🕷️ Crawler Inspector

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Raw Queries and Responses

1. Shard Calculation

Query:

Response:

Calculated Shard: 12 (from laksa163)

2. Crawled Status Check

Query:

curl -X POST \
  'http://laksa012.int.ahrefs:8124/' \
  -H 'Content-Type: text/plain' \
  -H 'X-ClickHouse-Database: crawler3' \
  -H 'Authorization: Basic YXBpOg==' \
  -d 'SELECT getAhrefsURLFromUnparsed(src_unparsed) AS found_url, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(download_stamp), 0) AS crawl_time, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(props_url_first_seen), 0) AS first_indexed_time, download_http_code AS http_code, src_unparsed AS src_unparsed, src_root_hash AS src_root_hash, history_drop_reason AS history_drop_reason, meta_title AS meta_title, meta_descriptions AS meta_descriptions, attrs_boilerpipe_text AS attrs_boilerpipe_text, attrs_markdown AS attrs_markdown, attrs_readable_markdown AS attrs_readable_markdown, meta_canonical AS meta_canonical FROM crawler3.page_info_local FINAL PREWHERE (src_root_hash, src_unparsed) IN ((getAhrefsRootHashFromUnparsed(getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://phys.org/news/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html\')), getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://phys.org/news/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html\'))) FORMAT JSONEachRow'

Response:

{"found_url":"https:\/\/phys.org\/news\/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html","crawl_time":1775772538,"first_indexed_time":1509350363,"http_code":200,"src_unparsed":"org,phys!\/news\/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html s443","src_root_hash":"5200908481159124812","history_drop_reason":null,"meta_title":"Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs","meta_descriptions":["Researchers have pinpointed the date of what could be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded. The event, which occurred on 30 October 1207 BC, is mentioned in the Bible, and could have consequences for the chronology of the ancient world."],"attrs_boilerpipe_text":"Credit: University of Cambridge\nResearchers have pinpointed the date of what could be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded. The event, which occurred on 30 October 1207 BC, is mentioned in the Bible, and could have consequences for the chronology of the ancient world.\nUsing a combination of the biblical text and an ancient Egyptian text, the researchers were then able to refine the dates of the Egyptian pharaohs, in particular the dates of the reign of Ramesses the Great. The results are published in the Royal Astronomical Society journal\nAstronomy & Geophysics\n.\nThe biblical text in question comes from the Old Testament book of Joshua and has puzzled biblical scholars for centuries. It records that after Joshua led the people of Israel into Canaan - a region of the ancient Near East that covered modern-day Israel and Palestine - he prayed: \"Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon. And the Sun stood still, and the Moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies.\"\n\"If these words are describing a real observation, then a major astronomical event was taking place - the question for us to figure out is what the text actually means,\" said paper co-author Professor Sir Colin Humphreys from the University of Cambridge's Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy, who is also interested in relating scientific knowledge to the Bible.\n\"Modern English translations, which follow the King James translation of 1611, usually interpret this text to mean that the sun and\nmoon\nstopped moving,\" said Humphreys, who is also a Fellow of Selwyn College. \"But going back to the original Hebrew text, we determined that an alternative meaning could be that the sun and moon just stopped doing what they normally do: they stopped shining. In this context, the Hebrew words could be referring to a solar eclipse, when the moon passes between the earth and the sun, and the sun appears to stop shining. This interpretation is supported by the fact that the Hebrew word translated 'stand still' has the same root as a Babylonian word used in ancient astronomical texts to describe eclipses.\"\nHumphreys and his co-author, Graeme Waddington, are not the first to suggest that the biblical text may refer to an eclipse, however, earlier historians claimed that it was not possible to investigate this possibility further due to the laborious calculations that would have been required.\nIndependent evidence that the Israelites were in Canaan between 1500 and 1050 BC can be found in the Merneptah Stele, an Egyptian\ntext\ndating from the reign of the Pharaoh Merneptah, son of the well-known Ramesses the Great. The large granite block, held in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, says that it was carved in the fifth year of Merneptah's reign and mentions a campaign in Canaan in which he defeated the people of Israel.