[Avodah] which way to Jerusalem

[Eli Turkel]

<<Some of Chazal may not have known that the earth is a globe, especially
those in Bavel, where the latest discoveries of Greek scientists may have
taken a few centuries to become known and accepted; but surely all the
rishonim knew it well.>>

I agree that some Chazal knew the earth was a globe while others did not.
However, the same is true for rishonim. While sefardim like R Yehuda Halevi
and Rabmam knew the earth was a globe it is pretty clear that most
ashkenazim did not (eg did Rabbenu Tam with his sunset realize that
it depended on ones location on the globe)

More startling is that some achronim explicitly denied that the earth
was a globe
as that scientific theory goes against explicit gemaras.

As to what direction the amoraim davened the question is not whether they
faced west but rather did they account for the difference between
different communities
along the Euphrates. As RZS notes they certainly did not pray in the
direction that
one traveled which would be north

-- 
Eli Turkel