HELAINE SELIN (Ed.)

Encyclopaedia of the History ofScience, Technology, and Medicinein Non-Western Cultures

Volume 1A–K

With 1374 Figures and 107 Tables

Editor:Helaine SelinHampshire College893 West StreetAmherst, MA 01002USAhselin@hampshire.edu

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See also: !Liu Hui and the Jiuzhang suanshu,!Guo Shoujing, !Zu Chongzhi, !Pi in ChineseMathematics, !Mathematics

References

Bruins, E. M. and M. Rutten, Textes mathématiques de Suse.Paris: P. Geuthner, 1961.

Meidong, Chen. Huangyou, Chongning gui chang jisuan fazhi yanjiu (Researches on the length of the shadow of thesun cast by a gnomon during theHuangYou andChongningeras). Ziran kexue shi yanjiu 8.1 (1989): 17–27.

Gericke, Helmut. Mathematik im Abenbland von denromischen Feldmessern bis zu Descartes. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1990.

Gupta, R. C. Indian Approximations to Sine, Cosine andVerse Sine. Mathematics Education 6.2 (1972): 59–60.

Libbrecht, Ulrich. Chinese Mathematics in the ThirteenthCentury: the Shu-shu chiu-chang of Chin Chiu-shao [i.e.Qin Jiushao]. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press,1973.

Martzloff, Jean-Claude. Histoire des mathématiques chi-noises. Paris: Masson, 1987. English translation byStephen S. Wilson. A History of Chinese Mathematics.New York: Springer-Verlag, 1997 and 2006.

Neugebauer and Sachs. Mathematical Cuneïform Texts. NewHaven, Connecticut, 1945.

Sugimoto, Toshio. Guanyu Shoushili de Shen Gua denizhengxian gongshi de jingdu (On the precision of ShenGua’s arcsine formula in the Shoushi calendar). Meijigakuin ronso 429 (1987): 1–12.

Waerden, B. L. van der. Geometry and Algebra in AncientCivilizations. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1983.

Archaeoastronomy of North Africa

CÉSAR ESTEBAN

In this article, I review data on orientations of pre-Islamic funerary and religious monuments in NorthAfrica, including Sahara and the Maghreb andexcluding Egypt, which has been extensively discussedelsewhere. The time span of the monuments discussedis extremely wide, from the Neolithic up to the Arabicinvasion. The main conclusion is that there wereenduring patterns in the orientations, very likely relatedto the ritual or symbolic importance of the rising sun.The overwhelming evidence confirms the strong solaraspects of the North African religion that the ancientwriters indicated.

The prehistoric dry stone funerary monuments of theSahara are called idebnan (in plural) and idebni (insingular) by the present-day Tuareg. There are severaldifferent architectural types and they are distributed in avery extended geographical area. Early Europeanvisitors realised that a large proportion of these

monuments tend to be orientated with their maindistinctive elements towards the east. The earliest typeof idebnan is called “keyhole monument”. Paris (1996)has obtained radiocarbon dates for some of thesemonuments in Niger (Emi Lulu) finding that they datefrom 3600–220 BCE. This kind of monument is foundeven more densely at Tassili (Algeria). Savary (1966)obtained that the orientations of 158 keyhole monu-ments in Fadnoun (Algeria) lie in the azimuth rangewhere the sunrise (or moonrise) takes place, and can bedescribed as a clear case of sun-rising (SR) customfollowing Michael Hoskin’s definitions (Hoskin 2001:19–20). Paris (1996) obtained a similar result for theorientations of the corridors of 17 keyhole monumentsat Emi Lulu.