\nEarlier historians have used these two texts to try to date the possible eclipse, but were not successful as they were only looking at total eclipses, in which the disc of the sun appears to be completely covered by the moon as the moon passes directly between the earth and the sun. What the earlier historians failed to consider was that it was instead an\nannular eclipse\n, in which the moon passes directly in front of the sun, but is too far away to cover the disc completely, leading to the characteristic 'ring of fire' appearance. In the ancient world the same word was used for both total and annular eclipses.\nThe researchers developed a new eclipse code, which takes into account variations in the Earth's rotation over time. From their calculations, they determined that the only annular eclipse visible from Canaan between 1500 and 1050 BC was on 30 October 1207 BC, in the afternoon. If their arguments are accepted, it would not only be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded, it would also enable researchers to date the reigns of Ramesses the Great and his son Merneptah to within a year.\n\"Solar eclipses are often used as a fixed point to date events in the\nancient world\n,\" said Humphreys. Using these new calculations, the reign of Merneptah began in 1210 or 1209 BC. As it is known from Egyptian texts how long he and his father reigned for, it would mean that Ramesses the Great reigned from 1276-1210 BC, with a precision of plus or minus one year, the most accurate dates available. The precise dates of the pharaohs have been subject to some uncertainty among Egyptologists, but this new calculation, if accepted, could lead to an adjustment in the dates of several of their reigns and enable us to\ndate\nthem precisely.\nMore information\nColin Humphreys et al, Solar eclipse of 1207 BC helps to date pharaohs,\nAstronomy & Geophysics\n(2017).\nDOI: 10.1093\/astrogeo\/atx178\nCitation\n:\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs (2017, October 30)\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tretrieved 9 April 2026\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tfrom https:\/\/phys.org\/news\/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html\nThis document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.","attrs_markdown":"[![Phys.org](https:\/\/phys.b-cdn.net\/tmpl\/v6\/img\/logo-header.png)](https:\/\/phys.org\/)\n\nTopics\n\n- [Week's top](https:\/\/phys.org\/weekly-news\/)\n- [Latest news](https:\/\/phys.org\/latest-news\/)\n- [Unread news](https:\/\/phys.org\/unread-news\/)\n- [Subscribe](https:\/\/phys.org\/news\/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html)\n### Science X Account\n\n- [Nanotechnology](https:\/\/phys.org\/nanotech-news\/)\n- [Physics](https:\/\/phys.org\/physics-news\/)\n- [Earth](https:\/\/phys.org\/earth-news\/)\n- [Astronomy & Space](https:\/\/phys.org\/space-news\/)\n- [Chemistry](https:\/\/phys.org\/chemistry-news\/)\n- [Biology](https:\/\/phys.org\/biology-news\/)\n- [Other Sciences](https:\/\/phys.org\/science-news\/)\n- [![Medical Xpress](https:\/\/phys.b-cdn.net\/tmpl\/v6\/img\/MedicalXpress2.svg) Medicine](https:\/\/medicalxpress.com\/)\n- [![Tech Xplore](https:\/\/phys.b-cdn.net\/tmpl\/v6\/img\/techX_w.svg) Technology](https:\/\/techxplore.com\/)\n\n- share this\\!\n- [1\\.6K]()\n- [Tweet](https:\/\/phys.org\/news\/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html)\n- [Share](https:\/\/phys.org\/news\/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html)\n- [Email](mailto:)\n\n1. [Home](https:\/\/phys.org\/)\n2. [Astronomy & Space](https:\/\/phys.org\/space-news\/)\n3. [Space Exploration](https:\/\/phys.org\/space-news\/space-exploration\/)\n***\nOctober 30, 2017\n\n# Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs\nby Sarah Collins, [University of Cambridge](http:\/\/www.cam.ac.uk\/)\n\n[Add as preferred source](https:\/\/google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https%3A%2F%2Fphys.org%2F)\n***\n\n![Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs](https:\/\/scx1.b-cdn.net\/csz\/news\/800a\/2017\/oldestrecord.jpg)\n\nCredit: University of Cambridge\n\nResearchers have pinpointed the date of what could be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded. The event, which occurred on 30 October 1207 BC, is mentioned in the Bible, and could have consequences for the chronology of the ancient world.\n\nUsing a combination of the biblical text and an ancient Egyptian text, the researchers were then able to refine the dates of the Egyptian pharaohs, in particular the dates of the reign of Ramesses the Great. The results are published in the Royal Astronomical Society journal *Astronomy & Geophysics*.