Concerning the origins of the solar holiday of December 25th vis-a-vis Christianity, the authoritative Catholic Encyclopedia ("Christmas") states: The earliest rapprochement of the births of Christ and the sun is in [the writings of Church father] Cyprian [200-258]..."O, how wonderfully acted Providence that on that day on which that Sun was born...Christ should be born."

In the fourth century, Chrysostom...says:... "But Our Lord, too, is born in the month of December...the eighth before the calends of January [25 December]..., But they call it the 'Birthday of the Unconquered'. Who indeed is so unconquered as Our Lord...? Or, if they say that it is the birthday of the Sun, He is the Sun of Justice."[348]

As we can see from these revealing remarks, the birth of Christ at the winter solstice has been asserted since as early as the 3rd century. Moreover, the reason for this birthdate is clearly given: This date represents "the birthday of the Sun!" This longstanding birthday of the "Unconquered Sun" or Sol Invictus was formally instituted in the Roman Empire after Emperor Aurelian (214/5-275 AD/CE) introduced a new state cult in 274 AD/CE, constructing a temple to Sol Invictus at Rome to commemorate his victory over "the East": "The Sol worshiped there seems to have been the Ba'al of Palmyra combined with other Oriental sun gods..."[349] The temple was commemorated on December 25th in the year 274, the day of the "rebirth of the sun."

Regarding Christ's birth and the establishment of Christmas, Christian apologist Thomas Thorburn relates: The earliest church commemorated it at various times from September to March, until in 354 A.D. Pope Julius I assimilated the festival with that of the birth of Mithra (December 25), in order to facilitate the more complete Christianisation of the empire.[350]

Thus, Christ's birth at the winter solstice was not formalized until the fourth century-and this fact demonstrates a deliberate contrivance by Christian officials to usurp other religions, as we contend the entire Christian religion was specifically created by human beings to do.

It should be kept in mind also that this December 25th date was related to the Nativity of John the Baptist at the summer solstice, or June 24th, per the Catholic calendar of festivals. The placement of Christmas and St. John's Day as six months apart is based on biblical scripture at Luke 1:24-27, in which the Baptist's mother was said to have conceived six months before the Virgin Mary did likewise. The astrotheological nature of this tale is evidenced further at John 3:30, in which the Baptist is made to say mysteriously in reference to Christ: "He must increase, but I must decrease." While this peculiar statement would make little sense if applied to human beings, it may provide a clue that the gospel writers in fact knew that they were discussing the winter and summer sun as it moved from solstice to solstice.

Prior to its celebration as the birthday of Jesus Christ, the 25th of December/winter solstice was claimed as the nativity for a number of other gods and godmen, including the Perso-Roman god Mithra. As another version of the solar hero, the Greek god Dionysus too was asserted to have been born at the winter solstice, when his followers held a wild celebration in his and the sun god Apollo's honor.[351] This winter-solstice birth may also have come with Dionysus's identification with the Egyptian god Osiris, since, as Plutarch states (35, 364E), "Osiris is identical with Dionysus."[352] Concerning winter-solstice "Feasts and Festivals," the Encyclopedia Britannica reports, "The common people in China have a similar custom on the arrival of the winter solstice..."[353] The EB also names several other cultures as having winter celebrations, including the Mexicans and Peruvians. Even the lunar Jews had their winter holiday, or "Feast of the Dedication," as mentioned at John 10:22. The winter solstice in Latin is called bruma, serving as one source of the Roman celebration called "the Brumalia."[354]

Of course, the Romans were famed for their lengthy winter festival of Saturnalia, which ended on the first day of the solstice, after which another celebration was held. In this regard, in his analysis of the Egyptian zodiac, Dr. William Mure (1799-1860), a lord-rector of Glasgow University,[355] provides a "curious passage" from the works of the Emperor Julian (331-363 AD/CE), who reinstated Pagan worship-and possibly paid for it with his life: Immediately after the completion of the month of Saturn (December), we celebrate magnificent games to the sun, called the feast of the Invincible Sun, in which it is not permitted to introduce any of those unseemly though necessary rites, which belong to the previous month; but the Saturnalia being at an end, the feast of the Sun comes next in succession; nor was it the intention of the ancients, that this solemnity should be fixed to the very day on which the god passes the tropic, but to that on which his return from south to north first becomes perceptible to all; for they knew not yet the nice mode of observation, afterwards discovered by the Chaldees and Egyptians, and perfected by Hipparchus and Ptolemy.[356]

In this passage, Julian discusses the festival of the winter solstice, not necessarily on the first day when the sun "passes the tropic," in other words, December 21/22nd, but when the sun was visibly moving north again, i.e., the 25th. Julian's remarks confirm that the winter solstice was observed in ancient times not only by the famed astrologers the Chaldeans, but also by the Egyptians. As we can see, the celebration at the winter solstice represents an ancient tradition in many parts of the world,[357] with the evidence revealing that Egypt possessed this annual celebration concerning the sun god as well.

There appears to be much confusion regarding the dates of December 21st, 22nd and 25th. The fact is that all of them represent the time of the winter solstice, which begins at midnight on the 21st-equivalent to the morning of the 22nd-and ends at midnight on the 24th, the morning of December 25th. To summarize, in the solar myth the "death" of the "old sun" occurs as the days decrease in length towards the winter solstice-the word "solstice" meaning "sun stands still"-as for three days the sun appears not to be moving south or north. Hence, it was considered "dead" in the "tomb" or "cave," and did not "return to life" until three days later, at midnight on December 24th, when it began its northerly journey again. Therefore, the ancients said the sun was born, reborn or resurrected on December 25th.

Ancient and Modern Voices.

