07-23-2008, 12:42 PM
This is a useful link to a website that helps convert calendar dates.
The normal dates, given in history books, are according to the Julian calendar; but if you need to check an astronomical observation, you'll run into trouble, because astronomers use the Gregorian calendar. For example, Thales' famous eclipse is usually dated on 28 May 585 BC, but you will need to know the Gregorian date (22 May -584) if you want to check it. The website also offers the Babylonian/Jewish calendar, which, in this case, helps to check the outcome: the last day of Iyyar, which is indeed a new moon.
The normal dates, given in history books, are according to the Julian calendar; but if you need to check an astronomical observation, you'll run into trouble, because astronomers use the Gregorian calendar. For example, Thales' famous eclipse is usually dated on 28 May 585 BC, but you will need to know the Gregorian date (22 May -584) if you want to check it. The website also offers the Babylonian/Jewish calendar, which, in this case, helps to check the outcome: the last day of Iyyar, which is indeed a new moon.
