The Dead Sea Scrolls

(0)

[i]

The Astrolabe

An ancient instrument for solving problems of location and distance, as well as time

Astrolábon órganon is the word used in Ptolemaeus Syntaxis 5.1 to describe a form of armillary sphere consisting of both fixed and rotating rings for determining the ecliptic co-ordinates of stars. Also called astrolabe were two-dimensional representations of the celestial sphere: over fixed disks with a representation of the horizon of the earth (in each case for a specific geographic latitude) and its parallels up to the zenith lies a rotating representation of the heavens (called ‘spider’ or ‘net’) with zodiac and indicators for some of the brightest stars. On the back is an indicator (‘alidade’) with visor plates for calculating the height of the stars. The astrolabe allows its user to determine the hours of day and night, the positions of stars, and the height and depth of objects on earth (mountains, buildings, wells). The oldest extant descriptions of the flat, planispheric astrolabe come from Iohannes Philoponus, 6th century AD, and (in Syrian) from Severus Sebokht, c. 660 AD. Indirect references may date back as early as Theon (4th cent.). Between the 8th and the 9th centuries the Arabs appropriated the knowledge of the astrolabe. At the end of the 10th century and again in the 12th century, they passed it on to Western Europe, where astrolabes were constructed up until the 17th cent. Today, one Byzantine astrolabe (from 1062) is extant, as are some 750 Arabic-Islamic astrolabes and approximately the same number of European astrolabes.

This information is abstracted from Brill's New Pauly, the English edition of the authoritative Der Neue Pauly, Encyclopaedia of the Ancient World. The encyclopaedic coverage and high academic standard of the work, the interdisciplinary and contemporary approach and clear and accessible presentation have made the New Pauly the unrivalled modern reference work for the ancient world. For more information see www.brillsnewpauly.com or visit our website catalog: www.brill.nl/bnp
Brill’s New Pauly and the complete original Der Neue Pauly, the recognized standard reference works for students and scholars of the ancient world are also available online. This dual-language edition offers basic and advanced search facilities and is fully browsable. New English translations are added as they become available. See www.paulyonline.brill.nl for more information and a demo version.

Close

Publications & Services> Advanced Search> The Dead Sea Scrolls

The Dead Sea Scrolls

Vol. I: 1Q1-4Q273 - Vol. II: 4Q274-11Q31

Edited by Florentino García Martínez and Eibert J.C. Tigchelaar

Books

Available
Publication year: 2000


ISBN-13 (i)The ISBN (International Standard Book Number) has been changed from 10 to 13 digits on 1 January 2007:	978 90 04 11547 7
ISBN-10:	90 04 11547 1

Cover:	Paperback
Number of pages:	vol. 1: xxiv, 628 pp.; vol. 2: v, 734 pp.

List price:	€ 108.00 / US$ 160.00

Reviews

'A remarkable achievement.'
Dead Sea Discoveries.
'After what seems like an eternity we can finally replace Lohse on our shelves.
'Journal for the Study of the Old Testament.
'The authors are to be congratulated for producing a well-conceived and well-executed work that will be of immense pratical value to students and scholars alike.
'The Catholic Biblical Quarterly.
'These volumes are clearly the standard for students, and they will also be extremely helpful for specialists…a welcome addition to the growing number of research tools on the texts from Qumran.'
Fred W. Burnett, Religious Studies Review, 2001.

About the author(s)

Florentino García Martínez, a pre-eminent specialist of Qumran Studies, is Professor at the University of Groningen, the Netherlands, where he heads the Qumran Institute. He is a member of the International Team of Editors of the Dead Sea Scrolls and editorial secretary of the Revue de Qumran and the Journal for the Study of Judaism. García Martínez has written numerous books and articles on the Dead Sea Scrolls, including Qumran and Apocalyptic. Studies on the Aramaic Texts of Qumran (Brill, Leiden 1992), The Dead Sea Scrolls Translated: The Qumran Texts in English (Brill, Leiden 1994), The People of the Dead Sea Scrolls: Their Writings, Beliefs and Practices (Brill, Leiden 1995), and A Bibliography of the Finds in the Desert of Judah, 1970-95, (Brill, Leiden 1996).
Eibert J.C. Tigchelaar, Ph.D. (1994), Groningen, is Research Fellow at the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies, University of Groningen

The Dead Sea Scrolls Study Edition is a practical reference tool to facilitate access to the Qumran collection of the Dead Sea Scrolls. It contains newly edited Hebrew and Aramaic transcriptions and English translations of the non-biblical scrolls on facing pages, arranged by serial number from Cave 1 to Cave 11. In addition, it offers a summary of the contents of the biblical scrolls from Qumran. Each Q-number is provided with a heading which contains the essential information on the text and selected bibliographical references. Although unidentified and unclassified fragments have been omitted, and no snippets of manuscripts have been reproduced, this edition aims to be complete for the non-biblical scrolls.
The work is primarily intended for classroom use and for use by specialists from other disciplines who need a reliable compendium to all the materials found. It will also be useful as a companion for those studying the original manuscripts using the microfiche or CD-ROM editions of the scrolls.
A considerable part of the materials was already accessible in translation in The Dead Sea Scrolls Translated (Wilfred G.E. Watson, Translator). This translation has served as the base-text of the translations presented in this edition, but has been thoroughly checked and corrected by the authors.

	Print Version
	Recommendation