interpreted by Goodman's Tables. 



69 



As has been long known, each bar counts as five, and each dot as a 

 nnifc. (The roundish marks under the glyphs are not part of the 

 numerical series.) 



"The signs in front of the Ahau, Chuen, and Day signs denote a 

 * full couDt ' of those periods. The date thus reads : — 



(1.) 54th.. great cycle. 



(2.) 9th cycle. 



(3.) 15th katun. 



(4.) ' Full count ' ahaus. 



(5.) 'Full count' chuens. 



(6.) ' Full count' days. 



(7.) 4 Ahau (day). 

 t (8.) 13 Yax (month). 



" A reference to Mr. Goodman's chronological calendar shows that 

 the 15th Katun of the 9th Cycle of the 54th Great Cycle commences 

 with the day 4 Ahau, the 13th day of the month Yax, the date which 

 is here given in the inscription. The combination 4 Ahau 13 Yax 

 can only occur once in a period of fifty-two years. 



" One of Mr. Goodman's discoveries is the system on which the 

 Mayas numbered the different series of time divisions. For instance, 

 the twenty Ahaus are not numbered 1, 2, 3, &c, up to 20, but they 

 were numbered 20, 1 2, 3, &c, to 19. 



"If we should nowadays wish to use a similar notation, we should 

 probably number the series 0, 1, 2, &c, 19 ; but it seems as though 

 the Mayas, having no sign for 0, wrote the sign for 20 or a ' full 

 count ' of Ahaus in the first place. 



" The eighteen Chuens are in like manner numbered 18, 1, 2. 3, 

 &c, to 17, the same sign being used for a ' full count ' of Chuens as 

 is used for a ' full count ' of .Ahaus. 



" As a ' full count ' of days (twenty) is a Chuen, a ' full count ' of 

 Chuens (eighteen) is an Ahau, and a ' full count ' of Ahaus (twenty) 

 is a Katun. The foregoing inscription may be read thus : — 



" The 15th Katun of the 9th Cycle with no odd Ahaus, Chuens, 

 or days added, begins with 4 Ahau 13 Yax. 



"Had the date been one including a specified number of Ahaus, 

 Chuens, or Days, we should have had to make use of the annual 

 calendar. 



" The faces so frequently met with in the inscriptions in connexion 

 with Cycle, Katun, and other signs for time periods are shown by 

 Mr. Goodman to be in reality numerals, and the whole series of 

 numeric faces from 1 to 20 has been determined in some cases with 

 certaiuty, and in others with a fair degree of probability." — August 5, 

 1897.] 



In the month of February, when the last pages of Mr. Goodman's 



G 2 