It has been the frequent contention of writers since antiquity that, like many other cultures, the Egyptians too celebrated the birth of the sun at the winter solstice, a logical conclusion, considering the reverence with which the sun was held in Egypt. Concerning this cycle in Egypt, in "Isis and Osiris" (65, 378C), Plutarch remarked that Horus the Child-or "Harpocrates," his Greek name-was "born about the winter solstice, unfinished and infant-like..."[358] This term "Harpocrates" is a Greek word, which in the original Egyptian is "Her-pa-chruti" or "Heru-pa-Chrat," etc., meaning "the morning sun."[359] This fact of Plutarch stating that Horus was born on "December 25th" is vitally important to keep in mind, because there has been much denial and censorship of it.

Adding to this highly noteworthy assertion are some fascinating remarks by Church father Epiphanius (c. 310-403 AD/CE) in his Panarion adversus Haereses (51, 22.4-11): "...Christ was born on the eighth before the Ides of January, thirteen days after the winter solstice and the increase of the light and the day." Greeks, I mean the idolaters, celebrate this day on the eighth before the Kalends of January, which Romans call Saturnalia, Egyptians Cronia, and Alexandrians, Cicellia.... For this division between the signs of the zodiac, which is a solstice, comes on the eighth before the Kalends of January, and the day begins to lengthen because the light is receiving its increase....[360]

The "Ides of January" occurred on the 13th of the month, counting back eight days from which, Epiphanius elucidates (51, 24.1), places Christ's birthday on January 6th-which just happens also to be a "birthday" of Osiris centuries before Christianity was created.[361] Epiphanius quotes the "Syrian sage Ephrem" as explaining (away) this date as the "beginning of the increase of the light" with the addition of the 13 days based on Christ and his 12 disciples, rather than for the reason of emulating Osiris's birth. The "Calends of January," of course, is the first of that month, with the eighth day before falling on "Christmas Eve."

In this intriguing passage from Epiphanius appear two names for Egyptian winter-solstice celebrations, "Cronia" and "Cicellia," both Greek terms, the latter of which is mysterious but was found also on the tablet of Canopus.[362] The Cronia festival is named for the god Cronus or Kronos, who is called "Saturnus" in Latin. The association of Cronia or Kronia with Saturnalia is also verified by a papyrus fragment found at Oxyrhynchus (I 122.4), dating to the late third or early fourth century and constituting a portion of a letter from "one Gaianus to a legionary prefect," in which appears a brief mention of "the day of the Kronia," referring to the Saturnalia.[363]

Regarding the festival of Kronia, in "A New Greek Calendar and Festivals of the Sun," classicist Dr. Stefan Weinstock (1901-1971) states: Accordingly, if we find that at the end of the year the period of 24th November-24th December is called Kronia and celebrated at night, this was not done because [the god] Kronos, banned by Zeus to the Underworld, lives in the dark, but because it was a celebration of the dark period of the year, Helios having descended to the Underworld and having assumed there the name of Kronos.[364]

Kronia thus ended with the sun's ascent from the underworld, representing its "birthday" on December 25th. Concerning the Kikellia and other such "Christmas" celebrations, Dr. Kellner remarks: ...the Kikellia was kept at Alexandria on the 25th December, in Bostra and Pella, a festival of local observance, and in Rome, the Saturnalia began on the 17th December and lasted until the 23rd. It was only natural that the winter solstice should give rise to a festival, and find its place marked in the Calendar of Feasts. Indeed, in the Roman Calendar of much later date-that of Philocalus-the 25th December is marked as the birth-day of the unconquerable Sun-God....[365]

Per Birch, the Egyptian term for Cicellia, Kykellia or Kikellia is Kaaubek,[366] with this fact of possessing an Egyptian name obviously serving as an indication that the festival did indeed exist in Egypt. These Kikellia- being a plural term in the Greek-are "celebrated in the month of Choiach before the procession (Periplus) of Osiris,"[367] as written on the stela from Canopus. This famous tablet was discovered in the Eastern Delta in 1886 and contains a decree in both Egyptian hieroglyphs and demotic, as well as Greek, written in 239 BCE as a record of religious festivals created for the deceased "Queen of Virgins," Berenice, wife of Ptolemy III. The decree also established the most accurate calendar of the ancient world, which served as the basis of the Alexandrian calendar introduced by Caesar Augustus (63 BCE-14 AD/CE) in 25 BCE.[368] The Greek word for "procession," , can also be translated as "sailing round" or "second course," a term indicative of a rebirth of sorts, when applied to an animate object such as Osiris. This nautical term is appropriate since Osiris is depicted as being shut up in his ark, and the sun's journey is portrayed as taking place in a boat or "bark." Thus, in the Kikellia we possess a winter-solstice festival representing the marking of the increase of the day and sun's light, along with the "second course" or restoration/rebirth of Osiris.

Epiphanius's discussion of the Kikellia or winter-solstice festival continues with him relating that the celebration took place at the large Egyptian city of Alexandria "at the so-called Virgin's shrine." Railing against "those who guilefully preside over the cult of idols" and who "in many places deceitfully celebrate a very great festival on the very night of the Epiphany" (51, 22.8), Epiphanius next describes this festival as follows (51, 22.9-10): First, at Alexandria, in the Coreum, as they call it; it is a very large temple, the shrine of Core. They stay up all night singing hymns to the idol with a flute accompaniment. And when they have concluded their nightlong vigil torchbearers descend into an underground shrine after cockcrow...and bring up a wooden image which is seated naked a litter. It has a sign of the cross inlaid with gold on its forehead, two other such signs, [one] on each hand, and two other signs, [one] actually [on each of] its two knees-altogether five signs with a gold impress. And they carry the image itself seven times round the innermost shrine with flutes, tambourines and hymns, hold a feast, and take it back down to its place underground. And when you ask them what this mystery means they reply that today at this hour Core-that is, the virgin-gave birth to Aeo.[369]

