Head of all years : astronomy and calendars at Qumran in their ancient context / by Jonathan Ben-Dov.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ben-Dov, Jonathan.

Series:

Studies on the texts of the desert of Judah ; v. 78.

Studies on the texts of the desert of Judah, 0169-9962 ; v. 78

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Dead Sea scrolls.

Ethiopic book of Enoch--Criticism, interpretation, etc.

Ethiopic book of Enoch.

Jewish calendar--History.

Jewish calendar.

Jewish astronomy.

Apocryphal books (Old Testament)--Criticism, interpretation, etc.

Apocryphal books (Old Testament).

Physical Description:

1 online resource (352 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Leiden ; Boston : Brill, 2008.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Rather than being an isolated, primitive body of knowledge the Jewish calendar tradition of 364 days constituted an integral part of the astronomical science of the ancient world. This tradition—attested in the Dead Sea Scrolls and in the Pseudepigrapha—stands out as a coherent, novel synthesis, representing the Jewish authors’ apocalyptic worldview. The calendar is studied here both “from within”—analyzing its textual manifestations —and “from without”—via a comparison with ancient Mesopotamian astronomy. This analysis reveals that the calendrical realm constituted a significant case of inter-cultural borrowing, pertinent to similar such cases in ancient literature. Special attention is given to the “Book of Astronomy” (1 Enoch 72-82) and a variety of calendrical and liturgical texts from Qumran.

Contents:

Preliminary Material / J. Ben-Dov

Introduction / J. Ben-Dov

Chapter 1. Unifying Elements Of The 364-Day Calendar / J. Ben-Dov

Chapter 2. Lunar Theory And The Composition Of Ab / J. Ben-Dov

Chapter 3. The Triennial Cycle / J. Ben-Dov

Chapter 4. The Astronomical Book And Babylonian / J. Ben-Dov

Chapter 5. Lunar Phases In The Mimarot Scrolls And Late / J. Ben-Dov

Chapter 6. Between Babylonia And Jerusalem: / J. Ben-Dov

Chapter 7. Summary And Conclusions / J. Ben-Dov

Bibliography / J. Ben-Dov

Index Of Ancient Sources / J. Ben-Dov

Index Of Modern Authors / J. Ben-Dov

Index Of Subjects / J. Ben-Dov.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references (p. [289]-307) and indexes.

ISBN:

1-282-40010-X

9786612400100

90-474-2419-0

OCLC:

647872590

Publisher Number:

10.1163/ej.9789004170889.ii-332 DOI