Another relevant type of Saharan dry stone prehis-toric burial is the so-called V-shape monument whichconsists of a tumulus and two lines or arms of stones –also called antennae – that could be about some tens ofmeters or even up to 200 m long (see Fig. 1). Thesemonuments are more concentrated in the MessakSettafet in the Fezzan region of Libya. The earliestmonuments of this kind are dated about 3200–2900BCE (Cremaschi and Di Lernia 1998). Hachid (2000)has compiled data for many idebnan in Tassiliindicating that the antennae of most of the V-shapemonuments of this zone are oriented to the east. Someof them are located in the middle of wonderfullandscapes, facing the borders of the impressivemountain ranges of Tassili. Recent statistical studiesof the orientations of 49 and 31 V-shape monuments ofthe Messak plateau (Fezzan, Libya) and Immidirmountains (Algeria) by Gauthier and Gauthier (1999,2003; see Fig. 1) show that the bisectors of the antennaeshow a narrow range of orientations also consistentwith a SR custom. Other kinds of dry stone monumentsas the “platforms cairns with an arm” (Gauthier andGauthier 1999) and “L shape monuments” (Gauthier

Archaeoastronomy of North Africa. Fig. 1 Example of atypical Saharan V-shape dry stone monument, located 30 kmto the southeast of El Aweynat (Fezzan, Libya). Photo byYves Gauthier (February 2006). Used with his permission.

180 Archaeoastronomy of North Africa

and Gauthier 2001–2002) of Fezzan, as well as the“goulets” (narrow parts) of Immidir (Gauthier andGauthier 2003) show exactly the same orientationpattern (Fig. 2).

Later types of Saharan stone burials such as “cratertumulus” and “monuments with an alignment”, whichare dated from 1900 BCE down to the start of Islamicculture locally, also have their structural elements aswell as the head or faces of their skeletons oriented to theeast (Hachid 2000). Other Saharan stone monuments –not necessarily related to tombs – as the so-called“horseshoe” structures with a straight line of little towersor altars are usually also oriented to the east, althoughwith a much wider azimuthal distribution (Gauthier andGauthier 2002). These monuments are also known as“tents of Fatima” and are supposedly rural shrines.However, some kinds of monuments such as the singleor triple crescents of theMessak Settafet, some crescentsof south Algeria, and the bazina/tumulus with smallauxiliary towers of Morocco and Algeria do not followthe typical Saharan orientation customs (Gauthier andGauthier 2002, 2003, 2005). In fact, the orientations ofthe last group of monuments could be oriented towardsthe rising or settingMoon (Gauthier andGauthier 2005).It would be interesting to reassess the orientation data ofSaharan monuments considering the correction due tothe real (non-flat) horizon where the monuments areactually facing, a kind of analysis that has not yet beencarried out in the area.

Earlier possible evidence of astronomical obser-vances by the Neolithic Saharan people has been foundat Nabta Playa in Egypt, on the border of the LibyanDesert (McKim Malville et al. 1998). Here a group ofmegalithic circles and stone rows dating from sometime earlier than 4500 BCE are oriented to the summersolstice or zenith passage of the sun.

Burial monuments of coastal and pre-desert zones ofNorth Africa from the first millennium BCE up to the

Islamic conquest are extremely diverse. One can findsimple and monumental dolmens, tumuli of verydifferent typology, rock-cut tombs (hawanat), hypo-gaea (the subterraneous portions of a building orsubterranean galleries, such as the catacombs), and thelater great mausolea. In his magnificent book aboutprotohistoric funerary monuments of North Africa,Camps (1961) admits that the orientation of the mainentrances, façades and corridors of those burialmonuments is in most cases consistent with a generaleast–west arrangement. This fact makes one wonder ifthe protohistoric orientation pattern is related to theancient Neolithic Saharan traditions discussed above.Savary (1969) analysed the precise orientations of 13

North African dolmens at Beni Messous (Algeria). Hefound that the orientation pattern could be classified asa sun-rising/sun-climbing (SR/SC) custom followingHoskin’s scheme (Hoskin 2001: 19–20); this definitioncovers a range of azimuths from about 60° to due southor thereabouts. This range includes the sunrise andthe position of the Sun while it is climbing in the skyor around culmination. Belmonte et al. (1998) havemeasured dolmens in different necropolises of NorthernTunisia. These authors find a clear SR/SC pattern for theorientations of megalithic monuments of the necropolisof Elles (see Fig. 3). A SC and a SR/SC orientationpattern seems applicable to the dolmenic necropolis ofThugga and the complexmegalithic tombs ofMactar (seeFig. 4), respectively. On the other hand, the very roughand simpledolmensofBullaRegia showahighlyunusualwesterly orientation. Hoskin and Foderà Serio (privatecommunication) and Hoskin (2001) consider that thereason for the orientation of the dolmens in the Tunisiannecropolises of Elles, Henchir Midad and some othersaround the town ofMactar, is simply topographical: theyare facingdownhill.However, the orientations ofHenchirMidad have been further discussed by Belmonte et al.(2003) stressing their astronomical significance. They

