Although there is a lot of discussion about the arrangement of Archeological sites in concern with celestials and there is a deep study of archeoastronomy and history of architecture, but they are not explained under one umbrella and how modern architects are practicing and involving archeoastronomy in their designs.

1. “Relationship between Archeoastronomy and
Architecture
A Multidisciplinary Approach to Modern Architecture”
Saba Naz
Faculty of Architecture
Baluchistan University of Information Technology Engineering and
Life sciences Quetta, Takatu Campus
Abstract: Archeology is the study of ancient civilizations, their physical remains, and
the analysis of human cultures –Astronomy is the study of everything in the universe
beyond Earth's atmosphere. That includes objects we can see with our naked eyes, like
the Sun, the Moon, the planets, and the stars. It also includes objects we can only see with
telescopes or other instruments, like faraway galaxies and tiny particles.
Archeoastronomy is the relation between celestial objects and archeological ruins and
historic monuments – While Architectural forms and spaces were built according to
specific geometrical relationships associated with astronomical observation. This paper
will draw a relationship between archeoastronomy and architecture and how modern-day
architecture is fabricated in harmony with celestial objects and using the practices of
ancient architects.
Key words: archeoastronomy, astronomy, faraway, celestial objects, architecture
1- Problem Statement:
Although there is a lot of discussion about the arrangement of Archeological sites
in concern with celestials and there is a deep study of archeoastronomy and history of
architecture, but they are not explained under one umbrella and how modern architects
are practicing and involving archeoastronomy in their designs.
2- Introduction:
Almost all the great civilizations of the past build spectacular monuments, which
testify to their skills, knowledge, and religious beliefs. All their monuments are silent,
there is no written evidence of how and when they were constructed. There is one thing
that is connecting these monuments, Astronomy. These projects are connected to the sky
due to their astronomical alignment, which is the core of archeoastronomy: The stars and
stones. Its gives us information about the mind of our ancestors’ gives us the emotion of
experiencing today, spectacular events, which were planned thousands of year ago.

2. Archeoastronomy is an interdisciplinary science lying somewhere between
archeology astronomy and has a link with architecture. Archeology is the study of human
activities through the recovery and analysis of material culture, efforts made for getting
evidence of architecture in previous time, while astronomy is a study of celestial objects
(moon, stars, planets, and galaxy). Archeoastronomy is the study of the connection of
people in past with the sky, their astronomical practices, celestial objects, mythologies,
religions, and world perspectives about ancient cultures. Material evidence from the past
might be representational or physical. Establishing alignment is often a focus of
Archeoastronomy but as with the interpretation of the past, seeing, and drawing a
conclusion. Archeoastronomy, therefore, focuses on the material elements present in the
archeological record. For instance, it can recognize whether a structure was intentionally
built in such a way as to capture sunlight on particularly important days of the year. For
example, the Passage tomb of New grange Ireland whose entrance and roof-box captures
sunrise on the winter solstice, and among one of
the bronze age sites in Europe, Stonehenge is
prominent. The site is paramount as it is relatively
belonging to an advanced Bronze age structure.
Stonehenge is isolated in the topography that
makes it difficult to envision the site that was once
a highly settled area. Stonehenge's first version
some dated back to 3000BCE was made at that
time, but the difference is that it was spread 100
meters and would have two or three open spaces for approaching the circle. Archeologist
remains evidence that there was a centered timber building that was 30m. the large area
of scattered stones is spread up to the trench and a heel stone with a pointed head with a
height 4.9m high is just outside of the circle. Two astronomical alignments were erected
into it, one of which faces towards the northeast entrance towards the northern alignment
of the moon while the other is orientated towards the cardinal point to the south. In
2500BCE this structure was reshaped by the Beaker people, they changed the earthwork
structure, its associated landscape from lunar to the solar monument. According to the
beliefs of beaker people, their cosmology was connected between smelting of ore and
sun, that is why they reshaped Stonehenge and transformed its orientation. To do this
they rotated the axis to unnoticeable 3 degrees eastwards that harmonized with the rising
midsummer sun.

