An unusual depiction of the ancient Egyptian sky goddess Nut may include a representation of the "Dark River" or "Great Rift"—the band along the Milky Way caused by dust clouds. This is the ...

The oldest representation of the night sky and our Milky Way galaxy was found in an Egyptian sarcophagus, revealing ancient ...

More information: Or Graur, The Ancient Egyptian Cosmological Vignette: First Visual Evidence of The Milky Way and Trends in Coffin Depictions of The Sky Goddess Nut, Journal of Astronomical ...

This depiction is thought to illustrate the Great Rift, a band of dust and gas that appears to split the Milky Way in two. While this is the clearest known evidence for the ancient Egyptians ...

Starry paintings found on ancient Egyptian coffins and tombs indicate that the sky goddess Nut was closely associated with the Milky Way galaxy, according to a new study by an astronomer.

In exploring various cultures’ Milky Way mythologies, Graur was struck by ancient Egyptian written sources that referenced the galaxy, such as the Pyramid Texts, Coffin Texts, and the Book of Nut.

The ancient Egyptians were astute astronomers. They often depicted the cosmos atop coffins. A new survey of such artwork suggests that they may have had a greater understanding of the Milky Way than ...

Ancient depictions of the Egyptian sky goddess may represent one of the earliest visual interpretations of the Milky Way galaxy, a new study suggests. Ancient depictions of the Egyptian sky ...

An Associate Professor of Astrophysics at the University of Portsmouth in the UK, Or Graur, discovered what is believed to be the oldest known depiction of the Milky Way in ancient Egyptian art.

Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain Ancient depictions of the Egyptian sky goddess Nut may represent one of the earliest visual interpretations of the Milky Way galaxy, a new study suggests.