Archaeoastronomy of North Africa. Fig. 3 Numberhistogram of orientations of 53 dolmens at Elles (Tunisia).Data are binned in 5° intervals. SS and WS indicate theazimuths of the rising sun at summer and winter solstices,respectively; E and S indicate east and south, respectively.Data taken from Belmonte et al. (1998). This is an example ofa sun-rising/sun-climbing (SR/SC) custom of orientations.

Archaeoastronomy of North Africa. Fig. 2 Numberhistogram of orientations of 132 V-shape monuments,“goulets” and “platform cairns with an arm runningeastwards” of Immidir (Algeria) and Fezzan (Libya). Data arebinned in 2° intervals. SS andWS indicate the azimuths of therising sun at summer and winter solstices, respectively.Diagram adapted from Gauthier and Gauthier (2003). This isan example of a sun-rising (SR) custom of orientations.

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have studied the several groups of Numidian dolmens ofNorthern Tunisia, finding a general SR/SC orientationpattern. Finally, it is remarkable that the orientations ofseveral groups of rock-cut tombs (hawanat) of NorthernTunisia analysed by Belmonte et al. (1998, 2003) alsoshow orientations following the typical SR/SC scheme(see Fig. 5).

It is mostly accepted that the North African dolmenswere earlier than the Roman conquest, perhaps prior tothe Phoenician expansion, and clearly after theNeolithic(Camps 1961: 146–148). The distribution of the NorthAfrican dolmens along the Maghreb suggests that theirorigin is not autochthonous and should be the IberianPeninsula for the monuments of the north of Moroccoand Sardinia, Corsica, Italy and/or Malta for theAlgerian–Tunisian group (Camps 1961: 149–152,1995a: 2508–2509). In this context, Camps remarkson the important role that Sardinia could play in thistransmission. He notes that Diodorus Siculus (DiodorusV, 8) and later Pausanias affirmed the Libyan origin ofthe Sards. In fact, Hoskin (2001: 175–192) has foundthat the 97.7% of around 200 Sardinian dolmens,corridoi dolmenici and tombe di giganti, show the sameorientation custom as the North African dolmenic and

hawanat necropolises. Therefore, taking into accountthe differences with respect to the most common ancientSaharan pattern of orientations – which is clearly SR –the data are consistent with an alien origin of the NorthAfrican dolmens and hawanat.

Information about the orientations of the mostcommon protohistoric North African burial monu-ments – stone and earth tumulus and bazinas (classifiedas autochthonous by Camps 1961: 60–62) – is ratherscarce, mostly because of the impossibility of definingan axis of symmetry in most of them. However, wehave information about some groups of stone monu-ments: chapel-tumuli, niche monuments and the greatAlgerian mausolea. In the case of the chapel tumuli,there are detailed studies of two necropolises of theTafilatl: the chapel-tumuli of Taouz (see Fig. 6) showan apparent SR custom in their orientation (Belmonteet al. 1999; Castellani 1995), while the monuments atHassi Beraber seem to be oriented somewhat moresoutherly, consistent with a SC custom (Castellani1995). Camps (1961: 180–184 and references therein)reviews data for the chapel-tumuli of the necropolisesof Bouia (Tafilatl) and Negrine, pointing out that all themonuments are oriented with their entrances facingeast. From published plans of the chapel-tumuli ofDjorf Torba, Belmonte et al. (1999) find two predomi-nant orientations, to nearly due east and to southeast.Southeast and east seem also to be the orientation of asample of circular niche monuments at d’El-Esnamand Kef Sidi Attalah, respectively (see Camps: 1961:177–178 and references therein). Belmonte et al.(1999) also study 34 skylight-tumuli in the necropolisof Foum al Rjam in the Saharan Morocco, finding aclear SR/SC custom in their orientation.

