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hi annadeer..

another good question! i don't actually know, but i do recall abu mashar using them, so that goes back at least to the 800's.. he was apparently born in 787...he was using solar returns at the time... not sure about lunar returns though.. maybe one of the local authorities will chime in with more specific details for you.. cheers james

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Annadeer,

You can review this on skyscript here
http://www.skyscript.co.uk/rev_returns.html
A review of "The Art of Forecasting using Solar Returns" by Anthony Louis

"Although mentioned in the commentary on Paulus Alexandrinus, Louis tells us that the first extensive use of solar returns was done by the medieval Arab astrologers, and picked up by Western Astrologers and developed as part of a larger predictive system. Lilly (1602 - 1681) mentions solar returns in Christian Astrology, but does not go into great detail in that work. John Gadbury (1627 - 1704) wrote two chapters on the use of "revolutions" as he and his contemporaries called them, but with the exception of a handful of aphorisms it is little more than a cookbook. The real work on this subject during the 17th century was Jean Baptiste Morin deVillefranche (1583 - 1656) in Book 23 of his monumental Astrologia Gallica. Morin's work was picked up in the 20th century by French astrologer, Alexander Volguine (1903 - 1976) who spent a great deal of time and effort with Morin's work and developed a system which is the basis of Louis' work."
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As for Lunar returns, of interest is this link here
http://skyscript.co.uk/forums/viewtopic ... 25bb1e626e

Isaac Starkman post in it
"Here are the main rules for the calculating and interpretation the lunar return charts based on the very extensive research of Alexander Marr and my vast testing of them:"... followed by the rules he uses.

The Moon was of such importance to Chaldeans and Egyptians that it is fair to say that they used it on a daily basis. In Egypt, the Moon was associated with the eye of Horus, Osiris, Ptah and sometimes Min blinking and opening at NM and closing at FM. The Chaldeans recorded the daily motion of the Moon, interpreted and delivered it to the king with the utmost care.

My understanding of it and I may be wrong also is that Solar Returns were secondary to the Ancients but more importantly they used the Solar motion in relationship with the Fixed Stars to predict a 'collective' destiny with the king or deities being the actors of the planets. There is a very 'self-centered' principle in Solar returns that did not exist in the past. The collective was more important than the individual.
Martin Gansten has probably some more accurate references to the start and use of Solar and Lunar returns.
Blessings!