In an intriguing blend of astronomy and ancient history, astrophysicist Dr. Or Graur from the University of Portsmouth has embarked on a fascinating journey to uncover the astronomical knowledge of ancient Egyptians. Published in the Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage, Dr. Graur’s study suggests that the Egyptian sky goddess Nut might just be an early cosmic cartographer, mapping out the Milky Way on the coffins of the departed.
Nut, pronounced “Noot” (no relation to your phone’s notification sound), is a celestial figure often depicted in Egyptian funerary art. She is shown as a star-spangled woman gracefully arched over the earth, protecting it from chaos with her substantial cosmic presence. Her nightly ritual of swallowing the sun and birthing it at dawn showcases her pivotal role in Egypt’s mythological solar cycle.
But here’s where the plot thickens: on the outer coffin of Nesitaudjatakhet, a singer dedicated to the god Amun-Ra around 3,000 years ago, Nut sports a mysterious black, wavy line running from her feet to her hands. This peculiar feature, surrounded by twinkling stars, caught the eye of Dr. Graur, who delved into an analysis of 125 such representations from a treasure trove of 555 coffins.
Dr. Graur suggests that this enigmatic line might not just be an aesthetic flourish but a depiction of the Milky Way itself—specifically, the Great Rift, a dark band of interstellar dust slicing through our galaxy’s luminous glow. “Imagine Nut as the original cosmic illustrator, sketching the universe’s secrets for us to find millennia later,” Dr. Graur quipped in an interview with MEO News.
If Dr. Graur’s hypothesis holds, this would mark the first known visual representation of our galaxy in ancient Egyptian art, offering a tantalizing glimpse into how these early stargazers viewed the cosmos. Egyptologists are intrigued by the potential implications for understanding the intersection of cosmology and mythology in ancient Egyptian culture.
While Nut’s celestial artistry continues to be a subject of study and debate, one thing’s for sure: the ancient Egyptians may have been looking up at the night sky and seeing not just stars, but a cosmic canvas filled with stories and mysteries waiting to be unraveled. So the next time you gaze at the Milky Way, remember, you might just be sharing a view with those ancient eyes that first charted the heavens.