June 15, 763 BCE: Assyrians record a solar eclipse

An artistic color illustration shows a series of expansive, multi-tiered stone palaces and a terraced tower lining the far bank of a wide, calm river. In the foreground, people, horses, and sheep are scattered across a grassy shore, while small boats with rowers glide across the water's reflective surface. The scene is bathed in bright daylight under a clear, pale sky that softens into a light blue at the top of the frame.

Nineveh, seen in this artist's impression, was the most-populated city of ancient Assyria, as well as its capital. Observers in the city made records of a solar eclipse in 763 B.C.E. Credit: Austen Henry Layard/Wikimedia

On June 15, 763 B.C.E., a near-total solar eclipse occurred over northern Assyria and was recorded by observers in Nineveh, the capital city. This event is preserved in the Eponym Canon, a list of historical events made by the Assyrians on clay tablets, following a specialized calendar system. The text notes: “Insurrection in the City of Assur. In the month of Sivan, the Sun was eclipsed.” This account is a crucial part of anchoring the chronology of the ancient Near East; as it is possibly alluded to in the Bible, historians also have used it to improve the chronology of early biblical times, particularly the eras of prophets Jonah and Amos.

Elisa Neckar is senior production editor of Astronomy magazine, and the editor of the Today in the History of Astronomy feature on Astronomy.com.

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