The most evolved and impressive pre-Islamic burialmonuments of North Africa – the Algerian greatmausolea (Medracen, Blad el-Guitoun, Tombeau de laChrétienne, Djedar), which show clear Punic architec-tural and stylistic influences – have their ceremonial

Archaeoastronomy of North Africa. Fig. 5 Group ofrock-carved tombs (hawanat) at Chauach (Tunisia).

Archaeoastronomy of North Africa. Fig. 6 East-facingchapel tumulus of Taouz (Morocco). Photograph reproducedfrom Belmonte et al. (2002).

Archaeoastronomy of North Africa. Fig. 4 Complexmegalithic tomb of Mactar (Tunisia) with six chambers.

182 Archaeoastronomy of North Africa

corridors and external platforms oriented towards theeast (Camps 1961: 199–205). In particular, the Djedarof north Algeria are especially interesting because oftheir late chronology, which is as late as the fifth andsixth century AD, just before the Arabic conquest(Camps 1995b: 2419–2422). They represent the end-point of the genuine pre-Islamic North African funerarytraditions.

Elements of the proto-Berber culture survived in theCanary Islands until its conquest by the Castilians inthe fifteenth century. Belmonte et al. (1997) obtainorientation diagrams of the burial chambers of severalimportant tumular necropolises in the islands of GranCanaria and Fuerteventura, finding a SR (or sun-setting) custom in the necropolis at Tirba mountain(Fuerteventura) and for the dry stone tumuli of Maipez(Gran Canaria). Perhaps as a reflection of the mixedtrends found in the continent, a SC custom is found forthe tumuli of Arteara (Gran Canaria).

In the land of the Garamantes (Fezzan, Lybia), onefinds burials of very different typology perhapsassociated with the different cultural contacts experi-enced by this warrior people. The extensive excava-tions carried out by Daniels (1989) point out that theGaramantian tombs are mainly dated from Romantimes. Belmonte et al. (2002) have studied the orienta-tion of funerary monuments in some of the mostrepresentative Garamantian necropolises as the pyrami-dal tombs of Charaig and El Hatir (see Fig. 7), themud-brick tombs of Saniat ben Howedi, and themastaba-like royal tombs at Germa. The pyramidaltombs are arranged with their four sides orientedapproximately to the cardinal points. Many of the tombsof Saniat ben Howedi have stone offering-tables and arefacing near due east or due west. The most clearorientation pattern is shown by the mastaba-like andcircular tumulus (with a stele showing the relevantdirection) of the royal necropolis ofGerma; all the tombsmeasured are oriented to the east, following a clear SRcustom. Although the formal similarity to the Egyptianmonuments is evident and even the presence of obelisks

or stelae in their proximity could suggest a direct Niloticinfluence, this isnotentirelyclear.Camps(1961:165–166)indicates that the Garamantian monuments are not verydifferent to the pre-Islamic rectangular bazinas of latechronology that can be found elsewhere in North Africa,whose geographic distribution cannot be explained by agradual diffusion from Egypt. Moreover, their orientationpattern is also consistent with the typical customs of therest of the contemporary North African funerary monu-ments and especially with the much older and autochtho-nous idebnan of the Fezzan.It is generally accepted that the impact of the Punic

