Zoia Maxim’s scientific contributions

Până de curând, originea păsărilor a fost unul dintre marile mistere ale biologiei, deoarece păsările sunt dramatic diferite de toate celelalte creaturi vii, mai ales că zborul lor era greu de înțeles. Știm că păsările sunt lucrători sanitari ai pădurilor, răspândesc semințe, fertilizează solul, oxigenează aerul și contribuie la stabilizarea climei. Mai mult, migrarea păsărilor reprezintă mutarea în masă a acestora, din unele ținuturi în altele, în concordanță cu anul agrar, în vederea reproducerii și în căutarea unor condiții prielnice de trai. În acest sens, anul agricol și cel pastoral au fost fixate în deplin acord cu ritmurile biologice ale păsărilor specifice latitudinii geografice a României. În neolitic, găsim clădiri și artefacte care erau decorate cu păsări. De exemplu, zeița păsării apare pe figurinele atribuite culturii neolitice Vinča. Aceste figurine prezintă corpuri feminine combinate cu un cap de pasăre. În preistorie, păsările au răsărit pe cerul nopții, ca și constelații. Astfel, apariția anuală a unor grupări de stele strălucitoare denumite după unele păsări s-a folosit ca și repere luminoase pe cerul nopții în timpul anului agrar

Messages can be sent through signs also, not just only through writing. Neolithic signs are quite difficult to interpret as they can be interpreted in many different ways depending on the perspective from which we look at them. As we well know, in the Neolithic era, people settled in their homes, that is, they became sedentary, agriculture and animal husbandry were the cause of people's sedentarization. Foretelling the exact start of the seasons by the cyclical appearance of bright stars resulted in agriculture being closely linked to the diurnal and annual movement of the stars. Thus, we deciphered some Vinca symbols from an astronomical point of view, i.e. if the astral symbol appeared in the Neolithic sky as a constellation or star asterism, and also in what position it could have been found in the sky, how it could be seen, which it was its diurnal and annual movement. By carefully deciphering some Vinca symbols with celestial meanings, we can get traces of time that our ancestors left us along with the astral messages.

The culture of Old Europe, which had transitioned from the precarious life of hunting and gathering into one of settled agriculture, was grateful for the abundance provided by their new knowledge of Earth’s secrets. Our ancestors, deeply connected to the natural world, must have listened with delight to the morning bird song and gazed in amazement at birds in flight. Surely that delight and amazement would have stimulated a symbolic understanding of birds. As time moved on and cultures developed, the Bird Goddess became a variety of different goddesses associated with birds. The Old European world view of the Bird Goddess as nurturer and protector, continued on in the Egyptian world view. The ancient Bird Goddess ruled over life and death. Many cultures have associated birds with the life giving and life taking powers of the Goddess. In addition, the agricultural year needs well-proven beginning and ending (maximum and minimum) moments. The cultivation of plants, in particular, the cultivation of cereals, benefits from its own agrarian calendar with information and varied activities, from weather forecasts, preparation of tools and plow animals up to rituals of purification, of invoking the fertility of the soil and the crops, as well as the holding of some archaic holidays in order to attract beneficial forces. Farmers throughout prehistory and history recognized cyclical time, since they knew the annual cycle of planting, growth, and harvest (Csillik et al., 2001; Szücs-Csillik et al., 2016). They created festivals and rituals at appropriate times during the cycle. Curious fact is that there are nine avian (bird) constellations in the modern list of 88 constellations. Of these, four are visible from Romania at various times of the year. The brighter stars in all four constellations are observable to the naked eye (Altair – Deneb – Gienah – Phact). Aquila and Cygnus constellations culminate at midnight around summer solstice. Moreover, in Romanian traditional agrarian calendar, the song of the cuckoo sets the tone for plowing and sowing, its cry being heard during the peak period of agricultural work (summer solstice), for three months (from Bunavestire, Mar. 25, to Sânziene, Jun. 24). The apparent annual movement of the avian constellations could be consistent with the ancient agrarian year. In addition, the positions of the bird constellations in the sky could be chosen so that their apparent movement was in accordance with the agrarian year, in other words, the avian constellations helped the farmers as well as the birds.