\n\nThe biblical text in question comes from the Old Testament book of Joshua and has puzzled biblical scholars for centuries. It records that after Joshua led the people of Israel into Canaan - a region of the ancient Near East that covered modern-day Israel and Palestine - he prayed: \"Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon. And the Sun stood still, and the Moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies.\"\n\n\"If these words are describing a real observation, then a major astronomical event was taking place - the question for us to figure out is what the text actually means,\" said paper co-author Professor Sir Colin Humphreys from the University of Cambridge's Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy, who is also interested in relating scientific knowledge to the Bible.\n\n\"Modern English translations, which follow the King James translation of 1611, usually interpret this text to mean that the sun and [moon](https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/moon\/) stopped moving,\" said Humphreys, who is also a Fellow of Selwyn College. \"But going back to the original Hebrew text, we determined that an alternative meaning could be that the sun and moon just stopped doing what they normally do: they stopped shining. In this context, the Hebrew words could be referring to a solar eclipse, when the moon passes between the earth and the sun, and the sun appears to stop shining. This interpretation is supported by the fact that the Hebrew word translated 'stand still' has the same root as a Babylonian word used in ancient astronomical texts to describe eclipses.\"\n\nHumphreys and his co-author, Graeme Waddington, are not the first to suggest that the biblical text may refer to an eclipse, however, earlier historians claimed that it was not possible to investigate this possibility further due to the laborious calculations that would have been required.\n\nIndependent evidence that the Israelites were in Canaan between 1500 and 1050 BC can be found in the Merneptah Stele, an Egyptian [text](https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/text\/) dating from the reign of the Pharaoh Merneptah, son of the well-known Ramesses the Great. The large granite block, held in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, says that it was carved in the fifth year of Merneptah's reign and mentions a campaign in Canaan in which he defeated the people of Israel.\n\nEarlier historians have used these two texts to try to date the possible eclipse, but were not successful as they were only looking at total eclipses, in which the disc of the sun appears to be completely covered by the moon as the moon passes directly between the earth and the sun. What the earlier historians failed to consider was that it was instead an [annular eclipse](https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/annular+eclipse\/), in which the moon passes directly in front of the sun, but is too far away to cover the disc completely, leading to the characteristic 'ring of fire' appearance. In the ancient world the same word was used for both total and annular eclipses.\n\nDiscover the latest in science, tech, and space with over **100,000 subscribers** who rely on Phys.org for daily insights. Sign up for our [free newsletter](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/help\/newsletter\/) and get updates on breakthroughs, innovations, and research that matter—**daily or weekly**.\n\nThe researchers developed a new eclipse code, which takes into account variations in the Earth's rotation over time. From their calculations, they determined that the only annular eclipse visible from Canaan between 1500 and 1050 BC was on 30 October 1207 BC, in the afternoon. If their arguments are accepted, it would not only be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded, it would also enable researchers to date the reigns of Ramesses the Great and his son Merneptah to within a year.\n\n\"Solar eclipses are often used as a fixed point to date events in the [ancient world](https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/ancient+world\/),\" said Humphreys. Using these new calculations, the reign of Merneptah began in 1210 or 1209 BC. As it is known from Egyptian texts how long he and his father reigned for, it would mean that Ramesses the Great reigned from 1276-1210 BC, with a precision of plus or minus one year, the most accurate dates available. The precise dates of the pharaohs have been subject to some uncertainty among Egyptologists, but this new calculation, if accepted, could lead to an adjustment in the dates of several of their reigns and enable us to [date](https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/date\/) them precisely.