3. 2.1- Nabta Playa:- Located in modern-day southern Egypt,
some 80km west of Abu Simbel. This was not a common
Stonehenge site, as it contains a circle of modest upright
stones, while the main stones are being in pair of four sets
close together. With contrast to Stonehenge, built 4,500
years later, the circle is small, roughly 4 meters in diameters,
but its ambition was similar: to organize time according to
the seasons. Two of which stones are aligned towards true
northeast- southwest. They are assisted towards observation
of motion of the sun and the constellation orion. Nabta Playa is unique not only for its
age but also the ancient astronomy coded into its alignments. It could be evidence of the
first Egyptian civilization to use astronomy manner. Of the many stone structures found
at Nabta Playa, the stone circle is most well-known. The circle is made up four gateways,
two aligned North-South, and two pointing East-West. These alignments were likely used
to track the summer and winter solstices, as well as vernal and autumnal equinoxes. This
would have been of extreme importance to the inhabitants of Nabta Playa at the time. The
agricultural year would be based on when the wet season was approaching. There was,
however, more purpose for the site. In the middle of the stone circle is six anomalous
stones that do not align to any of the four cardinal points. North-south alignment of the
Nabta Play Stone Circle. Nabta playa could be one of the earliest astronomical
observatories found in Egypt. The study of archeoastronomy is a relatively new discipline
in science. Scholars analyze archaeological sites and their astronomical connections. For
lost ancient civilizations, the knowledge of the movements of the stars was held in utmost
importance. Evidence shows that as it helped shape and develop cultures all over the
world. Of the six mysterious standing stones in the center of the stone circle, it is now
thought they are part of an ancient star map. Each
stone seems to represent a star in the sky. Studies
reveal the stone circle acts as a map for accurate
angles and distances to relative stars. Most curiously,
Nabta Playa shows knowledge of precession of the
equinox. It is the much larger cycle of the star
constellations in the sky comparative to the sunrise
on the spring solstice. Just before the sun rose on the
summer solstice around 5000BC, three of the stones
in the center of the stone circle would have lined up
perfectly with the belt stars of the constellation of
Orion. This time marks when the precession cycle is
at one extreme. 12,000 years earlier, the opposite extreme of the precession cycle occurs.
Again, the other three stones line up precisely with the shoulder stars of Orion. The stone
circle is an accurate astronomical map tracking time back to around 16,500BC. Ancient
Egyptians at Nabta Playa were recording the movements of the constellation of Orion’s
Belt to mark the precession of the equinox.
2.2- Niuheliang Ritual Center: In hongshan culture of inner Mongolia located along the
Laoha, Yingjin and Daling rivers that empty into Bohai bay that was surrendering over a
large area over but had a single, common ritual center that consisted of at least fourteen
burial mounds and alters over several hill tops. It dates from around 3500BCE, but it

4. could find even earlier. Whereas no evidence of village settlement could be found in its
vicinity, its size is much larger than a clan or village could support. As a religious scared
landscape, the core might also have north-south axis attracts the ritual center with the
center of zhushan, or the pig mountain to the south. A key building is resting on 40 by
60-meter loam platform on which rested a structure that is speculated to have been
goddess temple. Its base footing contains detailed geometric designs made with clay in
high relief and painted yellow, red, and white. On its northern
Orion is a prominent constellation located on the celestial equator and visible throughout the world. It is one of the most conspicuous and recognizable
constellations in the night sky. It is named after Orion, a hunter in Greek mythology. Its brightest stars are blue-white Rigel and red Betelgeuse.
end is a single detached room clay body parts were excavated. The platform also contains
eight interconnected sub-Terrance tracks constructed in asymmetrical node shaped 25m
wide from south to north. Archeologist main site of interest was an artificial hill at the
entrance of valley. The mound is encircled by ring of squared white stones at ground
level. There burials at hill side were oriented north-south, at extremes of the moonrise in
the east.
2.3- Avebury’s stone circle in England on the
southern coast of Brittany at the base of peninsula.
Leading this stone circle is an impressive ritual road,
some 100 meters wide and 1,165 meters long,
oriented southwest to northeast and makes up almost
1,100 standing stones or menhirs, with eleven rows.
These stones were meant to follow the movement of
celestial cycle (stars and moon) land not the sun.
among numerous other sites is Serpent Mound in
Ohio, once there Hopewell culture was settled that was later occupied by what
archeologists known as the Fort Ancient Culture (1000-1650). The settlement was
composed of circular and rectangular homes made of twinges and thatch. In there
religious believes snake was dormient force. Even its astronomical alignment is indeed
aligned a way where the snakes head is aligned to the summer solstice and the various
curves to other celestial events.
Astronomy was extremely important for ancient Egyptians. For instance, the
movements of stars and the appearance of constellations represented an invaluable guide
for agricultural purposes, yearly signaling the beginning of the flood of Nile. Pharaohs
themselves were thought to ascend to stars after death. The positioning of the great
pyramids of Giza, its sides are oriented cardinally with entrance precision, pointing to
specific points in the celestial meridian.
3- Modern Case Studies on how Archeoastronomy influenced modern
Architecture:
3.1- Jaipur’s Jantar Mantar: A collection of architectural astronomical instruments
build by king of at new Jaipur in 1727-1734. He has constructed total of five such
structures at different locations including Jaipur and Delhi. The largest sundial of the

