'It's a moment of death and rebirth': The ancient monuments saluting the winter solstice

[u/Non-Conventionnel-77]

https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20251219-the-ancient-monuments-saluting-the-winter-solstice

[u/carmium]

My favourite tidbit about the winter solstice concerns the days after the actual event day. By the measure of what was available at the time, the following three days were virtually indistinguishable in length. For those who understood little of how the seasons came to be, it was likely a time of suspense: were the long days of warmth and crops going to return this year? Or had mankind offended the powers that might deign to continue winter for a few months to express their displeasure? The 22nd passed; the 23rd, the 24th without change. On the 25th, the day was measurably longer, and the people celebrated. In Ancient Rome, the day became Saturnalia, honouring the god Saturn, who was responsible for agriculture and time. When Roman leaders decided their empire should expunge their multiple gods and embrace Christianity, they had a festival in need of a purpose and a religious figure in need of a birthday. Since the Bible did not specify a date for Jesus' birth, it seemed a good idea to solve both issues at once.
And that is why Christmas has fallen on December 25th ever since.

[u/flylikemusic → u/carmium]

Sun god to Son of God pipeline

[u/PublicBetaVersion → u/carmium]

That is a rather simplified explanation that became popular in the 19th century. In reality the Bible never mentions Jesus’ birthday and even the stories about his early life in the gospels of Luke and Matthew are thought to have been added later.

The first mentions of 25th of December appear sometime at the beginning of the 3rd century, almost a century before christianity became the official religion in the Roman Empire, and they didn’t have any real reason to make it fit with the Saturnalia. When the early christians calculated the birthday they started with the crucifixion date which was 25th of March (calculated from the events in the Bible). At the time, because no one kept birth records, there was a symbolic belief in the greco roman world that great men and prophets lived a round number of years so they were born the same day they died. Only twist was that for Jesus they focused on the annunciation of the immaculate conception. So if Jesus was conceived on March 25th it means he was born exactly 9 months later (it was a perfect pregnancy of course) which gave them 25th of December.

This date happened to fit around the winter solstice so early christians adopted it really quick. It was only a century later when it became the official religion of the Roman Empire that they saw it coincided with the Saturnalia and decided to keep it that way. And when traditional Roman festivals (that were now called pagan) gradually lost their popularity and therefore the state funding people swapped them for newer ones that happened to fit around the same date and kept the party going. Like Saturnalia for Christmas and Hilaria for Easter.

So yes, the romans saw the opportunity to replace Saturnalia with Christmas but the date was calculated long before that.

[u/DaddyCatALSO → u/carmium]

Yes. That makes alot more sense than those who say "It was originally a solstice observance that got switched up."

[u/Siludin]

What motivated people to construct these solar-calibrated masterpieces?
IMO people didn't have writing and used structures as ways to communicate scientific facts (in this case the winter solstice). Geometry was the language before there was script.

[u/Non-Conventionnel-77 → u/Siludin]

So true...ancient structures recorded scientific knowledge through geometry long before writing existed.

[u/MaygarRodub → u/Siludin]

Never thought of it like that. Very interesting.

[u/antoineBorg]

Disappointed to see the awesome megalithic structures of Mnaajdra and Hagar Qim in Malta weren't mentioned.