Here we find a Pagan sacred icon with a cross on its forehead, like that made by Catholic priests on the heads of Christian worshippers. We also discover this sacred image constitutes the divine son of the holy virgin mother within Paganism! This Pagan virgin mother was styled Core or Kore, meaning "maiden," as another name for the Greek nature goddess Persephone, who descended each year into the underworld, to return at springtime, bringing life back with her. This descent into the underworld and the resurrection to life are echoed in a number of myths, including that of Jesus, a subject treated more fully later in this present work. Kore's son Aeo or Aion is called "the eternal," whose birth from a virgin constitutes a mystery, presumably ages prior to the common era. The fact that the virgin-birth motif represents a mystery explains why it is currently not widely known to have existed long before the purported advent of Jesus Christ and his alleged virgin birth, because evidently it was written down frequently, and where even rarely it was memorialized, many references may have been destroyed or hidden. In this regard, it is our contention that Christianity constitutes little more than the mysteries turned inside out and broadcast openly. Moreover, the fact that there was a "very large temple" at Alexandria devoted to the worship of the virgin mother, even named after her, is indication of her worship as both widespread and ancient.

This same event of the Pagan virgin-goddess giving birth to the divine son was celebrated also by Arabs at the ancient site of Petra in Jordan, as likewise recounted by Epiphanius (51, 22.11): This also goes on in the city of Petra, in the idolatrous temple there. (Petra is the capital city of Arabia, the scriptural Edom.) They praise the virgin with hymns in the Arab language and call her Chaamu-that is, Core, or virgin-in Arabic. And the child who is born of her they call Dusares, that is, "only son of the Lord." And this is also done that night in the city of Elusa, as it is there in Petra, and in Alexandria.[370]

Regarding Epiphanius's account, in a chapter entitled "The Virgin Birth," Joseph Campbell writes: We learn from the fourth-century saint and churchman Epiphanius (ca. 315-402), for example, of an annual festival observed in Alexandria on January 6, the date assigned to the Epiphany and (originally) the Nativity of Christ, and to his Baptism as well. The pagan occasion was in celebration of the birth of the year-god Aion to the virgin goddess Kore, a Hellenized transformation of Isis.[371]

As we have seen from Diodorus, in pre-Christian times Isis was also identified with the Greek goddess Demeter, Kore's mother, who, like her daughter, was likewise perceived to be a virgin.

According to Rev. Dr. Hugo Rahner (1900-1968), a dean of the Faculty of Catholic Theology at the University of Innsbruck, by the time of Epiphanius this "year-god" Aion was "beginning to be regarded as identical with Helios and Helios with Dionysus..."[372] Dr. Rahner also discusses the ages of the sun, as related by the Roman philosopher and writer Macrobius (395-423 AD/CE) concerning Dionysus. Thus, in Aion-the "only begotten son of God"-we possess a sun god born of a virgin who is in turn identified with the goddess Isis. Interestingly enough, as Griffiths relates, "Osiris was sometimes identified with Aion,"[373] which is fitting since Osiris's other alter ego, Dionysus, is likewise "identical" with Aion.

To summarize this very significant testimony: In Epiphanius's writings appear important details about the Alexandrian festival celebrating the winter solstice, when the days and sun's light begin to increase, and culminating with an image being carried forth of a child with a golden cross who was born at that time of a virgin! Nowhere does Epiphanius apparently attempt to claim that this widely celebrated non-Christian virgin birth at "Christmas" had been copied from Christianity, leaving us to conclude that any borrowing occurred in the opposite direction.

The pertinent parts of Epiphanius concerning the winter solstice celebrations in Egypt, with the festival at that time of the virgin Kore giving birth to Aion, as well as the same virgin-birth celebration taking place among the Arabs at Petra, are cited in the Williams translation to be in Heresy 51 at section 22.3-11.[374] However-in a twist worthy of a mystery/thriller-in the Migne edition, which contains the "original" Greek alongside with a Latin translation, these crucial sections are entirely missing.[375] In fact, the Migne text does not resume until 22.19, with a discussion of Christ's birth in the 42nd year of Augustus's reign, completely lacking all mention of Egypt, the winter solstice and the Pagan virgin birth. The Williams translation uses Holl's original Greek text found in Die griechischen christlichen Schriftsteller der ersten drei Jahrhunderte, the source of which is the Codex Marcianus, a manuscript ("MS") from the 10th century. This passage in Epiphanius can also be found in the Dindorf edition (ii, p. 482), which likewise uses the Codex Marcianus. Previously published editions and translations lacking this critical passage were evidently based on a "severely censured and bowdlerized fourteenth century MS [manuscript]."[376]

Hence, in the Epiphanius passage we possess a case of deliberate and egregious censorship of an ancient author's work apparently for the specific purpose of preventing information damaging to the Christian tradition from being known. We contend that there have occurred many such instances of censorship concerning numerous correspondences between Christianity and pre-Christian religion, which is another reason why, if some of these important "mysteries" were nonetheless well known in ancient times, they are not today. This particular example of textual tampering removed not only the reference to the Pagan winter-solstice celebrations in Egypt and Greece but also Epiphanius's discussion of the Pagan virgin birth associated with it. Thus, in one fell swoop references to two highly important parallels between Christianity and Egyptian religion were obliterated from the historical record. We can only wonder what else has been suppressed in the same manner, and we can see from erroneous and fallacious commentaries in popular publications and forums, as well as mainstream education, that the effect of such censorship has been thorough.

