104 MEXICO AND CENTRAL AMERICA 



counting those of both hands and the vigesimal system 

 which prevailed in Central America, is based on count- 

 ing all the fingers and all the toes. The vigesimal 

 system is seen in imperfect form in our count of scores, 

 where seventy years are three score and ten. 



The Mayan name for one was hurt: they had simple 

 names to 9 and composite ones from 10 to 19, much 

 as in English, and twenty was hurt kal, one score. The 

 ascending values in the vigesimal scale were as fol- 

 lows :■ — 



Mayan Numbers 



Arabic Equivalents 



him 



1 



20 hun = 1 kal 



20 



20 kal = 1 bak 



400 



20 bak = 1 pic 



8,000 



20 pic = 1 cabal 



160,000 



20 cabal = 1 kinchil 



3,200,000 



20 kinchil = 1 alau 



64,000,000 



20 alau = 1 hablat 



1,280,000,000 



They invented signs for zero and discovered the 

 principle of " local value" in the writing down of 

 numbers centuries before these ideas (which are funda- 

 mental to higher mathematics) were known in the Old 



• •• _ -JS— * www ~ — — 



■12 5 6 S 10 18 



Fig. 37. Bar and Dot Numerals of the Mayas. 



World. The notation of numbers had its simpler and 

 more complicated phase. In the simpler phase 1 was 

 represented by a dot, 2 by two dots, 5 by a bar, 6 by a 

 bar and dot, 15 by three bars, etc. The commonest sign 

 for zero was a shell while a picture of the moon stood for 

 twenty. In the more elaborate notation a series of 

 twenty faces of gods represented the numerals from 

 to 19. 



