Re: Xenophon's 56-year Greek revision still tripping up archaeologists


"Lars Wilson" <siaxares@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:C-OdnSw_cvUUngTanZ2dnUVZ_tyknZ2d@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Xenophon was paid by the Persians to revise the work of Thucydices and
write the history of Cyrus.

Here is a common reference regarding the connection of Xenophon with the
work of Thucydides, from "Xenophon, Conversations of Socrates" (Pinguin
Classics) (forepage):

"Xenophon was an Athenian country gentleman born c. 430 B.C. He may have
helped to publish Thucydides' "History" and certainly wrote his own
"Hellenica" as a CONTINUATION of it."

That is, the last 7 years of the war is missing in Thucydides' works,
continued direct by Xenophon.

Fortunately the expansions are quite simplistic and easy to recognize.
Again, the 20-year interval once between the two wars (Battle of Salamis and
Peloponnesian War, 424-403 BCE) was expanded by the rather standard
expansion time of 30 years, making that interval 50 years. In addition an
eclipse occurring in early 402 BCE in the first year of the War that began
that previous summur was moved back to an eclipse occurring in 431 BCE. The
eclipses do not exactly match, but the result was an addition 28 years of
added history. The 50 plus 28 years expands the Greek Period artificially
58 years at first. But Xerxes' invasion (Battle of Salamis) was well known
to occur in an Olympic year. By dating that event 50 years instead of 20
years earlier than the Peloponnesian War, the Battle of Salamis ends up in
482 BCE, which is not an Olympic year. So at some point it was adjusted
down to 480 BCE, where it is today. Of course, that only means now there is
a 48-year interval between the wars instead of 50 (i.e. 431+51=482 vs
431+49=480), This is a clear indication the history is not accurate.

As far as the eclipse is concerned, it is described as being one where the
stars came out but a crescent of the sun was still visible. This happens
when a location is just outside the path of totality. The 431 BCE eclipse
would not have created this phenomena as does the eclipse in 402 BCE.
Notice the computerized difference at maximal intensity from Athens:

http://www.geocities.com/siaxares/403darkcomp.JPG



Fortunately, thanks to this eclipse we and specifically redate the beginning
of the Peloponnesian War in 403 BCE. That 20 years was expanded to 50
years between the wars is confirmed for us because the 30-year peace
agreement. When Xerxes began his invasion, Athens sought to help of rival
Greek city-states, agreeing a non-agression treaty between them for 30
years, when any losses sustained by either fighting the Persians would be
those of an earlier generation. Thus we have mention of the 30-year peace
agreement ending in the 10th year of the war, which means the original
interval was 20 years and not 50 years. The 10th year of the war falls in
394 BCE and thus Xerxes' invasion is dated 30 years earlier in 424 BCE.

That event requires two confirmations: an eclipse event in the spring
mentioned by Herodotus and to occur during an Olympic year. Both check out.
From this point, we can introduce the connection with Persian and Biblical
chronology via the death of Darius at the Battle of Marathon, 10 years
earlier, in 434 BCE. The Jewish temple is completed the following spring in
433 BCE, 22 years after the work began in the 1st of Cyrus. Thus we can
date the 1st of Cyrus to 455 BCE, a date confirmed by several other
references.

From this point we use Josephus to correct the revised Neo-Babylonian
timeline by inserting 70 years from the 1st of Cyrus back to year 23 of
Nebuchadnezzar, dated to 525 BCE. This is a "relative chronology" date.
However, it becomes an "absolute" date thanks to the VAT4956, which contains
two cryptic references to year 37 of Nebuchadnezzar in 511 BCE, which is the
same timing for his year 23 in 525 BCE. Thus the correction of the Greek
timeline by eclipse is in complete agreement with the astronomical text of
the VAT4956.

Further confirming the NB timeline was revised and also giving us an
absolute date is the SK400 (Strm. Kambyses 400) astrotext. Briefly, the
text records two eclipses occurring in the same year, six months apart. The
first a partial of about 50% intensity in the month of Tammuz and the second
a total eclipse in the month of Tebet. But similar eclipses occur every 18
years. The text is dated to "Year 7" of Kambyses, dated to 523 BCE. But
similar eclipses occur also 18 years earlier in 541 BCE. Problem is, the
precise times of the night the eclipses occur are given in this text, which
means the interval between the eclipses is specific. The first eclipse
occurs 3:20 before night, and the second 5 hours before morning. That
creates an interval of 2:46 between the eclipses. The interval in 523 BCE
is 2 hours more than this at 4:46. But the interval in 541 BCE is exactly
2:46, suggesting a cryptic reference to "year 7" of Kambyses or some other
Babylonian king in 541 BCE. Of course, we know from the VAT4956 and
adjustment of the Greek eclipse for the PPW that 541 BCE falls during the
reign of Nebuchadnezzar--guess what year? Year 7. Thus the SK400, also
created during the Seleucid Era as was the VAT4956 is a confirmatory
astronomical text that was created to preserve secret references to the
original chronology. Fortunately, this takes the guessing and disscussion
out of where to redate the reign of Nebuchadnezzar.

