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Baal Myth ~ ANCIENT LEVANT (Canaan, Syria, Mesopotamia [Babylon], Palestine, Persia [modern Iran], Phoenicia [modern Lebanon], and Ugarit) ~ He is also called Belos (Belus), Bel, and Marduk. In the Bible, he is referred to as Beelzebub (Baalzebub; "Prince of the Devils"). His titles include: "Lord of the Earth," "Eternal To All Generations," "Lord of Heaven," and "Rider of the Clouds." From the Hebrew ba’al it translates to "Owner" or "Lord." The first evidence of his worship is from the 14th century B.C. by ancient Semitic speaking peoples. Baal was primarily a fertility god, although he was also a sun god, rain/storm god, protector of crops and livestock, and responsible for assorted calamities, droughts, and plagues. His father was El (chief deity of the West Semites) and he was married to either Anat or Astarte (also called Ashtoreth, the equivalent to the Greek goddess Aphrodite). The various believers also combined him with many minor gods. In one myth, he killed Lotan. Annual ceremonies to celebrate his death and resurrection often included human sacrifice. In the form of Moloch, children were sacrificed to him in times of unrest. He died when Mot, the God of the Dead, challenged Baal to come to his underground kingdom. Mot challenged Baal to eat the food of the dead, which was mud, and consequently Baal died. His wife went to the underworld to revive him but failed. She asked Mot to help, but he refused. In turn, she killed Mot, which brought Baal back to life. The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ Along with Bastet, Kali, Morrígan, Olokun, Svarog, and Yu (whom he is the enemy of), Baal is one of the seven System Lords meeting at the neutral zone of the Hassara System. He has experienced great losses because of Anubis. Yu described him as a “poor loser.” One time, he slaughtered the inhabitants of two star systems (60 million in total) rather than lose them in a territorial dispute with Sokar. Osiris was a surprise guest (515 – Summit). He votes to reinstate Anubis into the System Lords (516 – Last Stand). After O’Neill was infected with the virus Aiyana carried; he became the host to the Tok-ra, Kanan. Kanan cured O’Neill and then took complete control. Kanan had been working as a minor Goa’uld in Baal’s service. Baal was using his heavily fortified, top-secret outpost to test weapons technology and gravity field generators. Baal discovered that he was a Tok-ra and captured by him, however Kanan left O’Neill shortly before capture. Baal used a sarcophagus to revive O’Neill after multiple torture sessions. Yu destroyed Baal’s outpost from orbit; Fate Unknown (606 – Abyss). He once controlled the planet P4S-237. When the Naquadah mines supposedly dried up 100 years ago, he stopped visiting (621 – Prophecy). Kianna Cyr’s Goa’uld was in the service of Baal and was sent to Langara to discover why Anubis was interested in the planet. She had infiltrated Jonas’ lab under the pretense of being a research assistant on the Naquadria Project. She avoided detection by taking a drug that masked the presence of her Goa’uld. She has come to care for Langara and had not told Baal about the Naquadria, rather wanting to build herself an empire. When the Kelownan Deep Underground Excavation Vehicle broke down on the mission to stop the spread of the Naquadria, Kianna’s Goa’uld volunteered to enter the tunnel filled with toxic gasses. She successfully made it back to the surface, however her Goa’uld died, sacrificing itself for her. Kianna returned to Langara to work with Jonas (714 – Fallout). He has captured Camulus and his holdings (804 – Zero Hour). His forces in the War of the System Lords have killed Bastet and Olokun. Morrígan surrendered to him. He has assumed control of the Kull warriors after Anubis’ defeat (813 – It’s Good To Be King). Via the Trust, he and his clones arrive on Earth and build a skyscraper out of Naquadah (i.e. the machine), which is a giant bomb. He wishes to be left alone or he will blow up the building (907 -- Ex Deus Machina). One of his clones brainwashes most of the Jaffa High Council in the effort to stop them from following the Ori and to try to control them (914 -- Stronghold). Baal tells SG-1 that he learned of Merlin’s weapon from Anubis. He will help them find it if they help him dispose of all his clones (1004 -- Insiders). Baal reaches Osric‘s planet and tries to seize the Sangreal for himself. However, he is trapped in Morgan’s quest, and joins forces with SG-1 to complete the riddles. Merlin mistakes him for Mordred (1010/1011 – The Quest). Baal implants one of his clones into Adria. SG-1 contacts the Tok-ra, who will remove Baal’s symbiote and implant a Tok-ra. As Baal’s clone is being removed, a lethal toxin is released into Adria's body. Right before she dies, Adria figures out how to Ascend (See Ancients) (1019 – Dominion).

