720 MAYAN CALENDAR SYSTEMS (ETH. ANN. 19 
Assuming, as before, 8 Ahau, at the bottom of column D2, to be the 
3d day of the month Pop in the year 6 Ezanab, we subtract from 2.560 
days 362, the remaining days of the year 6 Ezanab. This leaves 2,198, 
which, divided by 365, gives 6 years and an overplus of 8 days. Count- 
ing from the year 6 Ezanab (table 3) 6 years, we reach the year 12 
Lamat. The next year will be 13 Ben. Turning to table 1 and count- 
ing 8 days down the column headed 13 (as the eighth day from the 
beginning of the year must fall in Pop, the first month of the year), 
we reach the numeral 7, and find opposite in the Ben column the day 
Ahau; hence the day reached is 7 Ahau, and not 3 Ahau, as it should 
be. The addition of days to the total difference by even twenties 
will, of course, bring the count back to Ahau, hence the test lies in 
the number attached to it. It appears, therefore, so far as this example 
is concerned, that these oval symbols stand for naught, and not for 20 
and 18, as inferred by Mr Goodman. It will be observed that the 
same symbol appears in the other columns of figure 8 copied from 
plate xxiv, Dresden codex. Positive proof that this oval is used for 
naught is found on plate 50 of the Dresden codex, which may be seen 
in plate 1 of my Maya Year. The oval in the bottom line filling the 
month or chuen place can reach the required day only when counted 
as naught, as may be verified by reference to the series of days given 
in the same work. 
In the quotation above from Mr Goodman’s work in relation to the red 
oval symbol which I have counted as naught, he says: ‘* It is employed 
in the codices solely to designate initial periods.” Precisely what he 
means by this remark I fail to comprehend. When the symbols are 
found in the same time series in the month place and in the imme- 
diately following day place, and then at odd years and months apart 
in a continuous series, how they can be used to designate initial periods 
is difficult to understand, unless very short periods are alluded to. 
That the symbol for no day, or naught, in the day place will indicate 
the beginning of a month in the count which is to follow is undoubt- 
edly true, and when it is in the month place a new year will follow, 
and so on. This is also true when 20 days, 18 months, 20 ahaus, ete, 
are counted. If this be what Mr Goodman means, he is correct; but 
it is hardly the idea conveyed by his language, which apparently refers 
to ‘initial periods,” as though of a katun, cycle, or calendar round. 
The next column to the left (B2) has 4 katuns, 9 ahaus, +4 chuens, 0 
days, and at the bottom 11 ahau. Subtracting from this column the 
column C2, already given, we have the following result: 
B2 C2 Diff. 
Katuns....-- 1 4 
AUD SUSE yee 9 ] 8 
Chuens. ..... 4 2 2 
Daysitesseoce 0 0 0 
