Thursday, January 22, 2004

Astronomical Decorations on Ceramics, summery so far- As you may know, I have been looking for historical examples of astronomical decorations on ceramics.  Basically, I was really interested in finding star charts on the sides of pots.  What I have found out so far has been quite different, and much more interesting. I began this exploration in August of 2003 and because of time, am limited to mostly searches on the Internet.  I am not done yet, but here's some curiosities: One of my biggest surprises was that astronomical information was considered a state secret and could be punishable by death, most notably in Babylonia  and also China. One would not find these things adorning pottery! In cultures that did not have such prohibitions, the relationship of the decoration to the cosmos was not clear cut. Some creatures were associated with stars, but they may have a more mythological than astronomical component so one wouldn't find star positions graphically represented. More closely aligned to the stars, may be such subjest as: The Greek ram Khrysomallos which became the constellation Aries.  The Chinese dragon on vases that depicts the constellation Draco The Canopic Jars, shaped like Egyptian gods, possibly associated with the Big Dipper, and arranged in similar positions.  Greek friezes on jars (R. Ferrario) Complicating the matter is when star symbols maybe more of an attempt to associate divinity upon a subject, than referring to the actual sky. (Teleological and not Cosmological) Also difficult may be cosmological information that is done in highly abstract and easily missed geometric patterns C.W. Johnson and C. G. Vargas However, some cultures referred to the sky directly and used it to convey information on their potter such as the sky bands on the side of Olmec and Mayan pottery * * * Other cultures simply found clay a good medium for recording information. The  Star Map on Babylonian Ceramics A. Kaulins is a good example.  Of course the Babylonians had a lot of astonomical cuneiform writing in clay, but pictures or maps I had trouble finding.  Further, there was a dearth of cuneiform on pottery as a whole.  It seemed not to be used as a decoration. Then there are the odd ball rarities such as this Japanese pot with partial constellation. All this is adding up to some interesting ideas for my own work... but I have a few more civilizations to check on.... 9:44:57 PM