\n\n###### More information\nColin Humphreys et al, Solar eclipse of 1207 BC helps to date pharaohs, *Astronomy & Geophysics* (2017). [DOI: 10.1093\/astrogeo\/atx178](http:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.1093\/astrogeo\/atx178)\n\nProvided by [University of Cambridge](https:\/\/phys.org\/partners\/university-of-cambridge\/)\n\n**Citation**: Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs (2017, October 30) retrieved 9 April 2026 from https:\/\/phys.org\/news\/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html\n\nThis document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. 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[Full disclaimer](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/help\/ai-disclaimer\/)\n##### Let us know if there is a problem with our content\n###### E-mail the story\n##### Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs\n\n#### Donate and enjoy an ad-free experience\nWe keep our content available to everyone. Consider supporting Science X's mission by getting a premium account.\n\n[Remove ads](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/donate\/?utm_source=phys&utm_medium=desktop&utm_campaign=popup)\n\n[Maybe later](https:\/\/phys.org\/news\/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html)\n\n[![Medical Xpress](https:\/\/phys.b-cdn.net\/tmpl\/v6\/img\/MedicalXpress.svg) Medical Xpress Medical research advances and health news](https:\/\/medicalxpress.com\/)\n\n[![Tech Xplore](https:\/\/phys.b-cdn.net\/tmpl\/v6\/img\/techexploer.svg) Tech Xplore The latest engineering, electronics and technology advances](https:\/\/techxplore.com\/)\n\n[![Science X](https:\/\/phys.b-cdn.net\/tmpl\/v6\/img\/ScienceX.svg) Science X The most comprehensive sci-tech news coverage on the web](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/)\n\n## Newsletters\n## Follow us\n\n- [Top](https:\/\/phys.org\/news\/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html)\n- [Home](https:\/\/phys.org\/)\n- [Search](https:\/\/phys.org\/search\/)\n- [Mobile version](https:\/\/phys.org\/news\/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html?deviceType=mobile)\n\n- [Help](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/help\/)\n- [FAQ](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/help\/contactus\/)\n- [About](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/help\/about-us\/)\n- [Contact](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/help\/feedback\/)\n\n- [Support us](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/help\/donate\/)\n- [Science X Account](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/profile\/)\n- [Archive](https:\/\/phys.org\/archive\/)\n- [News wire](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/wire-news\/)\n\n- [Android app](https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/apps\/details?id=com.PhysOrg.RssLite)\n- [iOS app](https:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/us\/app\/phys-org\/id356443503?mt=8)\n- [RSS feeds](https:\/\/phys.org\/feeds\/)\n- [Push notification]()\n\n© Phys.org 2003 - 2026 powered by [Science X Network](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/)\n\n[Privacy policy](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/help\/privacy\/) [Terms of use](https:\/\/sciencex.com\/help\/terms\/)\n\n#### E-mail newsletter\n#### Follow us\n\n![Quantcast](https:\/\/pixel.quantserve.com\/pixel\/p-5dNhPAnM9r0yY.gif)","attrs_readable_markdown":"![Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs](https:\/\/scx1.b-cdn.net\/csz\/news\/800a\/2017\/oldestrecord.jpg)\n\nCredit: University of Cambridge\n\nResearchers have pinpointed the date of what could be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded. The event, which occurred on 30 October 1207 BC, is mentioned in the Bible, and could have consequences for the chronology of the ancient world.\n\nUsing a combination of the biblical text and an ancient Egyptian text, the researchers were then able to refine the dates of the Egyptian pharaohs, in particular the dates of the reign of Ramesses the Great. The results are published in the Royal Astronomical Society journal *Astronomy & Geophysics*.\n\nThe biblical text in question comes from the Old Testament book of Joshua and has puzzled biblical scholars for centuries. It records that after Joshua led the people of Israel into Canaan - a region of the ancient Near East that covered modern-day Israel and Palestine - he prayed: \"Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon. And the Sun stood still, and the Moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies.