Keeping the king’s watch”: Ominous celestial events and their political significance in Assyria and Babylonia, 7th-6th centuries BC (B01)

在第二阶段，B01询问观察、报告和解释天体现象之间的关系如何影响亚述帝国（公元前864 - 612年，重点：公元前7世纪）和随后的巴比伦帝国（公元前625 - 539年）的政治决策。由于天体被认为是神的代表并传达他们的意志，占星家们将他们的警惕性集中在夜空上，这是王冠的独家雇佣，明确的目的是保护国王和国家的安全。我们分析了《守王》中所采用的策略的连续性和变化。

In Phase II, B01 asks how the relationship between observing, reporting, and interpreting celestial phenomena affected political decision-making in the Assyrian Empire (864−612 BC, focus: 7th century BC), and the succeeding Babylonian Empire (625−539 BC). As celestial bodies were thought to represent the gods and to communicate their will, astrologers focused their vigilance on the night sky in the exclusive employ of the crown, with the explicit purpose of keeping king and state safe. We analyse continuity and change in the strategies employed in “Keeping the King’s Watch”.