Babylon History ~ ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA (modern Iraq) ~ Babylon was a city in Mesopotamia, as was Nippur, Uruk, and Ur (Babylonia, Assyria, Sumer(ia), and Akkadia were regions in Mesopotamia). From the ancient Akkadian word Bāb ilim, it translates to “God’s Gate” (KÁ.DINGIR.(RA) in Sumerian). It is located 56 mi (90 km) south of Baghdad, Iraq. It is currently a broad area of ruins just east of the Euphrates River. Their literature, which they wrote in Cuneiform, was considerably developed in the 3rd millennium BC. They also had highly developed astronomy, alchemy, botany, chemistry, history, math, medicine, religion, science, and zoology. They adapted their culture from the Sumerians and in turn the neighboring Assyrians adopted the Babylonian culture. Hammurabi is one of the Babylonians’ most famous kings. The Code of Hammurabi is not the first collection of laws to be recorded, but it is the most famous. The laws are basically "an eye for an eye." The stele in which it is inscribed is in the Louvre in Paris. Their creation epic is the Enuma Elish. They were the first to divide the day into 24 hours, each hour into 60 minutes, each minute into 60 seconds. Learn More: Gateways To Babylon. (See: Baal, Lotan, Marduk, Omoroca, Tiamat, and Ziggurat.) The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ Daniel says that Babylon translates to "Gate of the Gods" while translating the text on the door to the interior of the ziggurat (508 – The Tomb).

Balar Myth ~ ANCIENT IRELAND ~ (also called Balar, Bolar "of the Strong Blows") In Celtic mythology, Balor of the "Evil or Baleful Eye" was the God of Death and a king of the Fomorians, the race of prehistoric giants who were subdued by the Firbolgs, and then defeated by the Tuatha Dé Danann. He was the grandson of Néit (God of War) with either Badb or Nemain (see Morrígan) and is the son of Buarainech, the "cow-faced." With Cethlenn "the crooked tooth" (a prophetess), he is the father of Ethlinn and "twelve white-mouthed sons." When Balor was a child, one of his eyes was poisoned by the smoke from a magic potion his father's sorcerers were brewing. When Balor would look at someone with his poisoned eye, they would die instantly. There was a prophecy that Balor would be killed by his own grandson. When Ethlinn gave birth to Lugh Lamhfada, Balor threw him into the ocean. Birog, the druidess, saved Lugh and let Manannan mac Lir (Sea-God) foster him and Lugh later joined the Tuatha Dé Danann. At the Second Battle of Magh Tuireadh, Balor killed King Nuada of the Tuatha Dé Danann by looking at him with his poisoned eye. He then tried to kill Lugh with his eye, but Lugh killed Balor first by using a spear to sever his eye. The Show (Stargate Atlåntis) ~ Novo and Sefaris are Balarans. Michael the Wraith released the modified Hoffan drug on the planet Balar. Those who survived were attacked by other Wraiths. Some were able to escape Balar and took refuge on an unnamed planet where they were welcomed by the villagers there. The Balarans know that because of the Hoffan plague they are immune to culling, however they are informed by Dr. Beckett that they are also lethal to the Wraith if a culling is attempted. The other group of Wraith learn of the Balarans’ whereabouts, and come to destroy them. They are saved by the Atlantis team and are relocated to another planet (512 - Outsiders).

Bardsey Island Myth/History ~ GREAT BRITAIN ~ (Welsh: Ynys Enlli "Isle of the Great Current" or "Isle in the Tides") The "Isle of Glass" is located in north Wales, off the Lleyn Peninsula. It is a small island and is 1.5 miles (2.5km) long and just over half a mile (1km) across at its widest point with an area of about 370 acres. It has a year round population of about ten people. Its highest point is the summit of Mynydd Enlli, at a height of 167 m. There are several Arthurian legends concerning the island. One is that Merlin is buried there. Another says that he lives there as a hermit in a cave. Yet another says that he might live there in a magical glass house, by his own free will or imprisoned there by Nimue (Vivienne), the Lady of the Lake. It is also an alternate possible location for Avalon. Learn More: EBK: Bardsey Island, Gwynedd, BBC: North West Wales History - Bardsey legends, Ynys Enlli - Bardsey Island, and Bardsey Island Apple Afal Ynys Enlli. The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ According to the books Daniel found at the Glastonbury cave, Arthur went to Annwn, where he retrieved a magical invisibility cloak (See Lepton). Merlin kept the cloak at Barnsey Island (918 -- Arthur’s Mantle).