The concept of communication is closely related to our existence as humans, and as a society, due to the fact that human beings and communication are interdependent. Written communication, through symbols and signs, is a component of human communication. In the Neolithic period, in central and southeastern Europe we find repetitive signs and symbols inscribed on clay vessels, idols, stones, the Spondylus shell, the walls of houses, and sanctuaries (especially on durable materials). Some of these sacred symbols and signs come from the signs of bright star configurations (constellations) seen from our latitude, where we have four seasons of the transitional temperate continental climate zone specific to central Europe. The exact timing of the transition between seasons was important to agricultural Neolithic societies. The foretelling of the beginning of the seasons was linked to the sky, to the apparent movement of the Sun, Moon, bright planets, stars and constellations. Rituals were linked to these repetitive moments, which shows the connection between Neolithic people and nature, between Earth and sky: as in the sky, so on Earth. In this article, we present some symbols and signs related to deciphered constellations from the Spondylus shell from Mostonga (Serbia), the round tablet from Tartaria, the black spindle from Turdas, the amphora fragment from Lozna, some potteries from Parta (Romania) and some spindles from Slatino (Bulgaria). Refinement of calendars and the symbols, and signs on archaeological artefacts demonstrated the importance of astronomy in ancient cultures. These preciously Neolithic findings can be interpreted as instruments for measuring astronomical phenomena to obtain a calendar date. Moreover, the results show that with the spread of these celestial symbols, the foundations of pre-writing were determined, i.e. over time, rudimentary letters could develop from the shape of constellations.

Conceptul de comunicare este strâns legat de existența noastră ca oameni, ca societate, datorită faptului că ființele umane și comunicarea sunt interdependente. Comunicarea scrisă, prin simboluri și semne, reprezintă o componentă a comunicării umane. În perioada neolitică din centrul și sud-estul Europei găsim semne și simboluri repetitive înscripționate pe vase din lut, idoli, pietre, scoica Spondylus, pereții locuințelor, sanctuarelor (mai ales pe materiale durabile). Unele dintre aceste simboluri și semne sacre provin din semnele unor configurații de stele strălucitoare (constelații) ce se văd de pe latitudinea noastră, unde avem patru anotimpuri a zonei climatice temperate continentale de tranziție, specifică pentru Europa centrală. Momentul exact al trecerii între anotimpuri era important pentru societățiile neolitice agricole. Prevestirea începerii anotimpurilor era legat de observarea sistematică a cerului, de mișcarea aparentă a Soarelui, a Lunii, a unor planete strălucitoare, a stelelor și a constelațiilor. De aceste momente repetitive erau legate ritualurile, ceea ce arată legătura între oamenii din neolitic și natură, între Pământ și cer: precum în cer, așa și pe Pământ. În acest articol prezentăm câteva simboluri legate de constelații descifrate de pe scoica Spondylus de la Mostonga, tăblița rotundă de la Tărtăria, fusul negru de la Turdaș și fragmentul de amforă de la Lozna. Gravarea echinocțiilor și solstițiilor pe piese durabile în timp indică faptul că oamenii neolitici au înțeles mișcarea corpurilor cerești, observând schimbarea anotimpurilor și marcând punctele de trecere dintre ele. Misterele prezervate ale culturii Vinca dezvăluie legătura profundă a poporului neolitic cu cosmosul. Aceste simboluri gravate sunt un testament al cunoștințelor străbuniilor de astronomie și al capacității lor de a crea amulete atemporale care fascinează și inspiră chiar și astăzi. Mai mult, aceste simboluri dezvăluie că rădăcinile prescrisului s-ar putea găsi de fapt în aceste culturi mult mai vechi.

The Milky Way is a barred spiral galaxy of which our solar system is a part. Seen from Earth, it appears as a bright, diffuse band visible in the night sky made up of a cluster of distant stars. On the band of about 30o in width, we can observe approximately 30 constellations, among which we mention the most important constellations from the northern hemisphere: Canis Major, Orion, Gemini, Taurus, Auriga, Perseus, Cassiopeia, Cepheus, Cygnus, Aquila, Serpens, Sagittarius, Ophiuchus, Scorpius. Because of the high tilt, depending on the time of the day and of the year, the arc of the Milky Way can appear relatively low or relatively high in the sky. The Milky Way could be seen much more clearly in the Neolithic than today. This bright band was worshipped by almost all prehistoric populations. We present the mythology of the Milky Way from the Neolithic period through various cultures to nowadays as a symbol of path, road, route, river, flock of birds, the spiral of the life, the seam of the sky, the abode of the souls, etc.; as well as, we also present a study on the apparent movement of the Milky Way in the Neolithic sky in accordance with the symbols of some constellations marked during this period.

