“It is…no wonder that sun, moon, and star-rises and -sets are the most widespread celestial phenomena encoded in alignments of structures.”
– Dr Fabio Silva
Steven Spielberg’s blockbuster Raiders of the Lost Ark is a film buff’s dream: full of clever dialogue, imaginative history, and eye-popping (sometimes literally) sequences–all brought to life by John Williams’s haunting score.
One of the most riveting scenes in the film sees the swashbuckling fortune-hunter Indiana Jones secretly descend into the “Map Room”, an ancient antechamber inside which lies a scaled model of the Egyptian city of Tanis. Wielding the jewelled Staff of Ra with a look of hierophantic seriousness on his face, Jones positions himself below an east-facing oculus. At dawn, sunlight beams through the window and through the jewel, revealing the location of the Well of Souls, the last resting place of the Ark of the Covenant.
Like Jones, real-life archaeologists experience plenty of climactic moments, but few are led by semi-mystical means to battle the forces of evil and acquire treasures of transcendental significance. Skyscape archaeologists, however, are in the business of studying the way ancient peoples drew meaning from structures designed to interact with celestial phenomena. They contend that pre-modern cultures were greatly influenced–religiously, economically, and socially–by their perception of the interplay between the built environment and the movements of the heavens.
To learn more about skyscape archaeology and its origins, The Thinker’s Garden spoke with Dr Fabio Silva, senior lecturer of Archaeological Modelling at Bournemouth University. Along with Dr Liz Henty, Dr Silva is a co-editor of the Journal of Skyscape Archaeology.
The Custodian: What is “skyscape archaeology”?
Dr Fabio Silva: Skyscape archaeology refers to the field of archaeology that explores how people in the past perceived and conceived the sky and its objects. Skyscape archaeologists study these objects’ material remains. Traditionally the field has focused on the study of alignments between built structures and celestial objects.
Although an interest in the relationship between archaeological sites and the sky goes back to antiquarianism in the eighteenth century, it became more recognised academically in the 1980s under the moniker of archaeoastronomy. Skyscape archaeology, however, was proposed in 2015 as a rebranding of the field to bring it closer to the methods and ideas of archaeology, and its sister discipline of anthropology.
C: Could you tell us more about the journal’s origins and your own research interests?
FS: The journal was actually born out of frustration with the then current state of the fields of archaeoastronomy and archaeology. Throughout the 80s and 90s archaeoastronomers were trying to make a name for themselves and defend their, not always robust, claims from critique by colleagues from archaeology.
This led to an insular culture where archaeoastronomers–mostly trained in astronomy but not in archaeology–worked in isolation, barely collaborated with archaeologists, attended only archaeoastronomy conferences, and published only in obscure volumes and journals with little readership outside of their own circle. This effectively created a safe space for archaeoastronomy but also helped perpetuate the lack of dialogue with archaeologists, anthropologists, and historians.
In 2013, my fellow co-editor Liz Henty and myself were commiserating the fact that there was no venue to publish quality research that was more archaeological than what archaeoastronomers were used to. At this stage we had successfully and quite independently published our research in archaeological journals, but when we attempted to submit to the existing archaeaoastronomy journals, we were told that our research was “too archaeological”–even though, from our perspective, it was exactly the necessary amount of “archaeology” for a solid, robust piece of research in the field.
We then decided to start a journal ourselves, solidly anchored within the academic space of archaeology but dealing with topics that archaeologists wouldn’t necessarily be dealing with. Our aim was not just to open up a new space. We also wanted to both help raise the standards of research in archaeoastronomy and show archaeologists what well-considered research in this field would look like. In doing so, we would show why it’s important to consider the skyscape within archaeology.
Regarding my own research interests, I have been very interested in prehistoric structures of the Atlantic Façade. I look into how they may incorporate alignments to the celestial objects and why. I’ve done extensive research in Portugal–where I am originally from–which led me to question the very tenets of standard archaeoastronomical methodologies.
This led me, over the past decade, to focus more on the exploration of new methods and approaches for skyscape archaeology–which is how I ended up creating the journal. Right now, I am more interested in exploring ontology and ritual, in other words, how people conceive reality around them (including the skyscapes), and how they use, among other things, celestial objects in ritual practices.
C: Given the rising popularity of new technologies, such as AI and immersive virtual reality, how do you think skyscape archaeology will evolve as a field in the coming years and decades?
FS: I think the field will evolve considerably over the coming decade thanks to these tools. Immersive technologies in particular have the potential to revolutionise how skyscape archaeology is perceived by the general public. They will give them immersive experiences of what it would have been like to witness –and how easy it would have been for prehistoric people to build–some of the structural alignments that we study. AI, too, I think will help with this task, especially when it comes to the identification of structural alignments, but also of representations of celestial objects in, for example, rock art. The right tools, developed by the right people at the right time, have the potential to change entire fields.
C: What can we expect from the Sophia Centre’s upcoming skyscape archaeology lecture series?
FS: It’s not just Sophia Centre, it’s jointly organised with Bournemouth University and the Journal of Skyscape Archaeology.
This year we thought we would challenge people to think differently, by hearing about how non-western societies have engaged with the sky. Engaging with non-modern, non-western ways of connecting the sky is of supreme importance in skyscape archaeology, where we need to constantly be aware and wary of imposing our own assumptions onto past societies. We hope this series will illustrate the variety of human engagement with the sky and open up new interpretative possibilities for prehistoric societies for example.
C: Which books or articles would you recommend for those members of the general public who are interested in learning more about skyscape archaeology?
FS: Skyscapes; The Role and Importance of the Sky in Archaeology (Oxbow Books, 2015), which is edited by myself and Nicholas Campion, is still a good general introduction with some good, accessible case studies.
Liz Henty’s more recent Exploring Archaeoastronomy: A History of Its Relationship with Archaeology and Esotericism (Oxbow Book, 2022) is the best place to go for the history of this exciting field, the debates and the historical characters involved. For a non-western perspective, I’d recommend The First Astronomers: How Indigenous Elders read the stars by Duane Hamache (Allen & Unwin, 2023).
For more on skyscape archaeology, click here.