Acient ecilpses redated/correct timeline

The ancients were always tempted to change their own history for political
or other reasons and eclipses posed a special problem when they were
well-known since one could not simply redate an event associated with a
known eclipse to a year without one. Thus attempts were made to align with
substitute ecilpses. As a result many eclipses that only loosely match the
popular timeline have now been correctly redated to their original dates
based upon the corrected timeline from the time of Akhenaton through the
Herod the Great. Here are the eclipses with their corrected dates.

KTU 1.78: A circumstantial eclipse dated to the 12th Akhenaton, sometimes
dated to 1012 BCE (New Chronology) correctly remains dated to 1375BCE.

ASSYRIAN EPONYM ECLIPSE: This eclipse anchors the entire Assyrian period,
now dated to 763BCE for month 3, is correctly redated to 709BCE.

STRM. KAMBYSES 400: This is a cryptic eclipse text with double-dating for
both the revised and original chronology taking advantage of coincidences
between the revised and original chronology. Two eclipses have precise
times of the night given which set the interval between the eclipses at
2:46, the precise interval for 541BCE for "year 7" of Nebuchadnezzar per his
original chronology. It is a mismatch for 523BCE for "year 7" of Kambyses
where the interval is 4:46. The original 7th year of Nebuchadnezzar (541
BCE) happened to coincidentally fall in the revised 7th year of Kambyses
(523BCE), similar eclipses which align in the 18-year lunar ecilpse pattern,
very well-known to the Babylonians.

VAT4956: Perhaps the most direct example of double-dating to the original
chronology, this text double-dates year 37 of Nebuchadnezzar to both 568BCE
and 511BCE, 511BCE being the correct original dating. Note that this
harmonizes with the above SK400 dating for Nebuchadnezzar in 541BCE,
becoming the second text to confirm Nebuchadnezzar's reign actually began in
547BCE.

NABON 18. This text is unusual in that it is a narrative reference to an
eclipse that is in progress when the moon sets, causing a panic resulting in
Nabonidus sacrificing his daughter to the moon God, dated year 2 of
Nabonidus. The context is a total eclipse setting while total. The current
dating is to 554BCE for year 2 of Nabonidus, which is only a partial eclipse
and nearly over by moonset in month sixth. The matching eclipse in month
six of the original 2nd year of Nabonidus in 479BCE is a total eclipse and
when aligned with the SK400 timing for the first eclipse the moon indeed
does set while in the late total phase of the eclipse, explaining the panic.
A partial eclipse does not cause a panic, if anything its reassuring. When
the moon during an eclipse near the end of the total phase sets, its
definitely a seen as a seriously bad omen. The dating of year 2 of
Nabonidus in 479BCE is consistent with the the corrected reign of
Nebuchadnezzar II.

THE FAMOUS THALES ECLIPSE: This was a recent surprise confirmation for the
original chronology since Herodotus describes the 1) time, 2) location and
3) predictability and 4) the ruling king Nabonidus of this eclipse which
made Thales famous. This does not work for 585BCE where it is currently
dated with many scholars in astronomy noting that Thales did not have the
ability to predict the geographical location of this eclipse, nor that the
Babylonians knew of any eclipse pattern of predictability. That has been
disproven by the series of solar eclipses occurring over Babylon and Assyria
in 817-763-709BCE, 54 years and 1 month apart and 15 degrees apart
latiduinally as the series of eclipses progressed northward. This made the
third eclipse predictable (709BCE) and was likely the reason it is the only
eclipse to appear in the narrative annual eponym list, that is, because it
became a hugely important social event. The two years of active reign of
Nabonidus fall between 480 and 478BCE. The only possible predictable
eclipse fitting this pattern for that century occurs early in 478BCE when
Nabonidus would have still bee on the throne. This eclipse also fits the
time and location (Ionia) of this eclipse. The fact that Thales became
famous for having predicted it in a specific location testifies to its
authenticity, but not in 585BCE which was the substitute eclipse event but
in in 478BCE where you have the correct match and explanation of how Thales
could have predicted this eclipse and became famous! Thus two ancient
texts can be used to confirm the redating of year 2 of Nabonidus to
479/478BCE!

THE PELOPONNESIAN WAR SOLAR ECLIPSE: Definitely dismissed as working as
described in 431BCE since it was not total in Athens. This is redated
correctly to early 402BCE where the precise eclipse as described occurs over
Athens. This redates the beginning of the PPW to 403BCE. This is
harmonized by two references linked to Persian events that align with the
original chronology.

THE LUNAR ECLIPSE DATING HEROD'S DEATH: Finally, this eclipse as we all
know doesn't work in 4BCE since it occurs _after_ Herod's death. Herod died
on Shebat 2 (the 11th month) and the eclipse didn't occur until the 12th or
13th month. The eclipse, however, must occur a few days after an annual
fast and about 18-20 days before the death of Herod. That means it could
only occur in the 10th month right after the Fast of the 10th of Tebet.
There was no annual fast in the 12th month. Herod's substitute 37-year
reign beginning in 40BCE to parallel a second reign of 34 years beginning in
37BCE clearly is a cover for the redating of Herod's 37-year reign back
three years from 37BCE. When Herod's 37-year reign is corrected by three
years his death occurs on Shebat 2, 1 AD. 18 days earlier on Tebet 14 in 1
BC indeed a lunar eclipse did occur that would have been seen in Jerusalem
around 3:00 a.m. This eclipse must have been mentioned by Josephus as a
cryptic reference to reveal the original dating for Herod's death though
Herod's rule had been politically revised. Somehow the eclipse of 4 BCE,
which never fit any of the specifics got to be known as the eclipse
confirming Herod's death in 4BCE.

CONCLUSION: So it works out that problems of revisionism in the past that
were resolved with substitute eclipse events end up leaving a bread trail
back to the original chronology timeline, which is now well established both
archaeologically as well as astronomically.

For more information about the specific timeline with events from the Exodus
to Herod please feel free to e-mail me.

Happy Holidays Everyone!!

Larry Wilson