THOMAS] EXPLANATION OF FIGURES 75 



figures in the Manuscript; those on Plates 26, 27, and 28 apparently 

 part of the trunk of a tree clothed, and around which a serpent is coiled. 

 From this fact I infer that the character signifies a "stone" or "stone-heap." 

 The same character is also found under the figures placed opposite each 

 other in the lower divisions of Plates XX-XXIII of the Manuscript, the 

 only exception being that under the left figure in the lower division of 

 Plate XXII. I had, from a study of the character itself, come to the con- 

 clusion, previous to the discovery of the signification of the four plates of 

 the Codex, that it was the symbol for stone, especially for the stone used 

 in marking the divisions between periods of time. I was led to this con- 

 clusion by a careful comparison of Landa's symbol for the month Pax with 

 other similar characters in the Manuscript. If I am correct in this opinion, 

 then the character probably represents one of the two Maya words Plz, sig- 

 nifying "a stone serving to form the divisions in a Katun or cycle," or Fpic, 

 "stones placed one upon another, serving to count the intervals in the 

 cycles." We find this character, as before remarked, in the lower trans- 

 verse lines of the plates of the Codex, in close proximity to the symbols of 

 the cardinal points, which agrees very well with Landa's statement. 



In the third or lowest division of Plate 27 we see the figure of a fish 

 on two Kans, which are in a vessel. This probably represents the "angel" 

 placed on the "palo" or litter "as a sign of water;" though it is possible it 

 simply denotes one of the offerings made to the idol before which it is 

 placed. It is worthy of note that a similar figure is found in the second 

 character of the fifth line of the title-page of the Manuscript ; but, in this 

 case, it is in the column which has the symbol for "south" as its second 

 character. As Plate 27 of the Codex relates to the close of a Cauac year, 

 as well as to the commencement of a Kan year, the presence of this figure 

 in these places agrees very well with the interpretation above given. 



Although we have by no means exhausted our explanation of the four 

 plates of the Codex, we are now prepared to compare them with the four 

 of the Manuscript, and will proceed to make the comparison, reserving 

 what further interpretations we have to give of them to a subsequent part 

 of our paper. 



There are four plates in each, relating to the four dominical days or 



