The cultural relevance of astronomy in classical Antiquity

Abstract: Nowadays we understand ‘astronomy’ as the study of celestial bodies. However, astronomical knowledge in classical Greece and Rome cannot be reduced to the study of the sky. Of course, it did include the study of stars and planets, but this knowledge was intimately linked to many other subjects, such as religion, geography, meteorology, mythology, medicine, etc. Acquaintance with many celestial phenomena and the constellations and their lore was part of ancient culture. Remove from the classical Antiquity its astronomical knowledge, and many of its features and activities would become impossible or meaningless. Astronomy was deeply implanted in ancient culture, as will be shown in this paper, and that was the reason underlying its very high status in Antiquity.

Keywords: Greek astronomy; Roman astronomy; astrology; cultural astronomy; history of astronomy