Archaeoastronomy and Ancient Technologies 2022, 10(1), 67-78

Reconstruction of the sunrise at the winter solstice on the Saratsky Sunduk sanctuary in the era of Okunev culture

Gienko, E.G.

Siberian State University of Geosystems and Technologies, Novosibirsk, Russian Federation; E-mail: elenagienko@yandex.ru

Abstract

The results of the reconstruction of the sunrise at the winter solstice on the Saratsky Sunduk sanctuary (sve Tarpig of Okunev culture) gave in the article. The data for research were azimuth-oriented linear-angular measurements, photographs with the exact time of photographing and astronomical calculations. Based on two photographs of the winter sunrise taken from the Okunevo petroglyph composition, calculations of the declination of the Sun when it passes through the hole in the Saratsky Sunduk performed. The results of calculating declinations from two photographs differed by 5.3', which is small compared to the apparent diameter of the Sun (32') and indicates the reliability of the method, but corresponds to an error in dating by the Lockyer method of 800 years. Based on the average value of the Sun declination, the time intervals of its observation in the hole were determined, with an error of ± 400 years. The upper edge of the disk of the rising winter Sun appeared in the hole starting from 2500 BC, from 500 BC the center of the disk fell into the hole, and until 1400 AD the ray of the Sun was visible when observed from petroglyphs. Currently, when observed from the Okunevo petroglyph, the winter Sun observed higher, and the sun's ray never enters the hole. For the period of the Okunevo culture, the circumstances of observing the sunrise of the winter Sun were restored: the first ray (the upper edge of the disk) appeared as a flash in the "hole", and then the Sun appeared outside the opening, to the right on the ridge. The winter solstice was a turning point in the annual cycle, in the worldview and myth making of ancient people, fixed in stone and in a chiaroscuro picture. As a rule, the modern observation of the sunrises and sunsets of the winter Sun practically coincides with observations in ancient times due to the slow change in the inclination of the ecliptic to the equator. In this case, it was possible to detail the circumstances of sunrise during the Okunevo culture and suggest the order of arrangement of the complex based on the significance of sunrise at the winter solstice.

Keywords: Winter solstice, Okunevo culture, dating of archaeological sites, Lockyer method, chiaroscuro painting

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References

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