\"\n\n\"If these words are describing a real observation, then a major astronomical event was taking place - the question for us to figure out is what the text actually means,\" said paper co-author Professor Sir Colin Humphreys from the University of Cambridge's Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy, who is also interested in relating scientific knowledge to the Bible.\n\n\"Modern English translations, which follow the King James translation of 1611, usually interpret this text to mean that the sun and [moon](https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/moon\/) stopped moving,\" said Humphreys, who is also a Fellow of Selwyn College. \"But going back to the original Hebrew text, we determined that an alternative meaning could be that the sun and moon just stopped doing what they normally do: they stopped shining. In this context, the Hebrew words could be referring to a solar eclipse, when the moon passes between the earth and the sun, and the sun appears to stop shining. This interpretation is supported by the fact that the Hebrew word translated 'stand still' has the same root as a Babylonian word used in ancient astronomical texts to describe eclipses.\"\n\nHumphreys and his co-author, Graeme Waddington, are not the first to suggest that the biblical text may refer to an eclipse, however, earlier historians claimed that it was not possible to investigate this possibility further due to the laborious calculations that would have been required.\n\nIndependent evidence that the Israelites were in Canaan between 1500 and 1050 BC can be found in the Merneptah Stele, an Egyptian [text](https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/text\/) dating from the reign of the Pharaoh Merneptah, son of the well-known Ramesses the Great. The large granite block, held in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, says that it was carved in the fifth year of Merneptah's reign and mentions a campaign in Canaan in which he defeated the people of Israel.\n\nEarlier historians have used these two texts to try to date the possible eclipse, but were not successful as they were only looking at total eclipses, in which the disc of the sun appears to be completely covered by the moon as the moon passes directly between the earth and the sun. What the earlier historians failed to consider was that it was instead an [annular eclipse](https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/annular+eclipse\/), in which the moon passes directly in front of the sun, but is too far away to cover the disc completely, leading to the characteristic 'ring of fire' appearance. In the ancient world the same word was used for both total and annular eclipses.\n\nThe researchers developed a new eclipse code, which takes into account variations in the Earth's rotation over time. From their calculations, they determined that the only annular eclipse visible from Canaan between 1500 and 1050 BC was on 30 October 1207 BC, in the afternoon. If their arguments are accepted, it would not only be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded, it would also enable researchers to date the reigns of Ramesses the Great and his son Merneptah to within a year.\n\n\"Solar eclipses are often used as a fixed point to date events in the [ancient world](https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/ancient+world\/),\" said Humphreys. Using these new calculations, the reign of Merneptah began in 1210 or 1209 BC. As it is known from Egyptian texts how long he and his father reigned for, it would mean that Ramesses the Great reigned from 1276-1210 BC, with a precision of plus or minus one year, the most accurate dates available. The precise dates of the pharaohs have been subject to some uncertainty among Egyptologists, but this new calculation, if accepted, could lead to an adjustment in the dates of several of their reigns and enable us to [date](https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/date\/) them precisely.\n\n###### More information\nColin Humphreys et al, Solar eclipse of 1207 BC helps to date pharaohs, *Astronomy & Geophysics* (2017). [DOI: 10.1093\/astrogeo\/atx178](http:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.1093\/astrogeo\/atx178)\n\n**Citation**: Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs (2017, October 30) retrieved 9 April 2026 from https:\/\/phys.org\/news\/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html\n\nThis document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.","meta_canonical":null}

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Meta Title	Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs
Meta Description	Researchers have pinpointed the date of what could be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded. The event, which occurred on 30 October 1207 BC, is mentioned in the Bible, and could have consequences for the chronology of the ancient world.