culture was profound and enduring on the Libyan orproto-Berber culture and especially on their religion(Picard 1954; Bénabou 1975: 377–380). There areinteresting facts about the orientations of Punic funerarymonuments. Belmonte et al. (1998) find a clear SRcustom in the early Punic necropolis of Utica and adoubled-peaked distribution centred on the sunrise at theequinoxes and the winter solstice inMenzel Temine andthe early Phoenician necropolis of Villaricos in thesouthern Mediterranean coast of the Iberian Peninsula(Belmonte 1999; his Fig. 5.5). A general east–westorientation is also found for the Punic necropolises ofTipasa in Algeria (Baradez 1969) and of Aïn DaliaLekbira in north Morocco (Alaoni 2000). GonzálezGarcía et al. (2006) have measured a large number oftombs in the Punic necropolises of Sardinia and Ibiza,finding a general tendency of orientations towards thesolstices and equinoxes. However, there is not a regularorientation in all Phoenician/Punic necropolises studied.In Byrsa (Carthage), Belmonte et al. (1998) have found arather unusual south–west distribution. In Dermech(Carthage) the orientations show an azimuth preferencebetween 120° and 160°. Finally, the Maltese shaft tombsand burial chambers studied by Ventura (2000) show aclear preference for the approximate north–south direc-tion. It is also interesting to remark that the generalplanning of the Punic sacred areas or tofets in Sicilyand Sardinia is usually arranged along the cardinalaxes (Ribichini and Xella 1994). Finally, an additionalinteresting archaeological indication was obtained byCarton, who found that in an open sacred area inThuburnica (Sidi-Ali-Bel-Kassem, Tunisia), all Neo-Punic stelae were orientated to the east (see Leglay 1961:276). In summary, there is not a regular pattern in theorientations of the Punic tombs, although many necro-polises and funerary areas show an east–west custom.This has also been observed in the Phoenician-Punicnecropolises of south Spain, where the archaic tombs(eighth–seventh centuries BCE) tend to be oriented to theeast and the later ones do not follow that rule so strictly(Ramos Sainz 1986: 32–33).The Roman custom of building mausolea or

monumental tombs was also common in North Africa,especially from western Algeria to Tripolitania.

Archaeoastronomy of North Africa. Fig. 7 Field ofGaramantian pyramidal tombs at El Hatir (Fezzan, Libya).

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Belmonte et al. (2002) compiled data on some differentmonuments of Roman epoch and most of them wereoriented following an SR custom. However, the largestconcentration of mausolea from the late Roman epochis in the settlement of Ghirza, in the Libyan pre-desert.The plans published by Brogan and Smith (1984) showthat the doorways or the ornamental false doors of thetombs of the northern group show a clear SR custom,whilst the tombs of the northern complex are orientedtowards the north (Esteban 2003).

Perhaps the earliest known constructions that can beconsidered sanctuaries or temples in North Africa to theeast of the Nile Valley are of Punic origin. Theimportance of the orientation in the Punic ritual isdocumented in a stone inscription found in the zone ofSalammbo in Carthage. This stone was an offeringplaced in a sanctuary dedicated to Baal Hammon. Thetext indicates explicitly that the stone was orientatedwith its front side to the sunset and its back side to thesunrise (Xella 1991: 48).

Esteban (2002a) reports that the decumanus max-imus of Roman Carthage – as well as the layout of theRoman and the Punic city and acropolis – is orientedtowards the winter solstice sunrise. This author alsocompiled the orientations of five Punic and Neo-Punictemples and sanctuaries from published plans andmeasurements, finding that the temples were orientatedtowards a fairly narrow zone of the horizon, from 90° to127°. It is remarkable that three of them are alsooriented to or near the winter solstice sunrise.

Esteban et al. (2001) have carried out an extensivesurvey of the orientations of a large number of Romanand pre-Roman temples ofMorocco, Tunisia and Libya.They found that the complete sample of temples built inRoman times show a definite random distribution oforientations. Moreover, there is no correlation betweenthe dedication of the temples and their orientation,except for those dedicated to Saturn. Most of thereligious buildings dedicated to this deity are orientedfollowing an SR custom (see Fig. 8).

Saturn was the most important deity worshippedin Northwest Africa in Roman times (Picard 1954:100–129; Leglay 1966; Bénabou 1975: 370–375) fromancient Numidia to Mauretania (present-day Tunisia toMorocco). Its cult had strong pre-Roman roots and wasthe inheritor of the ancient cult of the Punic BaalHammon, who was the most important god of both therural and Punicised Libyan population, probablybecause of the strong similarities of the Cartaghiniandeity with a former ancient supreme Libyan god(Leglay 1966: 417–447).

