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Ancient

Deep Dive: The oldest clay tablets that name the stars

Ran in the Morning edition of LivePulse, Wednesday, October 28, 2026
Original reporting: ORACC, 2026-10-27

The oldest clay tablets that certainly name constellations are far younger. A Babylonian prayer to the "gods of the night," on a tablet the Louvre dates to 1800–1700 BC, calls on Orion and the Pleiades by name. The star catalogue MUL.APIN, in copies from 687 BC, calls Orion the True Shepherd of Anu. Status: accepted; MUL.APIN's first date is debated.

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