Mursili's eclipse on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
The solar eclipse mentioned in a text dating to the reign of
Path map
(NASA) {{Solar eclipses Solar eclipses Hittite Empire Chronology Assyriology 14th century BC Ancient astronomy
The solar eclipse mentioned in a text dating to the reign of Mursili II There were three Hittite kings called Mursili:
* Mursili I, ca. 1556–1526 BCE (short chronology), and was likely a grandson of his predecessor, Hattusili I. His sister was Ḫarapšili and his wife was queen Kali.
*Mursili II, (also spelled Mursi ...
could be of great importance for the absolute chronology of the Hittite Empire
The Hittites () were an Anatolian people who played an important role in establishing first a kingdom in Kussara (before 1750 BC), then the Kanesh or Nesha kingdom (c. 1750–1650 BC), and next an empire centered on Hattusa in north-centr ...
within the chronology of the Ancient Near East. The text records that in the tenth year of Mursili's reign, "the Sun gave a sign" ('), just as the king was about to launch a campaign against the Kingdom of Azzi-Hayasa in north-eastern Anatolia.
The reference in the annals was first interpreted as describing an eclipse by Emil Forrer
Emil Orgetorix Gustav Forrer (also Emilio O. Forrer; ; 19 February 1894, Straßburg, Alsace-Lorraine – 10 January 1986, San Salvador) was a Swiss Assyriologist and pioneering Hittitologist.
Moreover, Emil Forrer developed a deviant interdiscip ...
(1926), Schorr (1928) identified it as the eclipse of the 13 March 1335 BC, visible as annular
Annulus (or anulus) or annular indicates a ring- or donut-shaped area or structure. It may refer to:
Human anatomy
* '' Anulus fibrosus disci intervertebralis'', spinal structure
* Annulus of Zinn, a.k.a. annular tendon or ''anulus tendineus co ...
in Anatolia in the afternoon.
It is now more commonly identified as the one of 24 June 1312 BC, which was visible in totality in northern Anatolia in the afternoon. Paul Åström
Paul Åström (January 15, 1929 – October 4, 2008) was a Swedish archaeologist and classical scholar. He was a professor at the University of Gothenburg and director of the Swedish institutes in Athens and Rome. He is mostly known for his achieve ...
(1993) proposes the alternative date of 13 April 1308 BC, which would have been visible as a partial eclipse at sunrise. Peter J. Huber has suggested a date of 8 January 1340 BC.
1312 BC eclipse
The 1312 BC eclipse occurred over northern Anatolia in the early afternoon, and its effects would have been quite spectacular for Mursili and his men on campaign: :24 June 1312 BC, total eclipse, maximum at 10:44 UTC, (Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
)
The 1312 BC date would imply that Mursili began his reign in either 1322 or 1321 BC. This date would be roughly that usually proposed for the death of Tutankhamun
Tutankhamun (, egy, twt-ꜥnḫ-jmn), Egyptological pronunciation Tutankhamen () (), sometimes referred to as King Tut, was an Egyptian pharaoh who was the last of his royal family to rule during the end of the Eighteenth Dynasty (ruled ...
. It is known that Šuppiluliuma I
Suppiluliuma I () or Suppiluliumas I () was king of the Hittites (r. c. 1344–1322 BC ( short chronology)). He achieved fame as a great warrior and statesman, successfully challenging the then-dominant Egyptian Empire for control of the lands bet ...
was besieging Carchemish
Carchemish ( Turkish: ''Karkamış''; or ), also spelled Karkemish ( hit, ; Hieroglyphic Luwian: , /; Akkadian: ; Egyptian: ; Hebrew: ) was an important ancient capital in the northern part of the region of Syria. At times during it ...
when he received a letter from the widow of a Pharaoh
Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: '' pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until the ...
(who is called Dakhamunzu Dakhamunzu (sometimes ''Dahamunzu'') is the name of an Egyptian queen known from the Hittite annals '' The Deeds of Suppiluliuma'', which were composed by Suppiluliuma I's son Mursili II. The identity of this queen has not yet been established ...
in the annals). Šuppiluliuma died shortly thereafter and his successor was Mursili II (whose brother would have been Prince Zannanza
Zannanza (died c. 1324 BC) was a Hittite prince, son of Suppiluliuma I, king of the Hittites. He is best known for almost becoming the Pharaoh of Egypt, and because his death caused a diplomatic incident between the Hittite and Egyptian Empire ...
sent to Egypt where he died). Thus this appears to be a chronological anchor. However, there are other views, asserting for example that the dead Pharaoh was Akhenaten
Akhenaten (pronounced ), also spelled Echnaton, Akhenaton, ( egy, ꜣḫ-n-jtn ''ʾŪḫə-nə-yātəy'', , meaning "Effective for the Aten"), was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh reigning or 1351–1334 BC, the tenth ruler of the Eighteenth D ...
or that Tutankhamun died later.
1308 BC eclipse
In contrast, the 1308 BC eclipse was annular, and began very early in the morning overArabia
The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plat ...
(and only penumbral
The umbra, penumbra and antumbra are three distinct parts of a shadow, created by any light source after impinging on an opaque object. Assuming no diffraction, for a collimated beam (such as a point source) of light, only the umbra is cast.
T ...
over Anatolia and Syria), reaching its height over Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
:
:13 April 1308 BC, annular eclipse (94.8%), maximum at 04:16 UTC, (Tian Shan
The Tian Shan,, , otk, 𐰴𐰣 𐱅𐰭𐰼𐰃, , tr, Tanrı Dağı, mn, Тэнгэр уул, , ug, تەڭرىتاغ, , , kk, Тәңіртауы / Алатау, , , ky, Теңир-Тоо / Ала-Тоо, , , uz, Tyan-Shan / Tangritog‘ ...
)
See also
* List of solar eclipses visible from ChinaReferences
Further reading
* Paul Astrom, 'The Omen of the Sun in the Tenth Year of the Reign of Mursilis II', in ''Horizons and Styles: Studies in Early Art and Archaeology in Honour of Professor Homer L. Thomas'', (1993) * Trevor R. Bryce, ''The Kingdom of the Hittites'', Clarendon Oxford University Press, (1998)External links
Path map
(NASA) {{Solar eclipses Solar eclipses Hittite Empire Chronology Assyriology 14th century BC Ancient astronomy