Fortunately, the earlier manuscript of Epiphanius survived, and we also possess the testimony of Plutarch, as well as that of the writer Macrobius in the fourth century, to verify the facts concerning the Egyptian winter-solstice festival. In his Saturnalia (1.18:10), Macrobius likewise reported on the annual Egyptian "Christmas" celebration: ...at the winter solstice the sun would seem to be a little child, like that which the Egyptians bring forth from a shrine on an appointed day, since the day is then at its shortest and the god is accordingly shown as a tiny infant.[377]

In The Origins of the Liturgical Year, Rev. Dr. Thomas Talley, a professor at the General Theological Seminary, discusses the Macrobius passage and remarks: This similarity to Epiphanius' description is heightened further by the scholion of Cosmas of Jerusalem [d. 760? AD/CE] on Gregory Nazianzen [329-389 AD/CE], which described the Hellenes [Greeks] as celebrating a festival on the winter solstice with the festal shout, "the virgin has brought forth, the light grows," and the Calendar of Antiochus, which places beside the entry for December 25 the remark, "birth of the sun, the light increases," although it notes the occurrence of the solstice itself on December 22.[378]

The "Calendar of Antiochus" refers to that of a resident of Athens about 200 AD/CE in which, as stated, December 25th is named as the "sun's birthday" or the "birthday of Helios."[379] In this regard, Dr. Weinstock states: ...In Egypt and in Greece the terms of human life were applied to the Sun. It was thought to be a child at its rise in the morning, an adult at its culmination and an old man at its setting. The same view was applied to its annual course: child at the winter solstice, youth in the spring, adult in the summer, and old man in the autumn. Thus the course of the Sun in its lifetime, and we should expect that states of this "life" were marked in the calendars, from the time that they became solar calendars. Yet in Greek calendars, corresponding entries were missing until Boll published in 1910 the Calendar of Antiochus which contains the entry to 25th December [Birth of the Sun: the light increases], and lends strong support to the famous entry of Philocalus...: "N(atalis) Invicti." This emergence of the "birthday" of the Sun caused much sensation and some controversy because of its obvious relevance to the Christian tradition concerning Christmas and Epiphany.[380]

Philocalus is the creator of a calendar or chronography, in the year 354 AD/CE of which appears a notation on "December 25th as the Dies Natalis Invicti."[381] Moreover, as we can see from Weinstock's remarks, the correspondence between the "birth of the sun" and Christmas was not lost on the various scholars who published and studied the Calendar of Antiochus. The increase of the light on December 25th makes sense, as that day represents the end of the solstice, which begins on the 21st/22nd. Concerning the "birthday of the Sun on 25th December," Weinstock continues: In the preceding night the Egyptians carried from a sanctuary the image of a new-born child, the Sun, and shouted that "the Virgin has born," and that the light is increasing...[382]

Weinstock concludes, "The full calendar seems to have recorded, in addition to other festivals, phases in the 'life' of the Sun in a way similar to that in which the calendar of our days records the phases in the life of Christ."[383]

As we can see, the ancient winter-solstice festival is well attested, including by yet another fairly early Christian source (Cosmas of Jerusalem or Gregory Nazianzen), complete with the virgin bringing forth, independent of Christianity and representing the birth of the sun. Needless to say, this astrotheological point cannot be overemphasized.

As to the antiquity of the Egyptian winter-solstice, virgin- or solar-birth drama depicted by Plutarch, Epiphanius and Macrobius, Professor Orlando P. Schmidt makes some interesting contentions regarding the king Amenemhet or Amenemhat I (c. 1991/1985-c. 1962/1956 BCE), styled in Greek "Amenemes" or "Ammenemes," founder of the 12th Dynasty: Now, as the sun of the Sothiac year reached the winter solstice in the seventeenth year of the reign of King Amenemes I, he assumed the title of Nem-mestu, meaning "Re-born," in commemoration of his birth as Harpokrates.[384]

Thus, according to Schmidt the birth of "Harpocrates" at the winter solstice apparently dates back almost 2,000 years prior to the common era, a tradition evidently verified by Plutarch.

The epithet "Nem-mestu" represents the king's "Horus name" and means "repeater of births," "repetition of births" or "reborn." Regarding this title, Budge says: ..."nem mestu," i.e., "repeater of births," the allusion being to the idea that the king was like the Sun-god Re who was reborn daily; this title became a great favorite with the kings of the XIIth [12th] Dynasty.[385]

Budge thus verifies that this particular Horus name was indeed popular in the dynasty in question. Intriguingly, according to Budge the Egyptian word for winter solstice is nen, which would make a Horus name of "Nen-mestu" equivalent to "born of the winter solstice." The Egyptian word for "birth" is also transliterated as mesut[386] and mswt,[387] while Amenemhet's full Horus name was "Horus, the born again."[388]

In any case, the Horus name "repeaters of births" as a reflection of the sun god's daily birth, apparently dates back thousands of years in Egypt, and the significance of the winter solstice in Egypt, as well as its perception as the birthday of the sun god, seems evident.

On the subject of Plutarch and Harpocrates, in his Egyptian Book of the Dead, Budge remarks: The curious legend which Plutarch relates concerning Harpocrates and the cause of his lameness is probably based upon the passage in the history of Osiris and Isis given in a hymn to Osiris of the XVIIIth [18th] Dynasty.[389]

Here we discover that Harpocrates or "Horus the Child" as the weak or lame sun evidently dates to an Osirian hymn written during the period of 1534-1292 BCE. Budge never seems to return to this "curious legend," apparently coming from chapter 19 of Plutarch (358E), which mentions Horus as the weak and lame son of Isis but omits the pertinent part about him representing the sun being born at the winter solstice, as in chapter 65.[390] In any event, we have confirmation of the antiquity of Horus being depicted as "lame," as Plutarch relates, and of a Horus name reflecting the sun being born on a daily basis.

