SIGNIFICANCE OF THE MAYA CALENDAR IN 

 HISTORIC CHRONOLOGY" 



By Eduari) Seler 



In the traditions of the Mexican and Central American races there 

 is mention of a civilized nation, said to have been in the conntrv 

 before all others, which was the originator of all arts and sciences. 

 This was the Toltec nation. Among other things, the invention of 

 the calendar is ascribed to this nation, and we are told that they 

 carried their books with them on their migrations and that they were 

 led by their wise men and soothsayers, the Amoxhuaque, " who nnder- 

 stood the books ", that is, the picture writings. This is to some extent 

 a confirmation of the statement that they were the inventors of all 

 arts and sciences. For the calendar is indeed the alpha and omega of 

 the Central American sacerdotal wisdom, and the great mass of 

 Mexican and Maya manuscripts is nothing more than an elaboration 

 of this calendric system in respect of its numerical theory, its chro- 

 nologv, and its system of divination.'' 



The nature of this calendar, consisting in the fact that it originated 

 from the fundamental number 20 in coml)ination with the number 13, 

 is a well-known matter. A simple calculation shows us that the 

 peculiar period of 52 years in use among the Mexican races proceeds 

 directly from the application of this fundamental system to a solar 

 year of 365 days. There is still a diversity of opinion as to how faj- 

 the Mexicans themselves were able to harmonize this system with 

 actual time, the solar year and the revolution, of the various heavenly 

 bodies. 



Among the Maya races the system seems to have been brought to 

 perfection on the numeric-theoretic side in partieular. This is shown 

 by the long rows of figures rising to high amounts which Fcirsteniann 

 first brought to notice and deciphered. One thing seems to follow 

 distinctly from these series of figures, namely, that not only the 

 movement of the sun but also the movements of the large planets 

 were noted, and that these people were capable of connecting the 



« Globus. V. 68, n. 3. 



'See Zeitschrift fiir Etlinoloirie (1801), v. 23, p. !)1. 



327 



