The international conference "Archaeoastronomy: beliefs and religions of the ancient world "was organized by the Academy of the Lincei in Rome on 14-15 May 1997 Giuliano Romano reports the following subject matters from the presentations.

• "The world of the megaliths" by G.Lilliu (Cagliari University), described a complete survey of megaliths in Europe and expecially in Sardinia and other Mediterranean islands. The highlights of this particular aspect of ancient culture are generally associated with the roles played by mortuary cults in the ancient world. The variety of these monumentsand their probable functions were discussed along with their connections to Archaeoastronomy.
• "The Chaldean astrology and the templar architecture," by G.Pettinato (University of Rome), focused on the connections between many monuments and the constellations. The author also discussed some evidence from the monuments of Uruk that confirms this hypothesized connection.
• "Megalithic monuments in Sardinia: from the simple menhir to the statue stela" by A.Atzeni (Cagliari University), provided a description of the characteristics of the images that are engraved on these monuments as well as their orientations relative to the horizon.
• "New researches on the tumular burials in the region of Bari and Matera" by A.Striccoli and N.M.Vlora (Bari University), illustrated the characteristics and orientations of a number of burials (bronze age) in this region.
• "The ancient representation of the celestial sphere in China: the four palaces" by I.Iannacone (Naples University), discussed the characteristics of the four divisions in the Chinese northern celestial sphere and the polar zone. Correlations between the meaning of the names and the seasonal cycles were presented.
• "Astronomical knowledge in ancient Egypt" by N.R.Vlora and F.M.Tucci (Bari University)
• "Notes on time and the city" by P.Angioni (Cagliari University), showed the relations between symbolism in architecture of the ancient city and images of the universe.
• "Database of the archaeoastronomical monuments" by P.Moscati and E.Proverbio (Rome and Cagliari Universities), discussed the relations of a database for the archaeological monuments in Sardinia.
• "The development of regional archaeoastronomy: the case of of central-eastern Europe" by S. Iwaniszewski (Warsaw State University Archaeological Museum), provided an illustration of archaeoastronomical works performed in Eastern Europe.
• "Archaeoastronomy in Italy and in Europe" by G.Romano (Padua University), provided a synthesis of fieldwork performed in Italy to the present time. Comparisons were made between orientationalcharacteristics of Italian sites and the rest of Europe.
• "The temples and sacred places of the lunar cult in Tall Mesopotamia" by M.Fales (Udine University) presented the importance of the cults of the lunar god Sin in Tall Mesopotamia.

Following the presentations a round table discussion of archaeoastronomical problems was held. Discussion related to different research collaborations and the information imparted by Italian researches to the field. The conference was organized by S.Moscati (Chairman), F.Bertola, V. Castellani, G. Lilliu, E. Proverbio, G. Romano, L. Rosino and G. Traversari.

©1997 Studio CaLion srl

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