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Boilerpipe Text	Credit: University of Cambridge Researchers have pinpointed the date of what could be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded. The event, which occurred on 30 October 1207 BC, is mentioned in the Bible, and could have consequences for the chronology of the ancient world. Using a combination of the biblical text and an ancient Egyptian text, the researchers were then able to refine the dates of the Egyptian pharaohs, in particular the dates of the reign of Ramesses the Great. The results are published in the Royal Astronomical Society journal Astronomy & Geophysics . The biblical text in question comes from the Old Testament book of Joshua and has puzzled biblical scholars for centuries. It records that after Joshua led the people of Israel into Canaan - a region of the ancient Near East that covered modern-day Israel and Palestine - he prayed: "Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon. And the Sun stood still, and the Moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies." "If these words are describing a real observation, then a major astronomical event was taking place - the question for us to figure out is what the text actually means," said paper co-author Professor Sir Colin Humphreys from the University of Cambridge's Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy, who is also interested in relating scientific knowledge to the Bible. "Modern English translations, which follow the King James translation of 1611, usually interpret this text to mean that the sun and moon stopped moving," said Humphreys, who is also a Fellow of Selwyn College. "But going back to the original Hebrew text, we determined that an alternative meaning could be that the sun and moon just stopped doing what they normally do: they stopped shining. In this context, the Hebrew words could be referring to a solar eclipse, when the moon passes between the earth and the sun, and the sun appears to stop shining. This interpretation is supported by the fact that the Hebrew word translated 'stand still' has the same root as a Babylonian word used in ancient astronomical texts to describe eclipses." Humphreys and his co-author, Graeme Waddington, are not the first to suggest that the biblical text may refer to an eclipse, however, earlier historians claimed that it was not possible to investigate this possibility further due to the laborious calculations that would have been required. Independent evidence that the Israelites were in Canaan between 1500 and 1050 BC can be found in the Merneptah Stele, an Egyptian text dating from the reign of the Pharaoh Merneptah, son of the well-known Ramesses the Great. The large granite block, held in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, says that it was carved in the fifth year of Merneptah's reign and mentions a campaign in Canaan in which he defeated the people of Israel. Earlier historians have used these two texts to try to date the possible eclipse, but were not successful as they were only looking at total eclipses, in which the disc of the sun appears to be completely covered by the moon as the moon passes directly between the earth and the sun. What the earlier historians failed to consider was that it was instead an annular eclipse , in which the moon passes directly in front of the sun, but is too far away to cover the disc completely, leading to the characteristic 'ring of fire' appearance. In the ancient world the same word was used for both total and annular eclipses. The researchers developed a new eclipse code, which takes into account variations in the Earth's rotation over time. From their calculations, they determined that the only annular eclipse visible from Canaan between 1500 and 1050 BC was on 30 October 1207 BC, in the afternoon. If their arguments are accepted, it would not only be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded, it would also enable researchers to date the reigns of Ramesses the Great and his son Merneptah to within a year. "Solar eclipses are often used as a fixed point to date events in the ancient world ," said Humphreys. Using these new calculations, the reign of Merneptah began in 1210 or 1209 BC. As it is known from Egyptian texts how long he and his father reigned for, it would mean that Ramesses the Great reigned from 1276-1210 BC, with a precision of plus or minus one year, the most accurate dates available. The precise dates of the pharaohs have been subject to some uncertainty among Egyptologists, but this new calculation, if accepted, could lead to an adjustment in the dates of several of their reigns and enable us to date them precisely. More information Colin Humphreys et al, Solar eclipse of 1207 BC helps to date pharaohs, Astronomy & Geophysics (2017). DOI: 10.1093/astrogeo/atx178 Citation : Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs (2017, October 30) retrieved 9 April 2026 from https://phys.org/news/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.
