.
The Babylonians named Mercury after their divinity Nebo or Nabu, -
the record keeper, god of writing, and messenger to the gods. As Mount
Sinai in Egypt is named for the Babylonian moon god Sin, Mount Nebo,
in present-day Jordan, is named after the Babylonian god of the planet
Mercury. In Babylonian astronomy Mercury was associated with both
sexes because of its appearance as both an evening and a morning star.
Later Babylonian civilizations (600 B.C. – 200AD) were yet more
advanced in mathematics and astronomy. Their catalog of the
stars forms the basis of our zodiac. They also made detailed observations
of the movements of the five visible planets, including Mercury.
For more information, check out the following sites or print resources:
To the northern peoples, Mercury
was named Odin, the supreme god.
Often referred to as the god of wisdom, magic, and war, and the
inventor of runes, his
name means "inspired one". Odin was worshipped throughout
northern Europe (including Britain), wherever the Vikings and other
Nordic peoples settled. Odin was also known as Woden, and it is
from this form that the English word for Wednesday is derived.
For more information, check out the following websites:
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