PAGES 01 TO 0)4 AND 69 TO 73, DRESDEN CODEX" 

 Introduction 



In 1887 I printed an essay under the above title intended for pri- 

 vate circulation, which was afterwards inchided, with a few correc- 

 tions on pages 739 t^) 753, in the Compte rendu of the Congress of 

 Americanists at Berlin. Since that time some facts have come to 

 light in my special department, the mathematical side of the Maya 

 manuscripts, a part of w hich I would make known in this way. For 

 this purpose I select two of the latter sections of the Dresden manu- 

 script (pages 61 to 64 and 69 to 73), which have this in common, that, 

 proceeding by arithmetic series, they rise to numbers of great mag- 

 nitude, the highest of which are set down in serpent pictures, in four 

 in the first-named section and only in one in the second. The first 

 section, beginning with page 64, the other beginning with page 73, 

 must be read from right to left, consequently backward according to 

 our view. It is true that even after this communication of mine 

 numerous puzzles will remain unsolved; still, an intelligible connec- 

 tion betw^een the individual portions of these sections will certainly 

 be seen. 



Before I come to the main question I will premise two remarks. . 



First, I shall designate the week days in the usual manner by Ro- 

 man numerals; the days of the month, not by their names, which are 

 here unimportant, but by Arabic numerals, as* for instance, Kan 1. 

 although, of course, I know^ that in Codex Troano-Cortesianus Imix 

 1 is after the Aztec method. 



Secondly, among the numbers certain ones are of surpassing im- 

 portance. It is Avell known that the most important of all is 260, the 

 sacred tonalamatl, consisting of 20 weeks of 13 days each. Some 

 smaller numbers rank next in importance, notably, 52, 65, 78, 91, and 

 104 (^4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 weeks). Next to these come several multiples 

 of 260, especially, 780, 1,040, and 1,820, which are divisible without a 

 remainder by 78, 104, and 91 as well as by 260. I will specify fur- 

 ther 3,640 (divisible by 91, 104, and 260) and 14,040 (divisible by 52, 

 65, 78, and 260, likewise by 54, 702, and other numbers). Next fol- 



" Zur Entzlffei-ung der Mayahiiiulschriften, II, Dresden, January 25, 1891. 



409 