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[Home](https://phys.org/) 2. [Astronomy & Space](https://phys.org/space-news/) 3. [Space Exploration](https://phys.org/space-news/space-exploration/) * October 30, 2017 # Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs by Sarah Collins, [University of Cambridge](http://www.cam.ac.uk/) [Add as preferred source](https://google.com/preferences/source?q=https%3A%2F%2Fphys.org%2F) * ![Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs](https://scx1.b-cdn.net/csz/news/800a/2017/oldestrecord.jpg) Credit: University of Cambridge Researchers have pinpointed the date of what could be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded. The event, which occurred on 30 October 1207 BC, is mentioned in the Bible, and could have consequences for the chronology of the ancient world. Using a combination of the biblical text and an ancient Egyptian text, the researchers were then able to refine the dates of the Egyptian pharaohs, in particular the dates of the reign of Ramesses the Great. The results are published in the Royal Astronomical Society journal Astronomy & Geophysics. The biblical text in question comes from the Old Testament book of Joshua and has puzzled biblical scholars for centuries. It records that after Joshua led the people of Israel into Canaan - a region of the ancient Near East that covered modern-day Israel and Palestine - he prayed: "Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon. And the Sun stood still, and the Moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies." "If these words are describing a real observation, then a major astronomical event was taking place - the question for us to figure out is what the text actually means," said paper co-author Professor Sir Colin Humphreys from the University of Cambridge's Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy, who is also interested in relating scientific knowledge to the Bible. "Modern English translations, which follow the King James translation of 1611, usually interpret this text to mean that the sun and [moon](https://phys.org/tags/moon/) stopped moving," said Humphreys, who is also a Fellow of Selwyn College. "But going back to the original Hebrew text, we determined that an alternative meaning could be that the sun and moon just stopped doing what they normally do: they stopped shining. In this context, the Hebrew words could be referring to a solar eclipse, when the moon passes between the earth and the sun, and the sun appears to stop shining. This interpretation is supported by the fact that the Hebrew word translated 'stand still' has the same root as a Babylonian word used in ancient astronomical texts to describe eclipses." Humphreys and his co-author, Graeme Waddington, are not the first to suggest that the biblical text may refer to an eclipse, however, earlier historians claimed that it was not possible to investigate this possibility further due to the laborious calculations that would have been required. Independent evidence that the Israelites were in Canaan between 1500 and 1050 BC can be found in the Merneptah Stele, an Egyptian [text](https://phys.org/tags/text/) dating from the reign of the Pharaoh Merneptah, son of the well-known Ramesses the Great. The large granite block, held in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, says that it was carved in the fifth year of Merneptah's reign and mentions a campaign in Canaan in which he defeated the people of Israel. Earlier historians have used these two texts to try to date the possible eclipse, but were not successful as they were only looking at total eclipses, in which the disc of the sun appears to be completely covered by the moon as the moon passes directly between the earth and the sun. What the earlier historians failed to consider was that it was instead an [annular eclipse](https://phys.org/tags/annular+eclipse/), in which the moon passes directly in front of the sun, but is too far away to cover the disc completely, leading to the characteristic 'ring of fire' appearance. In the ancient world the same word was used for both total and annular eclipses. Discover the latest in science, tech, and space with over 100,000 subscribers who rely on Phys.org for daily insights. Sign up for our [free newsletter](https://sciencex.com/help/newsletter/) and get updates on breakthroughs, innovations, and research that matter—daily or weekly. The researchers developed a new eclipse code, which takes into account variations in the Earth's rotation over time. From their calculations, they determined that the only annular eclipse visible from Canaan between 1500 and 1050 BC was on 30 October 1207 BC, in the afternoon. If their arguments are accepted, it would not only be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded, it would also enable researchers to date the reigns of Ramesses the Great and his son Merneptah to within a year. "Solar eclipses are often used as a fixed point to date events in the [ancient world](https://phys.org/tags/ancient+world/)," said Humphreys. Using these new calculations, the reign of Merneptah began in 1210 or 1209 BC. As it is known from Egyptian texts how long he and his father reigned for, it would mean that Ramesses the Great reigned from 1276-1210 BC, with a precision of plus or minus one year, the most accurate dates available. The precise dates of the pharaohs have been subject to some uncertainty among Egyptologists, but this new calculation, if accepted, could lead to an adjustment in the dates of several of their reigns and enable us to [date](https://phys.org/tags/date/) them precisely. ###### More information Colin Humphreys et al, Solar eclipse of 1207 BC helps to date pharaohs, Astronomy & Geophysics (2017). [DOI: 10.1093/astrogeo/atx178](http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/astrogeo/atx178) Provided by [University of Cambridge](https://phys.org/partners/university-of-cambridge/) Citation: Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs (2017, October 30) retrieved 9 April 2026 from https://phys.org/news/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. 