Concerning the Osirian myth presented in Plutarch, in Egyptian Ideas of the Future, Budge further comments: "When we examine this story by the light of the results of hieroglyphic decipherment, we find that a large portion of it is substantiated by Egyptian texts..."[391] The British scholar proceeds to name many of the most significant details from Plutarch as having been verified by hieroglyphs, including in inscriptions, papyri and so on. In neither the Book of the Dead nor Egyptian Ideas does Budge describe the assertion in chapter 65 of Plutarch connecting Harpocrates to the winter solstice. Perhaps as a professed Christian, Budge did not wish to reproduce these noteworthy remarks concerning the "Christmas" birth of the Egyptian sun god. As can be seen from the debacle with Epiphanius's work, censorship of this exact sort occurred in important instances. Furthermore, from comments by various writers of Budge's era, it appears there was a debate as to whether or not to accept the "opinions of the Greek" (Plutarch) with regard to Harpocrates's nature as the sun born at the winter solstice. Hence, he could hardly have been oblivious to the debate or its subject. In consideration of all factors, including the various ancient testimonies and all the evidence of the importance of the winter solstice in Egyptian culture, much more of which we shall soon see, one must ask whether or not this argument over the "correctness" of Plutarch in his assertions regarding this figure-a debate continued by apologists today-has been based on scientific reasoning or on religious prejudice, representing an intentional suppression and censorship of pertinent data. As a demonstration of how thorough has been this censorship and lack of common sense, when contacted about Horus's birth at the winter solstice, an individual at Budge's old haunt, the Egyptian Department at the British Museum, pronounced the assertion to be "a fantasy!" The facts, however, prove to the contrary.

If the bulk of Plutarch's summary of the myth of Osiris, Isis and Horus is sustainable through Egyptian writings, as Budge himself states, can we not reasonably assume that this winter-solstice birth of Horus would be accurate as well? If Horus was not born at the winter solstice, why does Plutarch state that he was, in his form as Harpocrates or Horus the Child? In The Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, the Christian editors remark, "Harpokrates was very popular in the Graeco-Roman period."[392] Therefore, the myths and attributes of the "Horuses" in general would likely be well known. Indeed, DDDB further notes, "The birth of Horus is a well-known mythological theme..."[393] In such an environment, with a popular god whose birth was well known, Plutarch could hardly fabricate something so important and obvious without being caught in a noticeable lie! In reality, other than religious prejudice there is no reason whatsoever to cast such an aspersion on this respected historian's account of Horus being born at the winter solstice or on December 25th. Indeed, if Harpocrates symbolizes the sun born again every morning-as we have seen abundantly-would he not also be the sun born in the morning of the winter solstice? To suggest otherwise would seem to be preposterous-yet another point that needs to be emphasized. It is obvious that Horus, as the morning sun born every day, was also born on "December 25th" or the winter solstice.

Moreover, why would Macrobius's account of an Egyptian festival of apparent antiquity that specifically celebrated the birth of the baby sun at the winter solstice likewise not be valid? Why would the Christian father Epiphanius actually give not one but two names for Egyptian winter-solstice celebrations also of apparent antiquity, as well as-testifying against Christian interest-providing an account of a Pagan virgin birth, if these contentions were not true? Why did the Christian writer Cosmas of Jerusalem repeat this claim concerning a virgin bringing forth at the winter solstice-was he lying? Would the Egyptians-who were so keenly aware of astronomy, solar mythology and astrotheology-truly be completely oblivious to, or deliberately unaffected by, the revered status of the sun at the winter solstice? Certainly the Egyptians were highly conscious of the all-important solstices, could they possibly fail to integrate them into their solar religion? The Egyptians were very devoted to marking the rebirth of the sun on a daily basis, as part of their religion in regard to the deceased being equivalent to "the Osiris." In fact, they would have had to go out of their way not to celebrate the birth of the sun on the day of the winter solstice. As we shall see, therefore, the assertions of the ancient writers are well founded, as there exists a mountain of evidence that the Egyptians knew well and revered the winter solstice, as the birth of the sun god, thousands of years ago.

Hieroglyphic Evidence.

In the same manner demonstrated by Budge regarding the bulk of Plutarch's important observations about the Egyptian religion, we can in fact find validation of the Greek historian's assertion regarding the winter solstice as the birth of the sun god in ancient hieroglyphs, as well as many other artifacts indicative of the importance to the Egyptians of that time of year, such as calendars, monuments, clocks, myths and festivals, which we will be exploring here in that order.

In consideration of the evident significance of the winter solstice in Egypt, it might be surprising that in all of Budge's voluminous works there appears to be only one mention of a hieroglyph for the winter solstice, were it not for the fact that the British Egyptologist seems to have been averse to discussing the solstice. In An Egyptian Hieroglyphic Dictionary, Budge cites this one winter-solstice hieroglyph as appearing in the work of the German Egyptologist Dr. Heinrich ("Henry") Brugsch-Bey (1827-1894), who studied Egyptian inscriptions for 30 years while sponsored by the Egyptian government, and who was a director of the Egyptian Museum at Berlin. The impression given by this scarcity of the winter solstice in the works of Budge, arguably the most prolific and famous Egyptologist, is that the subject was of little interest to the Egyptians themselves-and this attitude appears to have been carried into more modern times, as there is a dearth of information on this subject in English.