A final confirmation, as noted, now comes from an unlikely source: grains
found at the destructive level by Shishak at Rehov. The new method that
uses weighted averaging to narrow the pinpoint toward the highest
probability "true date" points to 871 BCE as the mid-range date for 918-823
BCE for this sample. The Neo-Babylonian Period is corrected by 57 years
by the VAT4956, meaning we need to reduce the Assyrian Period close to that
amount of time as well. The current Assyrian Period is dated by the 763
BCE eclipse, but another eclipse occurring the same month occurs 54 years
earlier in 709 BCE. When we adjust the Assyrian Period down 54 years by
this eclipse, then Shishak's invasion now dated to 925 BCE falls down to 871
BCE, precisely where the RC14 is dating that event! Thus even RC14 points
to the correct timeline.

A final eclipse confirmation comes from the famous Thales eclipse. Thales
predicted the time and location of an eclipse that inspired the
Lydian-Median Peace Agreement per Herodotus. But Herodotus was playing both
sides of the dating game fense. He describes this eclipse precisely but in
the context of two different times; the battle occurring between Alyattes
and Cyaxares, who were contemporaries of Nebuchadnezzar, but claiming the
king ruling at the time was Nabonidus. This gives you a choice of eclipses,
of course. The 585 BCE eclipse which is what is commonly ascribed to this
event does not occur during the reign of Nabonidus, nor is it a predictable
eclipse. However, when Nabonidus is redated beginning his rule in 480 BCE,
we do find an eclipse occurring over Ionia where Thales predicted it would
in 478 BCE. When we check for predictability it was indeed predictable by
an eclipse occurring in 532 BCE which occurred in Egypt. Thus the Egyptians
would have been able to predict both time and location of the 478 BCE.
Guess where Xenophon did 7 years of astronomy apprenticeship? Right! In
Egypt! Thus the Egyptians just told them where and when the eclipse would
be based upon their records of the 532 BCE eclipse, and since it would occur
in his homeland area in Ionia, he was naturally obliged to "warn" the
Ionians about the eclipse, which he did. When it indeed occurred, it was
amazing and made him famous. Thus it is not a mystery how he predicted the
eclipse. But this only comes into relevance with the true and corrected
timeline. It doesn't work with the revised timeline where that eclipse
occurs in 585 BCE any more than the fake timeline matches the RC14 dating we
now have.

Read more on the redating of the Thales eclipse here:

http://www.geocities.com/ed_maruyama/thalesx.html



So now we have SIX astronomical events, perfectly aligned from the original
chronology, references that don't work well or not at all as currently
dated. In review, they are:

1. The eclipse in the 1st year of the Peloponnesian War, redated from 431
BCE to early 402 BCE. (Better match)

2. The eclipse during the spring that occurred the year of Xerxes invasion,
dated to 424 BCE from 480 BCE. (Only match)

3. The VAT4956, dating year 37 of Nebuchadnezzar from 568 BCE to 511 BCE.
(Only match)

4. The SK400 dating year 7 of Nebuchadnezzar to 541 BCE. (Only match)

5. The predicted Thales eclipse event, dated to year 2 of Nabonidus in 478
BCE from 585 BCE (only match)

6. The redated Assyrian Eponym eclipse dated from 763 BCE to 709 BCE
(Better match). This is an eclipse already suspicious of poor dating even
by Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/760s_BC

"June 15, 763 BC - A solar eclipse at this date (in month Sivan) is used to
fix the chronology of the Ancient Near East. However, it should be noted
that it requires Nisan 1 to fall on March 20, 763 BC, which was 8 to 9 days
before the vernal equinox (March 28/29 at that time) and Babylonians never
started their calendar year before the spring equinox. Main article:
Assyrian eclipse"

ARCHAEOLOGICAL IMPACT: Again, the archaeology is impacted whenever the
uncorrected timeline is used for comparisons, causing erroneous and biased
conclusions.

Come to your own conclusions, but BE INFORMED about the arguments.

Lars Wilson

(New!) Corrected Timeline Outline:

http://www.geocities.com/siaxares/709guide.html




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