This lecture is part of a course from The Great Courses called The Remarkable Science of Ancient Astronomy taught by Professor Bradley E. Schaefer, Ph.D.. This course and over 300 other courses can be accessed with a subscription to Wondrium.
In this free lecture provided by The Great Courses, Professor Bradley Schaefer takes viewers on an introductory tour of the methods used by ancient astronomers to map and utilize the stars in the night sky. The first segment focuses on England’s Stonehenge monument, perhaps the most famous artifact of archeoastronomy in the world. Professor Schaefer explains how Stonehenge was created between 3100 and 1600 BC, and offers up a few of the popular theories about the people that made it, including the site’s longtime association with the druids and paganism. The course that follows will trace thousands of years of the history of ancient astronomy, from 4,000 BC to the Renaissance, covering the world’s monuments to the cardinal and solstitial directions, and much more.