Yet, in Thesaurus Inscriptionum Aegyptiacarum, which is composed of handdrawn hieroglyphs and difficult-to-read, handwritten German, we find that Dr. Brugsch spends considerable time on a fascinating discussion of the history of the winter solstice in Egypt from at least 1650 BCE, up to the Greco-Roman period concerning the sites of Edfu and Esne under the Ptolemies (325-30 BCE). In this opus, Brugsch provides a number of individual hieroglyphs symbolizing the winter solstice, as well as various groups of hieroglyphs that also describe that time of year. It is evident from Brugsch's extensive and absorbing discussion that, despite its minimization in popular publications in English, the winter solstice was highly significant in ancient Egypt beginning thousands of years before and continuing into the common era.

As Brugsch explains, the Egyptians not only abundantly recorded and revered the time of the winter solstice, they also created a number of hieroglyphs to depict it, including the image mentioned by Budge, which turns out to be the goddess-sisters Isis and Nephthys with the solar disc floating above their hands over a life-giving ankh-the looped Egyptian cross-as the sun's rays extend down to the cross symbol.[394] This image of the sun between Isis and Nephthys, which is sometimes depicted without the ankh, is described in an inscription at Edfu regarding Ptolemy VII (fl. 145 BCE?) and applied to the winter solstice, translated as: "The sun coming out of the sky-ocean into the hands of the siblings Isis and Nephthys."[395] This image very much looks like the sun being born, which is sensible, since, again, Harpocrates, the morning sun, was born every day, including at the winter solstice.

Another image depicting the winter solstice portrays a star next to the Horus hawk/falcon with a sun symbol on the right. Brugsch declares that the Horus falcon image is newer than the Isis-Nephthys glyph, which in fact dates back to the time of Ramses III (fl. c. 1186-1155 BCE) in the 20th Dynasty.[396] Moreover, in a series of hieroglyphs in the Rhind Papyrus (c. 1650 BCE), the sun of the winter solstice is depicted as "the little sun in his boat in the sea" (in other words, the "sky-ocean").[397] Brugsch names the date for the voyage of the little sun in his boat as "26. Choiak"-December 22nd, in the Alexandrian calendar.[398]

In some inscriptions the single hieroglyphic symbols representing the winter solstice-which can also refer to morning-are further appended by hieroglyphs such as neter or "god" in order to emphasize that the winter solstice is meant.[399] Since "morning" was clearly considered in ancient Egypt to be the time of the new birth of the "little sun," it is logical to conclude that using the same symbol for the winter solstice indicates it too represents the birth of the little sun, as has been the perception in other cultures and as was related of Egypt as well by ancient authors such as Plutarch, Epiphanius and Macrobius.

As another example of a sign for "winter solstice," in his book on hieroglyphs (2.3), Horapollo depicts a symbol that represents two feet, "joined, and walking," signifying "the path of the sun in the winter solstice."[400] The fact that there are a number of hieroglyphs meaning "winter solstice" indicates both that the Egyptians were well aware of that time of the year and that they attached importance to it.

In any event, the facts that Horus is considered the sun born in the morning every day and that it is Horus who is depicted in the later winter-solstice glyph, signify that it was Horus who was born at the winter solstice, precisely as Plutarch relates. These winter-solstice hieroglyphs unquestionably pre-date the common era by centuries to millennia. All of these factors combined provide solid evidence that the winter solstice in Egypt was not only widely recognized but also viewed as the birthday of the new sun, which in turn was "Horus the Child" or Harpocrates, the very popular god during the Greco-Roman period whose birth was well known.

Calendrical Considerations.

Further evidence of the importance of the winter solstice in Egypt can be found in the Egyptian calendar itself, emphasizing the various solar milestones, including the solstices, which were personified as gods.[401] The personification of the winter solstice is the god "Ap-uat,"[402] also transliterated as Wepwawet, who is "identical with Osiris."[403] Thus, Osiris too would represent the winter solstice, making this time of year evidently highly significant to the Egyptians. The personified solstices were deemed "Opener of the Ways," a title apparently reflecting in part their role as the beginning of the Egyptian New Year.

Indeed, in Egypt the summer solstice, which was personified by the god Anubis as "Opener of the Ways," was "paramount, for it heralded the rise of the Nile."[404] As Herodotus states, the Nile began to overflow around the summer solstice-specifically named as such by him (1.19). The Greek historian further remarks that the river continues to rise for about 100 days, at which point it levels off and then starts to drop again, remaining low throughout winter.[405] This life-giving time was so vital to the Egyptians that at periods over the millennia they opened the new year with the summer inundation of the Nile.

During other periods, the year may have begun at the winter solstice, which would provide further evidence that such a time was considered the "birth of the sun," as in so many other cultures and indicated not only by Plutarch but also by hieroglyphs dating to at least 3,600 years ago.[406] Adding weight to this contention of the Egyptian New Year beginning at the winter solstice is the fact that, at the alleged instigation of the legendary Roman king Numa Pompilius or Pompilio (8th cent. BCE), the Roman Civil Year too began at the winter solstice.[407] As concerns the Egyptian winter-solstice new year, in Horae Aegyptiacae: Or, the Chronology of Ancient Egypt, Discovered from Astronomical and Hieroglyphic Records Upon Its Monuments, Egyptologist and professor of Archaeology Dr. Reginald Stuart Poole (1832-1895), another Keeper at the British Museum, states: "The Season of the Waters," in the ancient nomenclature, plainly shows that the Tropical Year to which that nomenclature was originally applied commenced at the winter solstice, and not at, nor near, either of the equinoxes, or the summer solstice...

Thus we find that the true period of the commencement of "the Season of the Inundation" was one month before the autumnal equinox; and the end, at the winter solstice; and, consequently, that the Tropical Year anciently in use among the Egyptians commenced at the winter solstice, when all things in Egypt begin anew.[408]

Confirming Dr. Poole's assertions, Willem Zitman remarks: An ancient Egypt source informs us that the Egyptian year originally commenced around the winter solstice. According to the "adjustable calendar," the beginning of the First Dynasty should consequently be set at around 3518 BCE. Between 3518 and 3514 BCE, their New Year's Day-known to the Egyptians as I Achet 1-fell on January 16th or 17th (Julian calendar), the day of the winter solstice....

