Background information: Herodotus was a Greek historian, and completed his work, The Histories, in 440
BCE.
Who is the author of this document?
The Egyptians, they said, were the first to discover the
solar year, and to portion out its course into twelve parts.
They obtained this knowledge from the stars. ... The
Egyptians, they went on to affirm, first brought into use
the names of the twelve gods, which the Greeks adopted
from them; and first erected altars, images, and temples
to the gods; and also first engraved upon stone the figures
of animals.
When was it written?
We know that Herodotus
wrote about, because he lived
the events he
they occurred.