The cult to Saturn is almost completely absent in thedeeply Punicised Tripolitania (Leglay 1966: 267–268,Brouquier-Reddé 1992: 255–265). In this region JupiterHammon was an adaptation of the great god of theEastern Libyans, the ram-headed Ammon (see Bénabou

1975: 335–338; Mattingly 1994: 167–168). The spreadof the cult of Ammon is demonstrated by the many rural(mostly indigenous) temples or ammonia for which wehave evidence in Tripolitania and among the Gara-mantes and the Libyan desert oases of Siwa and Augila(Mattingly 1994: 36, 168). Esteban (2003) has collectedpublished data for rural shrines built in Roman times inTripolitania (Esteban et al. 2001; Brouquier-Reddé1992, and references therein) and for the Garamantianashlar masonry temple at Germa (Esteban et al. 2001). Itis remarkable that the range of orientations of many ofthe rural sanctuaries of Tripolitania show an orientationsimilar to those dedicated to Saturn in the rest of theMaghreb, a fact that could be related to the common pre-Roman substrate in the popular religion in bothterritories.

Among the Tripolitanian rural shrines, the one ofGhirza (Brogan and Smith 1984: 80–92) is especiallyinteresting due to its strong Punic elements; these make itan unique monument in Tripolitania. Brogan and Smith(1984: 88) suggest that the building was perhaps devotedto the cult of Baal–Saturn in his role of earthly fecundity,but Brouquier-Reddé (1992: 146) proposes that thesanctuary was dedicated to the Libyan bull-headed godGurzil, son of Ammon. From the plans published byBrogan and Smith (1984: their Figs. 25 and 26), Esteban(2003) finds that the orientation of the building is towardsthe east, very similar to that of Germa (Esteban et al.2001) and also consistent with the SR range.

Finally, Esteban at al. (2001) have also measuredthe orientation of some temples built in the epoch ofthe Numidian and Mauretanian kingdoms, prior to theRoman annexation of all North African provinces.

Archaeoastronomy of North Africa. Fig. 8 Orientationsof temples dedicated to Saturn from Roman North Africa(Esteban 2003). Continuous lines: direct measurements byEsteban et al. (2001); dashed lines: orientations obtainedfrom published plans. SS andWS indicate the azimuths of therising sun at summer and winter solstices, respectively.

184 Archaeoastronomy of North Africa

These kingdoms were autochthonous but deeplyPunicised in their culture, especially in religion (Camps1979). All these monuments show orientations consis-tent with the patterns found for the temples of Saturnand the rural temples of Tripolitania.

The possible astronomical motivation of the orienta-tion patterns of the North African funerary andreligious monuments discussed above has furthersupport in some remarkable astronomical markers thathave been found in important archaeological sites ofthe area, from Libya to Morocco.

Belmonte et al. (2002) report the discovery of animpressive solstitial marker over a distant foresightfrom the east edge of the top of Zinchecra, the capitalcity of the Garamates of the Fezzan (Libya) andinhabited since the ninth century BCE. The sun atsummer solstice rises just on the most conspicuousdistant topographical element of the skyline: theintersection of the flat escarpments of the Messakand the southern border of the sand sea of Ubari (seeFig. 9). The discovery of a striking astronomical markerin the first known political centre of the Garamantesgives further support to the importance and continuity ofthe astral elements of the genuine Libyan funerary andreligious world, just before the contacts with thePhoenicians and Greeks.

Esteban et al. (2001) found another possible pre-Roman solstitial marker at the Numidian city ofSimithus (Tunisia). From the Roman forum, which islocated above the preceding Numidian tombs datedfrom the fourth to the first centuries BCE, it is possibleto see the Numidian sanctuary (dedicated to Saturn inRoman times) just on the top of the Sacred Hill ofSimithus. Esteban et al. find that the line-of-sight of thesanctuary as seen from the Numidian tombs at theforum coincides with the summer solstice sunrise.Moreover, a large Numidian monumental tomb isoriented precisely to the hill summit.

