Sitchin, Zecharia 1920-

PERSONAL:

Born January 11, 1920, in Baku, Russia; son of Isaac and Genia Sitchin; married Frieda Regenbaum, September 16, 1941 (died October, 2007); children: Edna, Ella. Education: University of London, B.Com., 1941.

ADDRESSES:

Agent—John Farquharson Ltd., 162-168 Regent St., London W1R 5TB, England.

CAREER:

Journalist in Palestine/Israel, 1939-52, in United States, 1952-66; Intercontinental Trailsea Corp. (foreign trade service corporations), New York, NY, and London, England, 1967—. Assistant town clerk, Tel Aviv Municipality, 1944-49; secretary, director of economic department, Tel Aviv-Jaffa Chamber of Commerce, Israel, 1949-52; executive director of American-Israel Chamber of Commerce and Industry, 1953-64; president of American-Israel Pavilion at New York World's Fair, 1964-65. Military service: British Army, 1940-44; served in Jerusalem. Israeli Army, 1948-49.

MEMBER:

British Museum Society, American Oriental Society, American Arbitration Association (member of panel of arbitrators), Israel Exploration Society.

AWARDS, HONORS:

New York World's Fair award, 1965; founders award from American-Israel Chamber of Commerce and Industry, 1968.

WRITINGS:

The 12th Planet (nonfiction), Stein & Day (New York, NY), 1976.

The Stairway to Heaven, St. Martin's (New York, NY), 1980.

The Wars of Gods and Men, Avon (New York, NY), 1985.

The Lost Realms, Bear & Co. (Rochester, VT), 1990.

Genesis Revisited: Is Modern Science Catching up with Ancient Knowledge?, Bear & Co. (Rochester, VT), 1991.

When Time Began, Avon (New York, NY), 1993.

The Cosmic Code, Bear & Co. (Rochester, VT), 2002.

Divine Encounters: A Guide to Visions, Angels, and Other Emissaries, Bear & Co. (Rochester, VT), 2002.

The Lost Book of Enki: Memoirs and Prophecies of an Extraterrestrial God, Bear & Co. (Rochester, VT), 2002.

The Earth Chronicles Expeditions: Journeys to the Mythical Past, Bear & Co. (Rochester, VT), 2004.

Journeys to the Mythical Past: Book II of the Earth Chronicles Expeditions, Bear & Co. (Rochester, VT), 2007.

The End of Days: Armageddon and the Prophecies of the Return, William Morrow (New York, NY), 2007.

Contributor to various journals, and to the book Discovering the Mysteries of Ancient America: Lost History and Legends, Unearthed and Explored, New Page Books (Franklin Lakes, NY), 2006; editor, Economic Horizons, 1959-67; editor, Hamishar (commerce journal).

SIDELIGHTS:

Zecharia Sitchin is an author who promotes the idea that the human race originated from an extraterrestrial race called the Annunaki, a concept referred to as the "ancient astronaut" theory. Over the course of his education he learned several modern and ancient languages and became well versed in the Bible and Near Eastern archaeology. Sitchin's first book introducing the ancient astronaut theory was published in 1976 and titled The 12th Planet, referring to the hypothetical home of the Annunaki in an orbit past Pluto. He has since written a number of books on the topic, including The Lost Book of Enki: Memoirs and Prophecies of an Extraterrestrial God and The End of Days: Armageddon and the Prophecies of the Return. Writing of The Lost Book of Enki, a fictional interpretation of ancient Annunaki mythology, Andy Lloyd remarked on the Andy Lloyd's Dark Star Theory Web site that Sitchin "breaks an awful lot of unwritten rules in alternative science, by amalgamating scholarly research with fiction." Lloyd found The End of Days, another title based on what Sitchin claims are ancient writings, Sitchin's "best book for some years. It serves to bring together many of the various threads that he has written about over the last thirty years." Booklist reviewer Ilene Cooper noted, however, that "although Sitchin helpfully highlights key points in boldface, there's a lot to keep straight here."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, March 15, 2007, Ilene Cooper, review of The End of Days: Armageddon and the Prophecies of the Return, p. 22.

ONLINE

Andy Lloyd's Dark Star Theory,http://www.darkstar1.co.uk/ (January 22, 2002), review of The Lost Book of Enki: Memoirs and Prophecies of an Extraterrestrial God; (June 5, 2007), review of The End of Days.

Zecharia Sitchin Home Page,http://www.sitchin.com (October 1, 2007).