LCOC and chronology

[Bjorn-Are.Davidsen@s.prosjekt98.telenor.no]

I guess I'm one (of the few?) who really love both GotLL and LCOC, finding them exciting, 
intense, sufficiently historical tongue in cheeck as well as great (and good (and 
excellent)). That's an advantage, as Don constantly turns out such stories (lets not forget 
the Croesus story as well!)! In fact I've always been jubilant for my ability to love stories 
which are good. Not everyone share that gift.

Based on our discussion some weeks ago, I've finally found a source book on the 
question of chronology.   "Asimov on Numbers" (at least the Norwegian edition) has 
some interesting stuff on this. The Romans of course used the alleged founding date of 
their city as starting point, thus making e.g. Caesar's murder taking place in 710 A.U.C. 
(Anno Urbis Conditae). This was the standard way of counting time in Europe until 
Christianity made its mark on learned culture and had Caesar being killed in 44 BC 
(however, still March 15th).

The Church Historian Eusebius (around 1050 A.U.C.) based a new chronology on the 
birth of Abraham 1263 years before the founding of Rome, thus making 1050 A.U.C. the 
year 2113 after Abraham. This was however not widely taken up.

Others made attempts at starting with the creation, however, there were no concensus on 
when that had been, suggestions ranging from 3007 to 4755  before A.U.C. The first of 
these two latest figures is, BTW, used in today's Jewish calender (the present year of 
course being 5756).

About 1288 A.U.C.  the Syrian monk Dionysius Exiguus calculated (at least 6 years 
wrong) that Jesus had been born in 754 A.U.C.. This was not used much until the time of 
Charlemagne two and a half centuries later, as the suggested focal point for world 
chronology. To emphazise this, Asimov even has a separate section on Charlemagne 
(with a picture) as the driving force behind the official introduction of the Christian time 
reckoning, around 800 AD. 

The viking raids after his death (and his incompetent heirs) severely stopped the 
Carolingian Renaissance (as it has been termed) in education and culture - and 
possible also the general adherence to the Christian chronology for still some hundred 
years.

This makes it highly (to put it mildly) improbable that Brendan (if he would have thought 
of putting up any fixed year at all) did use the Christian time line on his stone cross. 

If still possible to change, perhaps the solution may be to erase the year, instead having 
some woodchucks telling that according to the JW Handbook such crosses were made 
in Ireland in the 6th century only (if that is true - they may in fact be younger as I believe 
wooden crosses were used in Bendan's day), thus proving when this Brendan did set it 
up. 

Any experts on medieval Irish crosses, around? 

Hopefully, such ungratefull nitpicking and hair splitting will not in any way make you 
reluctant to keep up the tradition of making your marvellous historical plots and plays, 
Don! 

Bjorn-Are 

bjorn-are.davidsen at s.prosjekt98.telenor.no
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