The group above found another spectacular astro-nomical marker in the temple of Apollo of Mactar(Tunisia). The Numidian-Punic traditions were verystrong in this city and survived for several centuriesafter the Roman conquest (M’Charek 1982: 12). Thetemple is located outside the city; it is oriented east–west and built over a previous Punic or Libyansanctuary (Picard 1984). The temple faces a smallnatural cut in a mountain which is exactly where thesunrise takes place at the equinoxes (see Fig. 10).Although the Punic Baal Hammon was conflated withSaturn in most of the Roman province of Africa, thereis some controversy that this could be not the case inthe region of Mactar (see the discussion by M’Charek1991 and references therein). Bisi (1978) suggests thatin Mactar, the ancient cult of Baal Hammon wasassimilated to Apollo, the sun god of the Romans. Ifthis hypothesis is true, the presence of an equinoctial

marker at the temple of Apollo would provide proof ofthe transmission of the solar elements from the ancientPunic-Libyan religion to the Romanised local cults.Another possible relation with the equinoxes has

been found at the temple B of Volubilis (Morocco) thatshows all the characteristics of the temples of Saturnbut lacks a direct confirmation of its dedication. It has avery precise orientation towards the sunrise at theequinoxes (Morestin 1980: 56–57; Esteban et al. 2001)that takes place over the nearby mountain Zerhoun, themost famous holy mountain of Muslim Morocco (seeMorestin 1980: 135). The actual Roman building wasbuilt over a previous tofet, the westernmost Punicfunerary sacred area known in Africa.A last possible equinoctial marker could be at the

temple of Saturn at Thugga (Tunisia). As in the case ofthe temple B of Volubilis, the Roman temple was builtover a previous Punic tofet. The temple is orientedinside the range of the sunrises but not related to the

Archaeoastronomy of North Africa. Fig. 9 Carvedcupmarks at the eastern border of the cliff of Zinchecra, thehilltop fortified capital of the ancient Garamantes of theFezzan (Libya).The arrow indicates the place where the Sunrises at the summer solstice, just on the intersection of theescarpment of the black plateau of the Messak and the sandsea of Ubari.

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solstices or equinoxes (Esteban et al. 2001). Esteban(2003) found that the peak of Zaghouan (the highestpeak of Tunisia and the most important water source ofancient Carthage) is located very near the point of thehorizon where the sunrise takes place at the equinoxes.

As we can see, there are possible equinoctial markersin three sacred areas or tofets of important cities ofLibyan-Punic origin (Mactar, Volubilis and Thugga). Inthe three cases, the sanctuaries were re-utilised inRoman times and were dedicated to Saturn (the greatNorth African deity) or to the Roman sun god Apollo. Itis interesting to note that several equinoctial markers(analogous to the one found at Mactar) have been foundin sanctuaries belonging to the Iberian culture in thesoutheast of Spain (Esteban 2002b) which was alsoinfluenced by the Punic civilisation in many aspects,and especially in its religion. Finally, the discovery ofstriking equinoctial markers in important pre-Hispanicsanctuaries of the Canary Islands also suggests that thiselement was important in the ritual of the proto-Berberpeoples of the archipelago (see Esteban 2000 andreferences therein). In the light of the results gathered, itseems very probable that the ancient settlers from the

continent imported this astronomical tradition. Veryprobably, this original population was culturallyPunicised to some degree.

See also: !Obelisks

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Architectural Decoration in Islam:History and Techniques

RUBA KANA’AN

Architectural decoration has been one of the mostresilient of the Islamic arts. The partial and more oftenoverall decoration of buildings has been a characteristicfeature of Islamic architecture from the eighth centuryonwards. Religious monuments as well as secularcomplexes have been decorated with an array of stylesand techniques that reflected the multiplicity of Muslimsocieties and their cultural expressions. The importancegiven to decorating one’s built environment has alsobeen applied to temporary settlements such as tentedencampments.Up until the eleventh century, most decorative

techniques such as the use of decorative brickwork ormoulded stucco in the Muslim east, and mosaics, ablaqand carved stone in the central Muslim world wereinherited from pre-Islamic cultures and societies.Muslim artisans transferred these skills into theirrespective contexts and adapted them to their architec-tural needs. It was only in the eleventh to thirteenthcenturies that the use of repetitive patterns and intricatedesigns of geometric, calligraphic, and abstract vegetal

Architectural decoration in Islam: History and techniques 187

A