THE BURNER PERIOD AND BISSEXTILE COUNT. 29 



years — equivalent to the Egyptian sothic period, when just a year of bissextiles 

 accrued — prominent in Maya chronology ; but nothing of the kind appears. The 

 bissextiles would not divide evenly into years. This obstacle had to be surmounted 

 in some way that would result in an even count. I think they overcame it by receding 

 from a year count of bissextiles to correspond with the annual calendar and adopting 

 a period of 260 days — exactly 360 of which periods would be comprised in the 93,600 

 bissextile total. 



This 260 is another number about which ignorance in the disguise of knowledge 

 has spun a web of mystery, as around the numbers 13 and 20. To believe all the 

 assumed authorities, there must be seen in it the sacred tonalamatl of the Nahuas 

 and the equally sacred ritual year of all the Maya tribes, an obscure relation to certain 

 lunar reckonings, a far-fetched correspondence with the synodical revolutions of Venus, 

 and other strange meanings growing out of its supposed composition from the mystic 

 20 and 13. I am aware of no reason why there may not as well be seen in it simply 

 what it is, the day round or " burner " period ; that is, it is the number of days that 

 must elapse before the recurrence of the same day with the same numeral, and it is 

 plainly indicated to be the burner period by three documents that have been handed 

 down to us. No one but Perez, so far as 1 know, has called attention to it, in its 

 character of burner period, as a factor of the Maya chronological scheme, and he 

 confessed his ignorance of its nature and scope *. It is not necessarily composed of 20 



* Dr. Brinton has allowed carelessness to betray him into a surprising error respecting this burner period. 

 In an essay entitled " The Folk-Lore of Yucatan," to support his contention that there still exist relics of an 

 ancient form of fire-worship which once prevailed throughout the peninsula, he says : " That they [the rites] 

 are not yet out of date is apparent from a copy of a native calendar for 1841-2 obtained by Mr. Stephens 

 when in Yucatan. In it the days are marked as lucky or unlucky, and against certain ones such entries 

 are made as ' now the burner lights hi3 fire,' ' the burner gives his fire scope,' ' the burner takes his fire,' 

 ' the burner puts out his fire.' This burner, ah toe, is the modern representative of the ancient priest of 

 the fire." If Dr. Brinton had observed closely the caption of the exhibit referred to he would have seen that 

 it was not a modern native calendar for 1S41-2, hut, as its title explicitly states, " an almanac adjusted 

 according to the chronological calculations of the ancient Indians of Yucatan for the year 1841 and 1842, by 

 Don Juan Pio Perez ; " and, if he had regarded the introductory remarks of Sefior Perez, he would have seen 

 furthermore that the gentleman endeavored to prove the reliability of certain features of his calendar, 

 notwithstanding his inability to explain them, by the statement that they were the same found by him in 

 " three ancient almanacs " which lie had examined and found to agree very nearly. As to whom the burner 

 is that takes his fire, kindles it, permits it to destroy and extinguishes it, Senor Perez confessed his total 

 ignorance, as he had been unable to find any explanation of the mystery. That would scarcely be the case 

 had ah loc been still wielding his firebrand, as Dr. Brinton asserts. That this burnor had nothing to do with 

 modern fire-worship is evident from the fact that the mention of it was taken from anciont authorities ; and 

 that it never had anything to do with fire-worship at all is probable from the further fact that in tho most 

 ancient of these authorities, tho codices and inscriptions, we find this idea of fire — whether represented by a 

 torch in the hand of a grotesque human figure or attached to the paws and tail of a panting dog, or simply 

 by tho head of the panting dog itself — inseparably associated with one of tho elements of Maya chronology, 

 tho 200-day period. 



