106 THE AECHAIC MAYA INSCRIPTIONS. 



which there multiplies them by 4. Hence, these must stand for 18 simply, one of the 

 commonest constituents of 360, the ahau number of days. In that case the other 

 factor must be 20, represented by the composite character above. 



3rd glyph. — Here we recognize the double cauac character, which we know stands 

 for 20 days, from its employment in the symbols for the calendar round and cycle. It 

 follows that the head above it must imply 18, but unfortunately it is too mutilated to 

 clearly make out if it has the characteristics of the ordinary 18 face or is a variant. 



SECOND AHAU.— 720 days. 



2nd glyph. — The same two coils ; hence the composite character above them here 

 must denote 40. 



3rd glyph. — The 10-day sign qualified by three characters that should aggregate 72. 

 We should not be able to make them out but for knowledge subsequently gained. If 

 you will look down to the 7th ahau you will see, in the second glyph, the under one 

 of these three characters. Its position there proves it to be 35. The middle numeral 

 is a bar with a band crossing it obliquely in the center — a sign for 9 ; but here there 

 are two other partial bands, so that presumably it is three times nine, or 27. We are 

 yet ten short of the necessary total. In the top sign, we know the ahau stands for 4, 

 the hand ordinarily for 5 ; but as the upright thumb by itself means 1, the hand in this 

 position evidently has the value of 6. 



THIRD AHAU.— 1080 days. 



2nd glyph. — One of the coils disappears here and a sign for 3 takes its place. As 

 the 9 element, which is an indispensable constituent of the ahau total, would be lost 

 by addition, this 3 must serve as a multiplier— 9 X 3 = 27x20 = 540x2 = 1080. The 

 multiplication also shows us that the duplicate character at the bottom has here but 

 a single value. 



3rd glyph. — The yaw character which in the month symbol has the value of 4, an 

 outflaring sign which in another inscription distinguishes a 15th katun, and a character 

 that must signify 18, to make up the complement of days — 15x4=60x18=1080. 



4.th glyph. — We must infer this to be an arbitrary sign, equivalent to a 3rd ahau, or 

 three ahaus. 



POURTH AHAU.— 1440 days. 



It will be observed that the reckoning of the days is missing here — a fact that will 

 become important when we reach the next ahau. 



2nd glyph. — As a portion of this is obliterated, we will pass it by. It is a waste of 

 time to study illegible glyphs when the missing part is not restorable from what is 

 left or from the context. 



3rd glyph. — Same remarks. 



