The influence of religious and cosmological beliefs on the solar architecture of the ancient world

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Document typeArticle
Defense date2015-01-09
Rights accessOpen Access
Abstract
In the earliest civilizations of the Ancient World, sun worship developed in parallel with an understanding of
the movement of the stars. That was the origin of an architecture that expressed a number of religious and cosmological
beliefs. Studies of ancient archaeological remains have revealed that astronomical orientations strongly influenced the
construction of some of the most important ancient architectural monuments.
Besides its religious role, the sun regulated the culture of the Ancient World in many of its more practical aspects. For
instance, the observation of solar and lunar cycles allowed people to anticipate seasonal change. This provided man
with a means of organizing and improving agricultural and livestock activities and, in turn, influenced the construction of
the large civil and religious buildings.
The complex relationships that developed between cosmology, sun worship, early mathematics, and the orientation of
buildings with respect to the position of the sun, also decisively influenced the birth and development of what has come
to be known as passive solar design.
This article describes some of these influences dating from the megalithic period to the development of Mesopotamian
and Egyptian architecture.
CitationUson, E.; Fumado, J.; Vives, J. The influence of religious and cosmological beliefs on the solar architecture of the ancient world. "International Journal of Architectural Engineering Technology", 09 Gener 2015, vol. 1, núm. 1, p. 3-11.
ISSN2409-9821
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