During the reign of Thutmosis III [fl. 1479-1425 BCE], this winter solstice from times beyond recall was apparently still observed as a commemorative day on which festivities were held-and considered a cause for rejoicing. Even during the Graeco-Roman period, this commemorative festival was still celebrated in the temples at Edfu and Esna.[409]

Zitman also asserts that the "birth and installation of Kingship" occurred on the winter solstice and that this event is mentioned in texts in the temples at Edfu and Esna.[410] His thesis emphasizes the winter solstice as the marker for the very beginning of the institution of Kingship in Egypt, in other words, the First Dynasty (c. 3100-2890 BCE).[411] In this regard, the commemoration of the winter solstice in Egypt would date to at least 5,000 years ago. The winter-solstice year-opening is likewise verified by Brugsch, as the time of the "little sun,"[412] a logical period for the beginning of a year. Brugsch further explains that in Dendera the new year was celebrated as the "day of the birth of the sun disc" and the reappearance or "rising up" of Isis-Sothis,[413] the latter epithet representing the star Sirius. In discussing the day of the sun disc's birthday, Brugsch is actually translating a group of hieroglyphs, demonstrating once more that this concept very much existed in pre-Christian Egypt.

Because it was lacking the additional quarter day of the true solar year, the ancient Egyptian calendar was "adjustable," also called "wandering" and "vague," such that it differed one day for every four (4) years. If the "New Year" was celebrated on the same day and month, say, 1 Akhet/Thoth, over a span of at least 1,460 years (365 days x 4 years)-the time it takes for the wandering calendar to make its way back to the beginning-during that period the New Year would eventually fall on every day of the year, including both solstices and equinoxes.

As a result of the wandering calendar, the opening of the year at the winter solstice occurred again just decades before the common era, at which time, as another example of Egyptian astronomical knowledge and the particular importance of the winter solstice, in 46 BCE famed Alexandrian astronomer Sosigenes created a new solar calendar for Julius Caesar (100-44 BCE), called the Julian Calendar: "The new system, depending wholly on the sun, would naturally have commenced with the winter solstice."[414] This new system was followed by the creation of the Alexandrian calendar by Augustus around 25 BCE.

Regarding the calendrical confusion, in his extensive study Civil Calendar and Lunar Calendar in Ancient Egypt, Dr. Leo Depuydt (b. 1957), associate professor of Egyptology at Brown University, remarks: Some sense of the level of controversy can be derived from the fact that, on the basis of the same evidence, eminent authorities have postulated, in addition to the civil calendar, calendars based on the star Sirius, the brightest in the sky, on the star Canopus, the second brightest, on the winter solstice, and on the summer solstice. This proliferation of postulated calendars is characteristic of the study of ancient Egypt as compared to that of other ancient Mediterranean civilizations.[415]

In any event, as is becoming obvious, the Egyptians were well aware of the winter solstice, which they evidently identified with various gods at some point and which during certain eras and in various places opened the Egyptian year.

Monumental Alignments.

In our quest, we have examined ancient testimony and hieroglyphic evidence that the winter solstice in Egypt represented the "birth of the little sun," as well as the beginning of the new calendar year, as is sensible in a solar culture. Much evidence for the reverence of the winter solstice in Egypt may also be found in the construction of ancient monuments and edifices. Concerning the annual landmarks of the solstices and equinoxes as recorded in monuments, astronomer Lockyer remarks: Did the ancients know anything about these solstices and these equinoxes? That is one of the questions which we have to discuss. Dealing with the monumental evidence in Egypt alone, the answer is absolutely overwhelming.[416]

As we have seen over the past several decades, there are in fact many Egyptian sites that possess astronomical alignments, dating back to the earliest times, as at the site of Nabta (c. 7,000-3,000 BCE) and extending into the common era, including, among others, temples in the Upper Nile valley with "some astronomical alignments," especially "upon the winter solstice sun."[417]

Lockyer was one of the earliest to describe the astronomical alignments of various monuments and buildings in Egypt, beginning with the temple enclosure at Karnak near Luxor. Calling the temple of Amun-Ra at Karnak the "finest Egyptian solar temple" and "the most majestic ruin in the world,"[418] the royal astronomer dated its foundation to 3700 BCE, using astronomical measurements, a date that has been rejected because of a lack of archaeological or textual confirmation.[419] Encompassing twice the area covered by St. Peter's in Rome, the complex at Karnak comprised "two temples in the same line back to back, the chief one facing the sunset at the summer solstice, the other probably the sunrise at the winter solstice."[420] Concerning the smaller temple of Re-Horakhty, Lockyer states: The amplitude of the point to which the axis of the small temple points is 26 S. of E., exactly the position of sunrise at the winter solstice.

