Sources

The Heavenly Writing: Divination, Horoscopy, and Astronomy in Mesopotamian Culture

Citation Formats

General Reference

Divinity Atlas. "The Heavenly Writing: Divination, Horoscopy, and Astronomy in Mesopotamian Culture." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/sources/the-heavenly-writing-divination-horoscopy-and-astronomy-in-mesopotamian-culture.

APA Style

Divinity Atlas. (n.d.). The Heavenly Writing: Divination, Horoscopy, and Astronomy in Mesopotamian Culture. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/sources/the-heavenly-writing-divination-horoscopy-and-astronomy-in-mesopotamian-culture

BibTeX

@misc{divinityatlas-the-heavenly-writing-divination-horoscop,
  author = {Divinity Atlas},
  title = {The Heavenly Writing: Divination, Horoscopy, and Astronomy in Mesopotamian Culture},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://dev-divinity.interactiveatlas.org/sources/the-heavenly-writing-divination-horoscopy-and-astronomy-in-mesopotamian-culture},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

Francesca Rochberg's study traces the documented history of Mesopotamian celestial divination directly from the cuneiform astronomical record, and its specific, checkable contribution is establishing how the later Greek and Roman planetary deity names descend from earlier Mesopotamian planet-deity identifications. That traceable textual lineage from cuneiform sources through to classical planetary naming is the book's real evidentiary basis, not a claim about its publisher. This record has not independently traced a documented history of scholarly disagreement with Rochberg's specific readings. Use it for the historical link between Mesopotamian celestial divination and later Greco-Roman planetary naming.

Facts

Assessment

Reliability Tier

A scholarly study from a university press tracing the documented history of Mesopotamian celestial divination from the cuneiform astronomical record, establishing how the later Greek and Roman planetary deity names descend from earlier Mesopotamian identifications.

Notes

Scholarly treatment of Mesopotamian celestial divination and of the planet-deity identifications that underlie the later Greek and Roman planetary names.

Citation

Author

Francesca Rochberg

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

Publication Year

2004

URL

https://archive.org/details/heavenlywritingd0000roch

Source Type

academic monograph

Cross-Tradition Connections

Associated With

Mesopotamians

This source names Mesopotamians directly: "Francesca Rochberg's study traces the documented history of Mesopotamian celestial divination directly from the cuneiform astronomical record, and its specific, checkable contribution is..."

Source The Heavenly Writing: Divination, Horoscopy, and Astronomy in Mesopotamian CultureFrancesca Rochberg

Claims Backed By This Source (409 claims)

This source backs 409 claims across the atlas. As facts: 282 well-attested. As cited relationships: 54 holds. Plus 73 entities citing it as a general reference with no single fact or relationship attached.

Disposition By Topic

Religious Symbols, 143 claims: 90 well-attested, 34 holds, 19 general references.
Zodiac Signs, 72 claims: 48 well-attested, 12 holds, 12 general references.
Rashis (Vedic Signs), 48 claims: 36 well-attested, 12 general references.
Articles, 42 claims: 39 well-attested, 1 holds, 2 general references.
Planets, 37 claims: 28 well-attested, 9 general references.
Other Writings, 20 claims: 16 well-attested, 2 holds, 2 general references.
Categories, 9 claims: 6 well-attested, 3 general references.
Sources, 9 claims: 8 well-attested, 1 holds.
Disciplines, 6 claims: 4 well-attested, 2 general references.
Constellations, 5 claims: 3 well-attested, 1 holds, 1 general references.
Numbers, 4 claims: 2 well-attested, 2 general references.
Calendars, 2 claims: 1 well-attested, 1 general references.
Cultures, 2 claims: 2 general references.
Practices, 2 claims: 1 holds, 1 general references.
Religions, 2 claims: 1 well-attested, 1 general references.
Rituals, 2 claims: 1 holds, 1 general references.
Deities, 1 claims: 1 general references.
Fixed Stars, 1 claims: 1 general references.
Hymns & Liturgical Texts, 1 claims: 1 general references.
Scholarly Disciplines, 1 claims: 1 holds.