Water is the origin of life, a means of purification and the element of regeneration. It is the symbol of fertility, wisdom, divine grace. As the origin and vehicle of any form of life, it represents the vital breath and can become the support of any energy. It can be endowed with antithetical properties, it can be purifying, or poisonous. Water can be structured according to the actions performed on it (prayer, magic formula), or the interference with the surrounding energies (objects, animals, plants). Ritual washings have a special place in all rites of pas‑ sage, or initiation. The water used in these ceremonies is “living water”, endowed with magical powers. Immersion in the ritual water represents a symbolic death and at the same time a return to the beginning, to the origins, a new birth in a cleansed body. Romanian fairy tales and legends remind of various creatures, which bring “living water” to the hero who is in trouble. Also, bathing in living water rejuvenates the elderly and energizes the young.

Szücs-Csillik, I., Maxim, I. (2022) Connection between agriculture and astronomy in Neolithic. ArheoVest 10(2), p. 221-242. Abstract: The Neolithic began with the agricultural revolution. People became sedentary and began to cultivate plants, and raise animals. They observed that the agrarian year is in accordance with the annual motion of some bright stars seen from our latitude. Before proper calendars existed, people had no way of determining when to sow or harvest except by the stars, climate changes, and ecosystem landmarks. Through the shape of the constellations, the positions of the stars were easier to remember. Bright stars allowed people to plan ahead, and constellations made it easier to recognize these stars in the sky. The rigorous observation of the annual movement of these so-called agricultural constellations, as the marking stars, were crucial, in order to predict the moment of their appearance (for example, before the sunrise - heliacal rising), which coincided with the important moments of the agricultural calendar. These regular observations led to the evolution of astronomy. This work details the agrarian customs performed by Romanian peasants closely related to the annual movement of the agrarian constellations in the sky, emphasizing the legacy of popular traditions, which prove the close and early connection between agriculture and astronomy.

Until recently the origin of birds was one of the great mysteries of biology because birds are dramatically different from all other living creatures, especially since their flight was difficult to understand. From the point of view of the Neolithic Revolution (agriculture), some birds as bright stars can be markers of the agricultural year. We know that birds are health workers of the forests, spread seeds, fertilize the soil, oxygenate the air and contribute to the stabilization of the climate. Thus, the agricultural and the pastoral year were fixed in full agreement with the biological rhythms of the birds specific to the geographical latitude of Romania. In the Neolithic, we find buildings and artefacts that were decorated with paintings representing birds. For example, the bird goddess appears on figurines attributed to the Neolithic Vinca culture. These figurines feature female bodies combined with a bird's head. In prehistory, birds appeared in the night sky as well as constellations. The annual appearance of bright stars of these constellations could be used as light signs during the agrarian year.

Title in English: The School of Cultural Astronomy from Cluj-Napoca. Cite as: Szücs-Csillik, I. and Maxim, Z. (2021) Școala clujeană de astronomie culturală. Analele Banatului S.N., Arheologie - Istorie, vol. XXIX, p. 257-270. Abstract: In 1952, Professor Gheorghe Chiş from the Astronomical Institute together with the academician Constantin Daicoviciu initiated the idea of the existence of a Dacian calendar by deciphering the sanctuaries in the capital of Dacia at Sarmizegetusa Regia, and thus laying the foundations of Archaeoastronomy in Romania. This interdisciplinary branch has expanded over time due to new excavations, which have created to more detailed research, as it has led some researchers to think about the need to describe numerical calculation methods based on some huge databases. The School of Cultural Astronomy from Cluj-Napoca was founded by scientists from the Romanian Academy, the Institute and Astronomical Observatory of Cluj-Napoca, “Babeș-Bolyai” University, the History Museum and the Ethnographic Museum. These innovative researches from Cluj were supported and diversified within the “Tiberiu Popoviciu” Interdisciplinary Research Laboratory, where many ideas crystallized and working hypotheses were elaborated, attracting, almost from all over the country, enthusiastic researchers. The diversity of research topics addressed over the years in archaeoastronomy are presented, and at the end of the article is presented a pilot project of a Neolithic astronomical observatory in the Experimental Ethno-archaeological Park of Ţaga, to demonstrate the existence of Neolithic Solar Cult, knowledge about Heaven and the movement of the stars, in establishing the agro-pastoral calendar, as well as for knowing the construction and operation of the annual calendar and the day and night clock.