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The Significance of the Number 7 in Ancient Cultures
A survey of sevenfold groupings in the ancient world: the seven planets, the seven-day week, the Seven Sages and Hebrew Bible patterns, and where they came from.
Traditions Around the World
Ancient Near East and Mediterranean
Numbers in Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Greek, Roman and Norse sources.
Exploring the Symbolism of the Number 6 in Ancient Mythology
Why six and sixty mattered in Mesopotamia: the Babylonian base-60 system, its documented uses in counting, god lists and astronomy, and what it left to us.
The Cultural Significance of the Number 9 in Various Traditions
A comparison of nine across cultures, from Norse myth and Greek Muses to Egyptian gods and Chinese language, and the three-times-three pattern behind many.
The Hidden Meaning Behind the Number 5 in Ancient Cultures and Mythology
Five in ancient thought: the Chinese five phases, the Greek fifth element, the Pythagorean pentagram and the five extra Egyptian days, with dates and sources.
The Nine Worlds and Nine Nights in Norse Myth
How nine recurs in the Eddic poems: the Nine Worlds of Voluspa, Odin's nine nights on the tree and other nine-night episodes, and what the sources say.
The Significance of the Number 9 in Ancient Greek and Roman Mythology
The nine Muses, the nine days and nights of epic and hymn, and Roman nine-day customs: where nine appears in Greek and Roman sources and what each case shows.
The Significance of the Number 9 in Ancient Mesopotamian and Egyptian Cultures
The Heliopolitan Ennead of nine gods, how Egyptians used nine for plurality, and how Mesopotamian number-lore compares, with attention to what the texts show.
The Symbolism of the Number 6 in Ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian Cultures
Where six appears in Egyptian and Mesopotamian records, from short cubits and Eye of Horus fractions to double hours, and where it is symbolic or practical.
The Twelve Olympians and the Labors of Heracles
Twelve in Greek myth and cult: the Twelve Olympians, their altar in Athens, the variable membership of the list, and how the labors of Heracles reached twelve.
Related topics
More in traditions around the world
Chinese Lucky Numbers Homophones, Feng Shui and auspicious numbers in Chinese culture and business. Dharmic Thought, Duality and Zero Hindu, Buddhist and dualist ideas about numbers, and the story of zero. Numbers in Indigenous and Regional Traditions Number ideas of the Americas, West Africa, Persia and Japan.