Bastet Myth ~ ANCIENT EGYPT ~ Also called Bast, Ubastet, and Ailuros; she is a Cat-headed Goddess of Domestic Cats, the Home, Pleasure, Joy, Family, Music, and Dancing. Her main center of worship was the city of Bubastis (modern Tell-Basta) in the delta area. She is the mother of Mihos, a lion-headed god (also called Maahes; translation: "True Before Her"). As the daughter of Ra, she was a solar deity. However, she became a lunar deity after the Hellenistic era when they associated her with Artemis (Roman Diana; See Kynthia). She is usually depicted as a domesticated cat, although she is sometimes depicted in the war-like aspect of a lioness (Sakhmet). She was the Goddesses of the East, while Sakhmet was the Goddess of the West. Bastet is depicted usually wearing green and holding a sistrum (ancient percussion instrument) in her right hand. The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ Along with Baal, Kali, Morrígan, Olokun, Svarog, and Yu, she is one of the seven System Lords meeting at the neutral zone of the Hassara System. In the past, she and Kali made a treaty with Sobek, whom she later killed. The rumor is that his head still hangs as a decoration in her palace on Bubastis. Osiris was a surprise guest (515 – Summit). She votes to reinstate Anubis into the System Lords (516 – Last Stand). She was killed by Baal’s forces in the War of the System Lords (813 – It’s Good To Be King).

Bilskirnir Myth ~ ANCIENT NORSE ~ (Translation: "The Place of Lightning Rays") Bilskirnir is Thor’s hall, which is situated in the region Thrudvang ("Field of Power"). The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ The Asgard mother ship. Thor, the Supreme Commander of the Asgard fleet, is the commander of this ship (206 – Thor’s Chariot). The Bilskirnir was destroyed when it was crashed into the Earth’s atmosphere in the effort to destroy the Replicators (322 – Nemesis).

Book of Am-Taut Myth ~ ANCIENT EGYPT ~ In The Gods of the Egyptians by Sir E. A. Wallis Budge (vol. 1), I came across a reference to a book called "The Shat Am Tuat." (Duat is the modern spelling and the most common name for the underworld). From what I gathered it is about the journey a person’s soul through the underworld according to the priests of Heliopolis. The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ Daniel says something to the effect of: "according to the Book of Am-Taut, Netu is the Egyptian version of Hades/Underworld" (312/313 – Jolinar’s Memories/The Devil You Know).

Book of the Dead History ~ ANCIENT EGYPT ~ Also called "The Book of Going Forth by Day." The most famous version was written by Ani, an Egyptian scribe. There are also related manuscripts named "The Book of Breathing" and "The Book of Traversing Eternity." The Book of the Dead originated with the "Pyramid Texts" which are inscriptions meant to guide the deceased in the afterlife. The "Coffin Texts," which were written on the sarcophagus, later replaced the Pyramid Texts in Middle Kingdom. The Coffin Texts were then transcribed on papyri during the New Kingdom. It is a list of over 600 spells estimated to safeguard the soul ("Ka"). The spells guard the soul as it travels to and through the Occident (west bank of the Nile River or underworld), or the Duat (the twelve provinces of the underworld) to be judged by Osiris and a panel of 42 judges in the Weighing of the Heart ceremony. To read a portion of it go here: The Egyptian Book of the Dead. The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ When SG-1 is in the dungeon of Chulak, Daniel figures out who Apophis is and says something to the effect of, "It’s straight from the Book of the Dead. They’re living it" (101 – Children of the Gods).

Botany Bay Geography/History ~ BRITISH EMPIRE/AUSTRALIA ~ In 1770, an inlet on the Tasman Sea in southeast Australia near Sydney was discovered by Captain Cook’s expedition and named Botany Bay by Sir Joseph Banks, the expedition’s botanist (go figure!). Following the US victory in the Revolutionary War in 1783, Britain could no longer send the criminals to the states. Shortly after Cook’s expedition, New South Wales (Australia) was considered as a possible penal colony. In January of 1788, Captain Phillip and his first shipload of 736 British prisoners arrived (the journey from Great Britain to Australia took just over 8 months). Once all the ships arrived, it was found that it had unsuitable living conditions; in that it lacked farmable soil, it lacked a supply of fresh water, and the bay itself was so shallow that ships had to anchor too far offshore. Captain Phillip went north to Port Jackson; finding it habitable, he renamed it Sydney Cove (after Lord Sydney, the British home secretary). The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ Daniel compares the prison planet of Hadante to Botany Bay. SG-1 meets Linea here (203 – Prisoners).

