Minnah 1

The discoveries of zodiac signs in Egyptian temples revealed a connection between their astronomy and religion. The North Star, Thuban, played a crucial role in the construction of pyramids, with its alignment in air shafts. The Egyptians worshiped deities associated with the sky and used the stars for their calendars. Thuban was seen as a stable point in the ever-changing heavens, representing the afterlife and the belief that pharaohs would become stars. Through the discoveries of depictions of zodiac signs uncovered in temples, scientists and archaeologists were able to make out connections between Egyptians' astronomical natures and their religion. Thuban, identified as the North Star at the time, played a key role in construction and development of the pyramids, with its placements in air shafts made in alignment with the stars. The alignments of the stars played an essential role in their ideologies and beliefs, with many of their deities worshipped in connection to their relations with the sky and the heavens, and using the stars as an influence to their calendars. The ancient Egyptians' mythologies described Thuban as the nail that held up the heavens, through its regard as an unchanging point in the ever-changing heavens. Through night and day, it was discovered from the bottom of the central passage built into the many pyramids that it was in direct alignment to the pole. Known as the Star of the Old Nile, Thuban was believed to be the place of the afterlife for many Egyptians, with the belief that pharaoh's souls would rise to the heavens and become a star once they had passed, maintaining order in the celestial realm as they did on Earth.