272 MAYAN CALENDAR SYSTEMS [eth. asn. 22 



storj' of failure over again. But wait a luiiuitel Five mouths are equivalent to 

 100 days. To divide by 30 would take just 5 day.s from each of the 20 years of 

 the katun. Years? What if they weiie not years at all that Landa was talking 

 about, but only periods of 360 days? They may be the ahaus. Let me hasten to 

 find out how the numbers will run in a division of this possible Katun into 20 

 such periods. Here it is: 9, 5, 1, 10, 6. 2, 11, 7, 3, 13, 8, 4, 13, 9, 5, 1, 10, 6, 3, 11. 

 Ah. this is significant! That paragraph of Perez, what are its exact words? 

 •'The Indians of Yucatan had yet another species of cycle, but as the method 

 followed by them in using it can not be found, nor any example by which an 

 idea of its nature might be imagined, I shall only copy what is literally said of it 

 in a maniiscript, viz: • There was another number which they called ua katiai, 

 an<l which served them as a key to find the katuns. According to the order of 

 its march it falls on the days of the uayeb yaab and revolves to the end of cer- 

 tain years: katunes 13, 9. 5. 1. 10, 6, 2, 11, 7, 3, 13, 8, 4.' " Poor Don Pio! To have 

 the pearl in his grasp and be unaware of its pricelessness, like so many others. 

 But I must not exult too much yet. The succession of the katuns, reckoned 

 according to this principle, is yet to be ascertained before my fancied discovery 

 can be established by a crucial test. I score the ahaus off in the foregoing order, 

 and, sure enough, the 20ths give the desired result, 11, 9, 7. 5, 3, 1, 13, 10, 8, 6, 4, 

 2, 13. Eurekal The perturbed spirit of the Maya calendar, which has endeav- 

 ored so long to imjiart its message to the world, may rest at last. 



Tiiat tiikiug the <Iay imniber.s of tlio lirst days of tlie ahaus in a 

 katim will give the order of succession mentioned is eertainlj- true, as 

 we have shown, but the question to be discussed here relates to the 

 statemetit of the authority quoted by Perez. According to this state- 

 ment as given by Goodman, "There was another numl)or which they 

 called ua katun, and which served them as a key to find the katuns. 

 According to the order of its march it falls on the days of the uayeb 

 yaab, and revolves to the end of certain years; katunes 13, 9, 5, 1, 10, 

 G, 2, 11, 7, ;j, 12, 8, 4." 



It Mill bo best, liowever, to give Perez's exact words as found in the 

 appendix to Bras.seur's edition of Landa's "De las Cosas," page 418: 



'■ Habia otro niimero que llamaban Ua Katun el que les servia como Uava para 

 acertar y hallar los katunes, y segun el orden de sus movimientos cae a los dos 

 dias del Uayeb haab y da su vuelta al cabo de algunos alios: Katunes 13, 9, 5, 1. 10, 

 6,3,11,7,3, 13,8,4," 



Brasseur's translation is as follows : 



■■ lis avaient un autre chiffre (ju'ils appelaient Un Kaiini , qui lenr servait comme 

 de clef, pour ajuster et trouver les katun et siiivant Tordre de ses mouvements, il 

 tombeauxdeux joursdu Uayabhauh etretoiirnealafindequelquesauuees: Katun 

 13,9, 5, 1, 10, 6, 3, 11, 7, 3, 13, 8, 4," 



A closer translation than that l)y Goodman, which omits one impor- 

 tant word, may be given as follows: 



They have another niunber which they called ua katun, which served them 

 as a key to regulate and find the katuns, and according to the order of its move- 

 ments falls on the two days of the uayeb haab and returns at the end of certain 

 years; katuns 13, etc. 



The important word omitted bj' Gooilman and whicli is usually 

 omitted in English translations is the "two," Brasseur's translation 