Black Hole Science ~ It is a term used in astrophysics and astronomy, given to a high-mass star that collapses under its own gravitational force. The star’s matter becomes so dense that nothing, not even light, can escape its gravitational pull. The event horizon is the edge of the hole and the singularity is the center, a place of infinite density, where the laws of physics do not apply. It is thought that time travel is possible through black holes, but it is also thought that the immense force of the gravity would kill a person by "spaghettification," where a person’s body is stretched to the point it is torn apart. Get more information on black holes here: APOD: 2001 January 19 - Black Holes Are Black, APOD: 2001 May 8 - Evidence for a Spinning Black Hole, APOD: 2001 September 21 - Where a Black Hole Roams, and APOD: 2001 October 29 - Spinning Black Holes and MCG-6-30-15. The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ I think it is better explained by Col. O’Neill: "Well, a black hole is this really big thing, well basically it’s a massive... hole, out there. And what happens is everything gets sucked into it, even light. That’s why we can’t see it, it just gets... sucked in." SG-10 was on planet P3W-451 for a routine exploratory mission, when the star/sun of the planet supernovaed and turned into a black hole. Because of the gravity of the black hole, the wormhole of the Stargate was unable to disengage. The gravity of the black hole also came through the wormhole with the result of time dilation in the SGC (216 – A Matter of Time). The black hole here on P3W-451 was used to create a supernova in the sun of Vorash. By dialing the Stargate to P3W-451 and then launching it into Vorash’s sun, the gravity of the black hole sucked the stellar matter through the wormhole, thus making the sun unstable and creating an artificial supernova (422 – Exodus).

Broca Science ~ FRANCE ~ Paul Broca, (1824-1880) a French surgeon and anthropologist, who discovered the speech center in the human brain. He also researched Aphasia (the loss of the power to use or comprehend words). The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ SG-1 visits the planet called the "Land of Light" (P3X-797) that has a civilized and primitive side. The civilized side is similar to the Minoan civilization of Earth and they are referred to as "The Untouched." The primitive side was infected with a virus that leaves them with the mental capacity of Stone Age humans and they are referred to as "The Touched" (104 – The Broca Divide).

Bubastis Geography/History ~ ANCIENT EGYPT ~ ("House of Bastet") Near the modern-day city of Zagâzig; it is located on the right bank of the Pelusiac branch of the Nile Delta in Lower Egypt. It is also known as Bast, Per-bastet in Old Egyptian, Boubasti in Coptic, Pi-beseth in Hebrew (mentioned in Ezek. 30.17), and Boubastis (or Boubastos, Bubastos, or Bubastis) in Greek. It is modernly known by its Arabic name, Tell-Basta. It was at its height during the 22nd and 23rd Dynasties; also called the Bubastite Period. This is the era in which the majority of ritual cat mummies/cemeteries and cat amulets were created. It was the cult center for the worship of the cat-headed goddess, Bastet. After the second Persian conquest (343 BC), the city began to decline. In 1886, 1887, and 1906 archaeological excavations were made, during which a 6th Dynasty chapel and an 8th century BC temple were found. For more see: TourEgypt: Tell Basta TourEgypt: Zagazig, City of in Egypt, and Encyclopedia of the Orient: Bubastis. The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ This is Bastet’s homeworld. Yu tells of how she and Kali betrayed Sobek and the rumor is that his head still hangs as a decoration in her palace there (515 – Summit).

Budge History ~ ANCIENT EGYPT and VICTORIAN ENGLAND ~ In full, Sir Ernest Alfred Thompson Wallis Budge (1857 - 1934); commonly known as Sir E. A. Wallis Budge. He was the curator of Egyptian and Assyrian Antiquities at the British Museum in London from 1894 to 1924. He first started working for the museum in 1883 and made archaeological excavations in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Sudan. During these trips, he accumulated a great number of Mesopotamian cuneiform tablets, Egyptian papyri, and manuscripts in Arabic, Coptic, Ethiopic, Greek, and Syriac languages. He is the author of such works as: The Gods of the Egyptians, The Egyptian Heaven and Hell, Egyptian Vocabulary, Egyptian Magic, and An Egyptian Hieroglyphic Reading Book for Beginners. He was knighted in 1920. The Movie (StarGate © 1994) ~ When Daniel is translating the cover-stones at Creek Mountain he says something to the effect of, "Who translated this? It’s completely wrong. They must have used Budge; I don’t know why they keep reprinting his books!" (Sarah's note: While Budge is difficult to understand because of the Victorian style of writing, different spellings of names, and bad vowel usage; I really don’t think it’s as bad as "Daniel" makes it out to be.)

Bysra History ~ ANCIENT CARTHAGE (modern Tunis, Tunisia; Africa) ~ Possibly named after Byrsa, the walled fortress on a hill above the two harbors of Carthage. The Show (Stargåte SG-1) ~ The name of the people who inhabit the planet of Chartago (P3X1279) (115 – Cor-ai).