<p><a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/content/351/6272/482/suppl/DC1" rel="nofollow">This link</a> has Dr. Ossendrijver interpretation of the five clay tablets but if you are interested in a second peer review I would suggest emailing Dr. Irving Finkel at the British Museum to give his opinion on the same tablets once he is also one of the handful of global economy experts on deciphering the cuneiform language but was not listed as a reference in the research paper. This second opinion could either add credibility to Dr. Ossendrijver paper, or possibly give a counter argument or theory on what the tablets reveal. There is a lot of subjective interpretation on these five tablets since they are fragments and none show the actual trapezoid figures.  </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-17T11:59:12.420Z
2016-04-17T12:22:57.287Z
2016-04-17T12:22:57.287Z
Todd Elliott
<p>This news story is based on an <a href="http://science.sciencemag.org/content/351/6272/482.full?ijkey=qgiw36Ak9gSes&amp;keytype=ref&amp;siteid=sci" rel="nofollow">article from <em>Science</em></a> The image is also taken from the same <em>Science</em> magazine article. The text here is a procedural text, it describes the process of using a trapezium to make distance-speed-time calculations, for approximation of the motion of Jupiter along the ecliptic.</p>

<p>You should look at the original article in science and the <a href="http://amor.cms.hu-berlin.de/~ossendrm/cuneiform.html" rel="nofollow">author's website</a> </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-03-12T00:19:07.570Z
Thanks :) I need to register to view the science news article. However, the second link has an embedded [YouTube video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rx-5dCXx1SI) in which the tablets are explained in detail. Many thanks for sharing this.
Dumbledore
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-03-11T21:27:15.923Z
2016-03-11T21:34:54.900Z
2016-03-11T21:34:54.900Z
James K
<p>There is a <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170227135121/https://www.sciencenews.org/article/babylonians-used-geometry-track-jupiter%E2%80%99s-movements" rel="nofollow noreferrer">science news article</a> on how Babylonians used geometry to track Jupiter’s movements.</p>
<p>Here is an image of cuneiform tablet which shows Jupiter's movements.</p>
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/CJshT.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/CJshT.jpg" alt="" /></a><br />
<sub>(source: <a href="https://www.sciencenews.org/sites/default/files/2016/01/main/articles/012816_bb_babylonian-main_free.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer">sciencenews.org</a>)</sub></p>
<p>From a layman's point of view, it looks like someone engraved gibberish on a tablet. How do we even know it was used to track Jupiter's movements.</p>
<p>Can anyone translate this? Thanks.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-02-01T16:43:06.527Z
I think you need to ask in some ancient language forum or so here on stackexchange. Only when translated into numbers and language which current astronomers understand, I think that your question will get good answers. To me, obviously, astronomers have been producing mumbo jumbo since thousands of years! Fooling their lords to finance great telescopes. Concluding that everyone will die in some impactaclysme or Eclipse, and requiring more payment in order to try to find out where we all came from and must go. But with good honest intentions all along.
LocalFluff
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-02-01T17:53:25.350Z
Thanks for the suggestion. However, I'm not sure if it would be a good idea to migrate this question to [History SE](http://history.stackexchange.com/questions). There is no specific [SE community/site](http://stackexchange.com/sites) for archaeology as well.
Dumbledore
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-02-01T23:37:04.613Z
@barrycarter LOL...fancy some gravy with that?
Dumbledore
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-02-02T02:51:27.000Z
@barrycarter Both links are helpful. Thanks for your effort!
Dumbledore
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-17T20:45:07.713Z
Looks like a fractal tire track pattern to me. You might look here: http://science.sciencemag.org/content/351/6272/482.full?ijkey=qgiw36Ak9gSes&keytype=ref&siteid=sci
Howard Miller
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-19T09:53:24.257Z
This also might attract better answers if posted on the History of Science and Maths SE (http://hsm.stackexchange.com/)
FJC
<jupiter>
How to read Babylonians' tablet that were used to track Jupiter's movements?
Dumbledore
# How to read Babylonians' tablet that were used to track Jupiter's movements?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-02-01)

There is a [science news article](https://web.archive.org/web/20170227135121/https://www.sciencenews.org/article/babylonians-used-geometry-track-jupiter%E2%80%99s-movements) on how Babylonians used geometry to track Jupiter’s movements.

Here is an image of cuneiform tablet which shows Jupiter's movements.

[![](https://i.sstatic.net/CJshT.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/CJshT.jpg)  
(source: [sciencenews.org](https://www.sciencenews.org/sites/default/files/2016/01/main/articles/012816_bb_babylonian-main_free.jpg))

From a layman's point of view, it looks like someone engraved gibberish on a tablet. How do we even know it was used to track Jupiter's movements.

Can anyone translate this? Thanks.

**Tags:** jupiter
> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: I think you need to ask in some ancient language forum or so here on stackexchange. Only when translated into numbers and language which current astronomers understand, I think that your question will get good answers. To me, obviously, astronomers have been producing mumbo jumbo since thousands of years! Fooling their lords to finance great telescopes. Concluding that everyone will die in some impactaclysme or Eclipse, and requiring more payment in order to try to find out where we all came from and must go. But with good honest intentions all along.  
> **username_0**: Thanks for the suggestion. However, I'm not sure if it would be a good idea to migrate this question to [History SE](http://history.stackexchange.com/questions). There is no specific [SE community/site](http://stackexchange.com/sites) for archaeology as well.  
> **username_0**: @barrycarter LOL...fancy some gravy with that?  
> **username_0**: @barrycarter Both links are helpful. Thanks for your effort!  
> **username_2**: Looks like a fractal tire track pattern to me. You might look here: http://science.sciencemag.org/content/351/6272/482.full?ijkey=qgiw36Ak9gSes&keytype=ref&siteid=sci  
> **username_3**: This also might attract better answers if posted on the History of Science and Maths SE (http://hsm.stackexchange.com/)  

---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_5 on 2016-03-11. Score: 4 | Accepted answer

This news story is based on an [article from *Science*](http://science.sciencemag.org/content/351/6272/482.full?ijkey=qgiw36Ak9gSes&keytype=ref&siteid=sci) The image is also taken from the same *Science* magazine article. The text here is a procedural text, it describes the process of using a trapezium to make distance-speed-time calculations, for approximation of the motion of Jupiter along the ecliptic.

You should look at the original article in science and the [author's website](http://amor.cms.hu-berlin.de/~ossendrm/cuneiform.html)

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Thanks :) I need to register to view the science news article. However, the second link has an embedded [YouTube video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rx-5dCXx1SI) in which the tablets are explained in detail. Many thanks for sharing this.  

---

### Answer by username_4 on 2016-04-17. Score: 3

[This link](http://www.sciencemag.org/content/351/6272/482/suppl/DC1) has Dr. Ossendrijver interpretation of the five clay tablets but if you are interested in a second peer review I would suggest emailing Dr. Irving Finkel at the British Museum to give his opinion on the same tablets once he is also one of the handful of global economy experts on deciphering the cuneiform language but was not listed as a reference in the research paper. This second opinion could either add credibility to Dr. Ossendrijver paper, or possibly give a counter argument or theory on what the tablets reveal. There is a lot of subjective interpretation on these five tablets since they are fragments and none show the actual trapezoid figures.


---