There is more evidence of this kind....[421]

Although some of Lockyer's conclusions were in error, including the alignment at the summer solstice by the main temple, other of his assertions were validated by archaeoastronomer Dr. Gerald S. Hawkins (1928-2003), a chairman of the Astronomy Department at Boston University, "whose studies indicated that the solar chamber of Ra-Hor-Akhty, high in the major temple, had a window looking toward the winter solstice sunrise."[422] As further related by Dr. David H. Kelley, a professor emeritus of Archaeology at the University of Calgary, a "smaller temple of Ra-Hor-Akhty to the southeast was also aligned to the winter solstice sunrise (noted by Lockyer and confirmed by Hawkins)."[423] As Kelley also says, Amun-Re's temple was clearly "oriented to the winter solstice sunrise."[424]

These contentions are confirmed by Dr. Clive L.N. Ruggles, professor emeritus of Archaeoastronomy at the University of Leicester: The central axis of the Great Temple of Amun-Ra is aligned toward winter solstice sunrise. The main enclosure at Karnak also contains several other temples with solstitial orientations.[425]

This fact is also verified by Krupp, who clarifies that "the main axis of the great temple of Amun-Re coincided with the direction of winter solstice sunrise during the eighteenth and nineteenth dynasties."[426]

As more evidence of the winter-solstice alignments, the colossal statues of the pharaoh Amenhotep/Amenophis III (c. 1390-c. 1352 BCE) on the plain of Thebes were oriented to watch "for the rising of the sun at the winter solstice,"[427] while Amenhotep's now-lost temple nearby possessed "a series of Sed festival reliefs, and opened to the winter solstice sunrise."[428]

While the main temple at Abu Simbel is not aligned with the winter solstice, a small "chapel" of Re-Horakhty at the complex, built by Ramesses II from around 1284 to 1264 BCE, "faces the winter solstice sunrise."[429]

Adding to this list is the female pharaoh Hatshepsut's famous temple, as related by Krupp: Winter solstice sunrise alignment was also found at the solar sanctuary in Hatshepsut's mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahri, and these sanctuaries were linked with the Egyptian beliefs about the passage of Re through the netherworld and the transformation of the soul of the deceased pharaoh.[430]

In the Encyclopedia of the Archaeology of Ancient Egypt ("EAAE") appears a discussion of the small temple at Aghurmi in the Siwa Oasis. This building possesses a window in the west wall of the sanctuary that connects with an opposite window, producing a light-shaft which illuminates the "god's barge naos in the center of the sanctuary." EAAE then states: The fact that Onuris and Tefnut are represented right next to this window and the mythology connected with these two gods suggest that occurrence of this event to have coincided with the winter solstice.[431]

The myth of the god Onuris, Ini hri-t or Anhur, an epithet meaning, "He who brings the one that was far away"[432] or "he who brings back the Eye of the Sun," and the goddess Tefnut, identified with Mekhit and Sekhmet, all daughters of Re, apparently symbolizes the northerly return of the sun after the winter solstice. Onuris is identified with the god Shu, "the uplifter," who along with his sister Tefnut represent the two eyes of Horus. Tefnut's disappearance "caused the absence of light," while her "return indicated the victory of light over darkness and was a signal for rejoicing."[433] This myth further demonstrates the importance of the winter solstice within Egyptian religion.

The idea of the winter solstice representing resurrection, rebirth and renewal is conveyed largely by these monumental alignments as well. Concerning the "High Room of the Sun and Sokar chapel" of Thutmose/Tuthmosis III's "Festival Hall," Krupp remarks: Hawkins embraced Barguet's interpretation of the High Room of the Sun and saw in its orientation an allusion to the annual renewal of the sun at the winter solstice-another kind of defeat for darkness and chaos. This idea of cosmic restoration is a central theme in Egyptian religion and belief.[434]

The fact that at least two temples of Re-Horakhty, those at the important sites of Karnak and Abu Simbel,[435] were aligned to the winter solstice provides evidence for the contention that the Egyptians celebrated Horus as being born at that time thousands of years ago.[436]

In any event, the various aligned temples were thus logically used to keep time: We may conclude that there was some purpose of utility to be served, and the solar temples could have been used undoubtedly, among other things, for determining the exact length of the solar year.[437]

These alignments provided for a very dramatic experience as well, especially at the moment when the sun's rays penetrate the temple during this time of the year: We should have a "manifestation of Ra" with a vengeance during the brief time the white flood of sunlight fell on it...[438]

Hence, we find not only testimony, hieroglyphs and calendars but also multiple astronomical alignments in monuments, as well as myths, proving that the ancient Egyptians highly valued the winter solstice. In reality, according to Brugsch the winter solstice was so important to the Egyptians, as a period of rebirth and renewal, that they timed the restoration of their temples (as at Esne) to coincide with it.[439] In fact, when discussing the rebuilding and restoration of the temple at Esne planned according to the period of the winter solstice, Brugsch specifically calls this time "the rebirth of the sun at the time of the winter solstice." The language could not be clearer: The Egyptians celebrated the birth of the "little sun" at the winter solstice, so much so, in fact, that, again, they planned their all-important temple restorations around this day.[440]

Clockworks.

In addition to monumental alignments, we discover a number of ancient Egyptian water clocks, such as at Karnak, designed to measure the winter and summer solstices.[441] Indeed, that the Egyptians were keen measurers of time may be seen in an inscription from the tomb of the Karnak clock's creator, a "certain official" named Amenemhet who was buried "near the top of the hill of Sheikh Abd el-Gurna in Western Thebes." This very ancient inscription describes the measurements of the "longest night of wintertime" and the "shortest night of summertime," i.e., the winter and summer solstices respectively. This inscription also refers to Egyptian sacred literature as "the books of the divine word,"[442] demonstrating the reverence with which these texts were held, no less than the holy books of today.[443] The official in question dedicated his clock to Amenhotep I (fl. c. 1526-c. 1506 BCE), who reigned in the 18th Dynasty, revealing once again how far back in Egypt stretched this knowledge of and esteem for the solstices. We would wager that such knowledge and reverence in fact goes back much farther.

In Ancient Egyptian Science, professor of Historical Studies Dr. Marshall Clagett (1916-2005) depicts another ancient Egyptian clock used to measure the equinoxes and solstices: The first (and indeed only) Egyptian technical description of an ancient Egyptian shadow clock is found in an inscription in the cenotaph of Seti I (ca. 1306-1290 [BCE])...[444]