440 



APPENDIX. 



thirteen years, and forming one indiction, or week (of years) ; the second 

 reckoning began with Muluc, ending in the same, which formed the next 

 thirteen ; and so on, till they came to Cauac, which formed a Katun. , 



7°. Of the Indiction and Cycle of 52 Years, or Katun. 



As in the preceding explanations sufficient idea has been given of what 

 constituted the indiction and the cycle of 52 years, called by the Indians 

 Katun, the facts are briefly recapitulated here, that the reader may not be 

 fatigued hereafter with new explanations. 



1st. The name of indiction is given to each one of the four weeks of 

 years composing the cycle of 52 years. 



2d. The American week was formed by the course of 13 numbers, ap- 

 plied indiscriminately to the 20 days of the month. 



3d. It has been explained, that as the year was formed of 28 weeks and 

 one day, by this overplus the years succeeded each other, following the 

 correlative order of their numbers up to 13, in order to form a week, or in- 

 diction ; for if the year had been composed of exactly 28 weeks, the num- 

 bers of the new years would never have formed a correlative week, because 

 they would have commenced with the number 1, and finished with 13; by 

 the other method, one year begins with the first, and terminates in the 

 same ; the second year commences with the number 2, and also finishes 

 with it; and so on successively, until the 13 are completed. 



4th. It has also been explained that the Indians, seeing that 18 months 

 of 20 days did not make up the sum of 365, in order to complete them 

 added five days more ; resulting from this, the 20 days were divided into 

 four portions, and the first of each of these, being Kan, Muluc, Gix, and 

 Cauac, became initials, forming in turn the beginning of the years by 

 courses of four years, every fifth year commencing again with Kan. But 

 as the weeks were composed of 13 numbers, there were in each week three 

 revolutions of the four initials and one initial more, by this excess of one 

 causing each initial to have its own week : thus the indiction, or week, 

 which began with Kan concluded also with the same Kan ; so that the 

 next indiction might commence with Muluc, the second initial, and in its 

 turn conclude with the same Muluc ; and so on continually, until each one 

 of the initials had formed its own indiction, or week, and given to it its name, 

 the whole composing 52 years, which is the sum of the four weeks of 13 

 years each, as may be seen in the following table. 



