Moeley] INTEODUCTION TO STUDY OP MAYA HIEBOGLYPHS 



215 



on tliis monument. He shows that at the tune when Stela K was 

 erected, namely, 9.18.15.0.0 3 Ahau 3 Yax, the official calendar had 

 outrun the seasons by just 210 days, or exactly 

 the number of days recorded in A6, plate 18, ^ 

 (north side) ; and further, that instead of being 

 the day 3 Yax, which occurred at Quirigua about 

 the beginning of the dry season,^ in reality the 

 season was 210 days behind, or at 18 Kayab, 

 about the beginning of the rainy season. Tliis 

 very great discrepancy between calendar and 

 season could not have escaped the notice of the 

 priests, and the 210 days recorded in A6 may 

 well represent the days actually needed on the 

 date 9.18.15.0.0 3 Ahau 3 Yax to bring the calen- 

 dar into harmony with the current season. If 

 this be true, then the date 9.18.14.7.0 1 Oc 18 

 Kayab represented the day indicated by the sim 

 when the calendar showed that the 3d hotun in 

 Katun 18 of Cycle 9 had been completed. Mr. 

 Bowditch suggests the following free interpreta- 

 tion of this passage: "The sun has just set at 

 its northern point ^ and we are counting the day 

 3 Yax — 210 days from 18 Kayab — wliich is the 

 true date in the calendar according to our tra- 

 ditions and records for the sun to set at this 

 point on his course." As stated above, the 

 writer believes this to be the true explanation 

 of the record of 210 days on this monument. 



In figures 78 and 79 are illustrated the Initial 

 Series and Secondary Series from Stela J at 

 Quirigua.^ For lack of space the introducing 

 glyph in this text has been omitted; it occupies 

 the position of six glyph-blocks, however, 

 A1-B3, after which the Initial-series number 

 9.16.5.0.0 follows in A4-B8. This leads to 

 the terminal date 8 Ahau 8 Zotz, which is re- 

 corded in A9, B9, Bl3, the glyph in Al3 being 

 the month-sign indicator here shown with the 

 coefficient 9. Compare B9 with the second va- 

 riant for Ahau in figure 16 V , i' , and Bl3 with 

 the sign for Zotz in figure 19, e, f. The Initial- 



FiG. 78. The Initial Series on 

 Stela J, Quirigua. 



1 Since tlie Maya New Year's day, Pop, always fell on the 16th of July, the day 3 Yax always fell on 

 Jan. 15th, at the commencement of the dry season. 



2 Since Pop fell on July ICth (Old Style), 18 Kayab fell on June 19th, which is very near the summer 

 solstice, that is, the seeming northern limit of the sun, and roughly coincident with the beginning of the 

 rainy season at Quirigua. 



3 For the full text of this inscription, see Maudslay, 188^-1902: n, pi. 46. 