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Readable Markdown	![Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs](https://scx1.b-cdn.net/csz/news/800a/2017/oldestrecord.jpg) Credit: University of Cambridge Researchers have pinpointed the date of what could be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded. The event, which occurred on 30 October 1207 BC, is mentioned in the Bible, and could have consequences for the chronology of the ancient world. Using a combination of the biblical text and an ancient Egyptian text, the researchers were then able to refine the dates of the Egyptian pharaohs, in particular the dates of the reign of Ramesses the Great. The results are published in the Royal Astronomical Society journal Astronomy & Geophysics. The biblical text in question comes from the Old Testament book of Joshua and has puzzled biblical scholars for centuries. It records that after Joshua led the people of Israel into Canaan - a region of the ancient Near East that covered modern-day Israel and Palestine - he prayed: "Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon. And the Sun stood still, and the Moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies." "If these words are describing a real observation, then a major astronomical event was taking place - the question for us to figure out is what the text actually means," said paper co-author Professor Sir Colin Humphreys from the University of Cambridge's Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy, who is also interested in relating scientific knowledge to the Bible. "Modern English translations, which follow the King James translation of 1611, usually interpret this text to mean that the sun and [moon](https://phys.org/tags/moon/) stopped moving," said Humphreys, who is also a Fellow of Selwyn College. "But going back to the original Hebrew text, we determined that an alternative meaning could be that the sun and moon just stopped doing what they normally do: they stopped shining. In this context, the Hebrew words could be referring to a solar eclipse, when the moon passes between the earth and the sun, and the sun appears to stop shining. This interpretation is supported by the fact that the Hebrew word translated 'stand still' has the same root as a Babylonian word used in ancient astronomical texts to describe eclipses." Humphreys and his co-author, Graeme Waddington, are not the first to suggest that the biblical text may refer to an eclipse, however, earlier historians claimed that it was not possible to investigate this possibility further due to the laborious calculations that would have been required. Independent evidence that the Israelites were in Canaan between 1500 and 1050 BC can be found in the Merneptah Stele, an Egyptian [text](https://phys.org/tags/text/) dating from the reign of the Pharaoh Merneptah, son of the well-known Ramesses the Great. The large granite block, held in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, says that it was carved in the fifth year of Merneptah's reign and mentions a campaign in Canaan in which he defeated the people of Israel. Earlier historians have used these two texts to try to date the possible eclipse, but were not successful as they were only looking at total eclipses, in which the disc of the sun appears to be completely covered by the moon as the moon passes directly between the earth and the sun. What the earlier historians failed to consider was that it was instead an [annular eclipse](https://phys.org/tags/annular+eclipse/), in which the moon passes directly in front of the sun, but is too far away to cover the disc completely, leading to the characteristic 'ring of fire' appearance. In the ancient world the same word was used for both total and annular eclipses. The researchers developed a new eclipse code, which takes into account variations in the Earth's rotation over time. From their calculations, they determined that the only annular eclipse visible from Canaan between 1500 and 1050 BC was on 30 October 1207 BC, in the afternoon. If their arguments are accepted, it would not only be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded, it would also enable researchers to date the reigns of Ramesses the Great and his son Merneptah to within a year. "Solar eclipses are often used as a fixed point to date events in the [ancient world](https://phys.org/tags/ancient+world/)," said Humphreys. Using these new calculations, the reign of Merneptah began in 1210 or 1209 BC. As it is known from Egyptian texts how long he and his father reigned for, it would mean that Ramesses the Great reigned from 1276-1210 BC, with a precision of plus or minus one year, the most accurate dates available. The precise dates of the pharaohs have been subject to some uncertainty among Egyptologists, but this new calculation, if accepted, could lead to an adjustment in the dates of several of their reigns and enable us to [date](https://phys.org/tags/date/) them precisely. ###### More information Colin Humphreys et al, Solar eclipse of 1207 BC helps to date pharaohs, Astronomy & Geophysics (2017). [DOI: 10.1093/astrogeo/atx178](http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/astrogeo/atx178) Citation: Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs (2017, October 30) retrieved 9 April 2026 from https://phys.org/news/2017-10-oldest-solar-eclipse-date-egyptian.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.
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