5. world Samrat, its function is to indicate solar time of the place. On a clear day, due to
sun’s orientation, Samrat cast shadow on quadrant scale at on point and travels to another
with movement of sun. Shadow on quadrant scale identifies the local time. For finding
altitudes and azimuth angle of celestial objects instruments like Kapali Yantra and Ram
Yantra are used.
3.2- James Turrell’s Roden Crater:
Roden charter is in deserted region of northern
Arizona. Late in 1970s, turrell spend a night in extinct
volcano bowl in Arizona. Since than he started buying
and turning the site into celestial observatory site
linked with series of spaces and installations. After
receiving the dormant cinder cone in 1977, Turrell
converted Roden Crater into a different site, that is
containing tunnels and apertures that open onto the
sky, capturing light directly from the sun in daylight hours, and the planets and stars at
night. Roden Crater belongs to a tradition of monumental structures that have been built
by artists, rulers, and priests, ancient and modern. Above-ground observatories for
specific celestial events include Maeshowe in Scotland (which predates the pyramids),
Newgrange in Ireland, and Abu Simbel in Egypt. Remains of ancient sites that resemble
‘handmade volcanoes,’ large mounds with a depression at the vertex, are also scattered
around the world. These include Herodium near Jerusalem and Old Sarum in England. In
the sixteenth century, the great astronomer Tycho Brahe pioneered ‘naked eye
observatories,’ of which the eighteenth-century Jantar Mantar in Jaipur is perhaps the
best example. Turrell studied and adapted essential features of the naked-eye observatory
in his designs for Roden Crater, where the natural formation recalled these man-made
models. During planning and construction phase of Roden Crater, Turrell consulted with
astronomers including E.C. Krupp, Director of the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles,
and the late Richard Walker, an astronomer with the U.S. Naval Observatory in Flagstaff,
to calculate the excavation and alignment of the Crater’s tunnels and apertures. When
completed the structures within the Crater will form a vast naked eye observatory for
celestial objects and events ranging from uncertain and baffling to the more familiar
summer and winter solstice. The East Portal, the Alpha (East) Tunnel and the Sun | Moon
Chamber act in concert as a monumental Camera unclear, or pinhole camera.
Transmitting light from the East Portal aperture, the Alpha (East) Tunnel focuses images
on the west side of the monumental image stone in the Sun | Moon Chamber annually for
the southernmost sunset and every 18.61 years to
mark the Major Lunar Standstill. Annually, ten days
before and ten days after the Winter Solstice (Dec
11th and Dec 31st with additional imaging on three
days before and after those dates), the annual
southernmost sunset, offset by the dates above, is
pictured on the west side of the image stone. The
Alpha Tunnel also serves as a naked eye telescope
to view the setting moon. Every 18.61 years (the
most recent was 2006) the moon reaches its northernmost and southernmost maximums

6. known as a Major Lunar Standstill. Viewed through the tunnel, the southernmost
moonset will form a reverse image on the west side of the image stone. The next Major
Lunar Standstill is calculated to be at zenith in 2025. The South Space is aligned to the
North Star that concentrates the viewer’s attention on the night sky. The center feature’s
structure that forms an astronomical instrument like the Jai Prakash Yantra in the celestial
observatory at Jaipur, India. With this instrument, one can track celestial bodies and
events (such as lunar and solar eclipses) as they occur within the timeframe of the 18-
year, 11-day Saros Cycle. A single seat provides a view focused on the North Star. The
South Space is, in effect, both a space with its own characteristics and a calendar for the
celestial movements and events that are at the heart of the varied spaces of the Roden
Crater project.
3.3- Jean Nouvel Sharaan Resort in AlUla, Saudi Arabia:
A design concept for Sharaan, were there will be a hidden resort in the rock dwelling of
Alula, an oasis in north-west Arabia Asia. This
design will showcase modernity giving a style of
living in an old Millennium way, a modern curved
monumental design in rocks while preserving and
respecting mother nature’s landscape. The concept is
to bring landscape with history. the resort will be
part of a fully integrated destination for visitors with
40 keys, including 25 suites, 10 pavilions, and five resort residential estates. Preserving
nature while introducing modern way of living, the project will have minimal impact on
nature and on urban landscape. Alula development will have a balance of heritage with
economic potentials. AlUla, a governorate, and city located in northwestern part of Saudi
Arabia, is celebrated for its rich heritage. Archaeological traces discovered dated back to
the Bronze Age and several ancient treasures and cities that existed, with evidence of
thriving civilizations such as the Dadan/Lihyan and the Nabataean kingdoms. AlUla’s
most significant landmark is the Nabatean city of Hegra, Saudi Arabia’s first UNESCO
World Heritage Site -popular for its well-preserved tombs and structures. Also known as
Mada’in Salih, Hegra was once a thriving metropolis for the Nabatean people, setting the
scene for the Silk Road and a vast trading empire.
3.4- Planetarium in Shanghai:
Some of the ancient civilization had left few studies of skies and stars. To preserve its
culture and history, China is planning to make a new planetarium and astronomical
museum in Shanghai, one of the crowded hubs of China, Asia. Consisting of three
“celestial bodies,” the entire building is assembled of the oculus, the inverted dome, and
the sphere. According to the firm, “Each major element acts as an astronomical
instrument, tracking the sun, moon and stars—reminding visitors that our conception of
time originates in distant astronomical objects and
enriching the museum exhibit experience with actual
encounters of celestial movement.” The building will

