Archaeologists in Egypt have identified the country’s first recorded astronomical observatory, which, according to experts, is the “first and largest” discovery of its kind, Live Science reported.
The structure, which dates back to the sixth century B.C., was discovered three years ago during excavations of a site in the ancient city of Buto, now Tell Al-Faraeen, within Egypt’s Kafr El-Sheikh region.
“Everything we found shattered our expectations,” Hossam Ghonim, head of the expedition, told the outlet of the L-shaped observatory, which covers more than 9,150 square feet. He explained that the structure’s entrance faces east and is marked by a traditional gate known as a pylon which leads to an area where sunlight would have illuminated the space where the sky observer, a person known as “smn pe” who was usually a priest, stood to read the sun and stars.
Courtesy of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities
Through further inspection, they were able to deduce through the discovery of granite and bronze statues, as well as pottery from religious rituals, that the structure was in use during the sixth century B.C.
When the team made their discovery in 2021, they initially believed it to be a religious temple of some sort. But as their excavation continued, they uncovered various artifacts and symbols which related to time and astronomy. That culminated in a remarkable find which made clear the building’s ancient purpose.
Ghonim explained: “Along the hall’s northern side, we discovered a slanted stone sundial—a sun shadow clock that used the shifting angles of the sun’s shadows to determine sunrise, noon, and sunset—a simple yet profound method.”
Courtesy of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities
Courtesy of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities
Courtesy of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities
Courtesy of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities
Archaeologists also found inscriptions within the observatory depicting sunrises and sunsets over three distinct seasons. “The ancient Egyptians envisioned the Earth and sky as two mats,” Ghonim explained. “They mapped the sky on the ‘Themet Hrt,’ sky mat, and the ‘Themet Ghrt,’ or Earth mat, represented their calendar, marking events like the Nile flood and harvest. This is the first inscribed stone mat of its kind ever discovered.”
Courtesy of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities
Courtesy of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities
Ghonim also noted an unusual “triad of pillars” at the structure’s entrance. “We theorized that these pillars might represent the ancient Egyptians’ tripartite division of time into seasons, months, and weeks,” he said.
Researchers say these discoveries illuminate previously unrecognized astronomical techniques employed by ancient Egyptians to determine the solar calendar, such as religious and agricultural dates of significance.
