Almanac 5 (p. 2c) 



TL Maize god inserts needle with thread into frame 



Gl. 4. abundance of maize 



Almanac 6 (p. 2d) 



Tl. Seated moon goddess. Her outstretched hand holds 



what appears to be a styUzed water lily (note the petio- 

 late glyph opposite the flower). This is ritual divination 

 (Thompson, 1972). I do not concur with Thompson's 

 suggestion that this is the working of tortoise shell. The 

 flower-like motif (Rands, 1953) suggests the water lily, 

 Nymphaea ampla DC, that was used as a narcotic in 

 ritual divination (Emboden, 1979). 



T2. While no botanical motif is suggested here, it is appro- 

 priate to mention that the death god represented is fre- 

 quently associated with the water lily as is the jaguar 

 and an aqueous underworld. The depiction may relate 

 to the prognostication of the moon goddess, Ixchel, in 

 the process of divination. 



Almanac 7 (p. 3a) 



Tl. The body of a sacrificial victim has become part of a 



stylized tree that is an amalgamation of botanical mo- 

 tifs. Hybridization of plant motifs was common to the 

 Maya (Emboden, 1979). From the victim's gaping 

 abdomen there arises a "world directional tree" com- 

 mon to temple reliefs and found in the Codex Borgia 

 (pp. 49-52). In the crotch of the tree is a cormorant; 

 Thompson (1972) believes it to be a vulture, but the 

 figuring of the body and beak suggest a cormorant. 

 This bird is seen in a stylized underwater tree in Coe 

 (1973, polychrome vase 20 and others). 

 Gl. 1. The jaguar paw. This may be associated with 



the figure that has become known as the jaguar 

 of the water lily, for the flower is often seen on 

 his head as he dominates the underworld. 



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