ARQUEOMEGA
Thursday 17th February 2011
ANCIENT ASTRONOMICAL SANCTUARIES IN LANZAROTE
By Agustín Demetrio Pallarés Lasso
Antonio Romero Mora
Astronomical marker carved in the edge of a volcano in Lanzarote. From the observation point, the sunrise could be seen through the fissure in the winter solstice.
On the right side of the fissure, the full moon at major standstill could be observed in the summer solstice.
On the left side, the full moon at minor standstill could be observed in the summer solstice 9.3 years after the major lunar standstill.
Nowadays, azimuths corresponding to these astronomical events have slightly changed compared to ancient azimuths. This will be explained more detailed in a forthcoming article.
Click on the picture to zoom it and you will be able to perceive the Moon next to the person standing.
We are so used to check the day of the week, the month, the season or our next festivity in a calendar that we often undervalue this invention. The main function of a calendar is to measure and structure time and, in order to achieve this, a number of ancient cultures created their own calendars based on their traditions and by observing the apparent and cyclical movement of the stars across the celestial sphere. These observations also led them to acquire significant knowledge.
According to several preconquest period chroniclers, such as Sedeño y Gómez Escudero, and later in the XVII century, Abreu Galindo and Marín y Cubas, the islands population had calendars. These chroniclers also mention in their documents astronomical events known by those cultures as equinox and solstice as well as specific sequences to calculate the Moon’s cyclical movement and the full moon, closer to the day of the solstice. In addition, these documents speak about the celebration of festivities and rituals which were most certainly established by a religious-astronomical calendar. After an extensive period of observation and research by archaeoastronomical methods, which combines archaeology and astronomy, the meaning of some of those places used as observatories to create their astronomical calendars and as sanctuaries where they carried out their religious-cosmogony rituals begin to reveal. Evidence of this knowledge amongst ancient cultures has been found in some of the Canary Islands. In Lanzarote, where the so-called “majos” lived and who, according to Gómez Escudero, worshiped the Sun and the Moon and carried out rituals in which ancestors met the stars, new evidences have been uncovered that not only confirm the abovementioned but also prove they possessed certain knowledge not ascribed to any group in the Canary Islands. These findings praise the ancient cultures, whose advanced knowledge is revealed through their labour in these places.
These unprecedented and significantly important sites are located in certain craters of old volcanoes – mentioned below. However, it is believed these sites are not unique as similar spots have been discovered in several parts of Lanzarote.
The crater’s circular shape allows the observer to obtain an abrupt horizon of 360º and an accurate viewpoint from where astronomical phenomena could be seen in all directions, which means, an almost perfect view of the cosmos. The following volcanoes were used for this purpose:”Guenia” in the municipality of Teguise; “Caldera Quemada” in Tinajo; and “Caldera Quemada de Órzola” in Haría. They illustrate a number of artificial modifications such as windows or cracks on the edge of the volcano, or prominent spots produced by the changing of the land, and in some occasions, other modifications such as raising terraces to obtain different levels to allocate an observer or to produce the shadow of the gnomon, etc. Furthermore, a number of marks have been found inside and in the surrounding areas, such as strange constructions like underground caves and hypogea, or small circular settings of stones, or group of rocks that are sometimes considerably big and seem natural piles but they have actually been taken from other places and put there by men. The figures formed by these marks are surprisingly and significantly related to astronomical events. This indicates that, although they were used for different purposes, they were also used as observatories. There is certain resemblance with ancient cromlechs like the Stonehenge in England, whose particular shape and astronomical orientation may enclose a common origin, or perhaps a more ancestral one.
The figures of a fish and a lion can be observed inside the crater.
- The point from where the sunrise in winter solstice can be observed through the fissure in the edge of the crater.
- A figure of a lion made in different ways. It most likely represents the Leo constellation and the summer solstice.
- A figure of a fish with an umbilical cord linked to an altar. It represents Pisces (constellation opposite to Leo, 180º in the elliptic) and the winter solstice.
This analysis is a daring hypothesis. Numerous reasons and scientific proofs will be given in the next research to support this theory.
The astronomically aligned marks not only refer to astronomical events easy to observe, such as winter and summer solstice, when the Sun reaches its northmost and southernmost extremes, but also refer to equinox, phenomenon whose knowledge has always been ascribed to the most advanced cultures. This might seem slightly exaggerated according to what it is known about the inhabitants of the Canary Islands; however, it might seem even more surprising to know that they had an extraordinary understanding of the lunar standstill, which takes place every 18.6 years and during this cycle the Moon’s orbit subtracts from the declination of the ecliptic. There are various signs that indicate the lunar standstill, which means that the observer was aware of it and could probably foresee eclipses. This proves that those who built the sanctuaries were incredibly knowledgeable in astronomy.
Despite the attempt to determine the meaning of these sites, a more detailed research is necessary to discern the knowledge of our ancient cultures.
After two years of observation, research and work to expand our knowledge in astronomy, an exciting path has widen up, but this path requires the collaboration of experts as well as people interested in out topics and who can add knowledge and ways not available to us in order to move forward in the reconstruction of the history of the Canary Islands. There are certain gaps that need to be filled, particularly after the abovementioned discoveries about the inhabitants’ astronomical knowledge that has opened new and interesting interpretations of such an important culture developed in the Canary Islands.
Finally, it is obviously indispensable to request those responsible for these sites to preserve, study and spread the importance of these places in order to commit to the memory of our ancestors.
Authors:
Agustín Demetrio Pallarés Lasso
Antonio Romero Mora
agustinpallares@hotmail.com
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