7. anchor on astronomy and planetary science and will characterize a solar telescope,18m-
diameter optical planetarium, an IMAX cinema, a 21m-diameter digital sky theatre, an
education and research Centre, a youth observation camp and observatory and a range of
galleries a 38,000 square-meter planetarium set for construction on the coast of East
China Sea. The curved, futuristic planetarium is built on three key architectural features –
the oculus, the inverted dome, and the sphere, each of which acts as an astronomical
instrument, tracking the sun, moon, and stars. Each element speaks its own story, the
Oculus — an ancient architectural element first made famous when first made in the
Rome Pantheon— turns the building itself into an astronomical instrument, visualizing
the passage of time with a circle of light that moves slowly across the gallery floor. While
the Oculus has scientific significance in this context, its experiential qualities may cut
down towards the instinctive. By using reflecting pools—and the external environment of
the museum creates a scenery of Japanese modernists. The Inverted Dome —forms a
focal point at the museum’s heart, presenting a description of architects as “sublime
spatial experience” at the height of the visitors’ journey through the museum interior. The
dome’s inverted form makes the sky itself a focus, and the uninterrupted glazing creates a
light and airy atmosphere in the atrium housing most the museum’s permanent exhibits.
The Sphere houses the Planetarium theater inside a geodesic dome, a classic form
reminiscent of many astronomically oriented buildings around the world. The Sphere
appears as the positive complement to the inverted dome, nestled within a curved
pedestal like a pearl in the heart of a concrete oyster shell. Landscaped pathways spiral
outward from pedestal, around the exterior of the planetarium, resonating the elliptical
orbits of the planets around the sun. The sweeping green space creates an embracing
addition in a city crowded at the seams with new development, provides further external
exhibitory to supplement the museum program, including a 24-meter-high solar
telescope.
4- Literature review:
My research paper aims to highlight the relation between Archeoastronomy and
architecture as an interdisciplinary field and how architecture was shaped by
Archeoastronomy. And modern architects incorporating cosmic to create new forms.
Through case studies I have tried to explain the importance of astronomy in architecture
and how archeoastronomy works hand by hand with architecture. A lot more study is
required in this field for better understanding of our present and future.
5- Conclusion:
Astronomy was the important element used by ancient people in every aspect of life,
including their architecture. From Stonehenge, its study and science had inspired other
cultures to modify ancient practices according to there needs and this process continued
and gave others an idea to create something better and more useful for their time
according to their needs. From bronze age to Niuheliang complexity has increased but
they all have a single mainstay, Astronomy that always binds them together. Moreover,
prehistorians had used their tools to study the sky for which they constructed instruments
like Jantar Mantar. Archeoastronomy has its own significance in the field of architecture
and the modern-day designers are more concerned for making use of prehistoric elements
in their design as a dominant feature by adding complexity according to their time and

8. needs. Having a thorough research on archeoastronomy and presented case studies of
modern architecture it is understood that both Architecture and Archeoastronomy are
interrelated, and each has an impact on other as both are dependent on each other. There
is no impact on Astronomy without both as it is naturally occurred but archeoastronomy
and architecture are dependent on astronomy as sky is the priority of man. Hence an
extensive study is required to understand celestial objects, movement of sun and stars and
how these celestial objects have an intensive impact on architecture of prehistoric and
today. Certain case studies are presented in this paper for understanding the relationship
of archeoastronomy, with architecture and astronomy, but there is a lot more study
required for understand the complex relation between these fields and more work is
required in the field of architecture for better understanding of our future having a
concern of present.
6- Reference
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3. https://www.archdaily.com/910086/james-turrells-roden-crater-set-to-open-after-45-
years
4. “Astronomy and Architecture” faculty of architecture Jamia Millia Islamic
university New Delhi, India
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8. https://www.cladglobal.com/architecture-design-features?codeid=30354
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10. Francis D. K. Ching, Mark M. Jarzom -bek, and Vikramaditya Prakash (1995)
A global history of architecture second edition
11. https://interactive.archaeology.org/veracruz/?p=174 Momin Muhammad Zaki
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nabta-playa-egyptian-stone-circle-c8ecb2800223
13. https://rodencrater.com/celestial-events/
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