Archaeoastronomy

Giulio Magli is an Italian astrophysicist/archaeoastronomer who works primarily on the relationship between the architecture of ancient cultures and the sky. After receiving his Ph.D. in mathematical physics at the University of Milan, he initially conducted research in relativistic astrophysics but gradually moved toward archaeoastronomy, with a special interest in the relationship between architecture, landscape, and the mathematical/astronomical lore of ancient cultures, especially among the ancient Egyptians but also among the Incas, in Asia and in the Mediterranean. He became a full professor of mathematical physics at the Politecnico of Milan in 2005, and he is currently the head of the FDS Laboratory for the Communication of Science  there. Since 2009, he has taught the only official course on archaeoastronomy ever established in an Italian University. His previous books include Mysteries and Discoveries of Archaeoastronomy (Springer 2009)  Architecture, Astronomy and Sacred Landscape in Ancient Egypt (Cambridge University Press 2013) and Sacred Landscapes of Imperial China (Springer 2020). He has taught the first-ever massive open online course on archaeoastronomy. The course is freely available on the Politecnico of Milan POK and Coursera’s MOOC platforms.

Introduction.- Methods.- Astronomy with the Naked Eye.- Acquiring Data.- Data Analysis.- Ideas.- Astronomy and Architecture at the Roots of Civilization.- Astronomy, Power, and Landscapes of Power.- The Scientific Foundations of Archaeoastronomy.- Megalithic Cultures of the Mediterranean.- Ancient Egypt.- The Hopewell.- The Mayas.- The Incas.- Ancient China.- Cambodia and Java.- Ancient Japan.- Pre-columbian Cultures.- The Classical World.- Exercises.