Season of the Inundation
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| The Season of the Inundation – Axt in hieroglyphs |
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The Season of the Inundation (the MdC transliteration of the Egyptian term is Axt, and it is occasionally written as Akhet) [1] was the first season in the ancient Egyptian calendar.
The ancient Egyptians marked the beginning of their year by the rising of the [[Nile)). This event was vital to the people because the waters left behind fertile silt and moisture which was the cause of the fertility of the Egyptian nation.
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[edit] Lunar calendar
The ancient Egyptians used this name in both their lunar and their civil calendars. The lunar calendar began with the heliacal rising of Sirius, which during the time of the ancient Egyptians occurred around June 20th (according to the Julian calendar — in Egypt the Sothic year happens to be of the same length as the Julian); the four months of their lunar calendar are roughly equivalent to the period from the rising of Sirius to the middle of November.
[edit] Civil calendar
The New Year's day of the civil calendar, on the other hand, moved through the seasons over time, by about one day every four years. Therefore, the Season of Inundation does not continuously match any part of the modern calendar.
[edit] Months
The Season of Inundation consists of four 30-day months. These months can be either referred to by number (months 1 through 4) or by names as follows:
The Season of Inundation is followed by the Season of the Emergence.[2]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Nigel C. Strudwick, Texts from the Pyramid Age, SBL 2005, p.87
- ^ Marshall Clagett, Ancient Egyptian Science: A Source Book, Diane 1989, ISBN 0871692147, p.5
| Preceded by Season of the Harvest Shemu |
Egyptian Seasons Season of the Inundation |
Succeeded by Season of the Emergence Proyet |
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