134 THE INSCRIPTIONS AT COPAN. 
the date of sunset behind Stela 10, 23 days after the vernal and 23 days before the 
autumnal equinox.’”? 
Gordon’s reading gives the date of the sun setting behind Stela 10 as 
seen from Stela 12 as three days later in the spring, z. ¢.,on April 12, and three 
days earlier in the fall, 7. ¢., September 7, a fairly close agreement with the 
readings obtained in 1916. 
As yet we know too little about the exact correlation of the Old Empire 
chronology with our own to name the Maya equivalents of April 9-12 and 
September 7-10, during the Old Empire, and moreover, since the Maya 
only used a 365-day year, these days were continually shifting. In Bishop 
Landa’s time the Maya year began with July 26 (N. S.), 2. ¢., o Pop fell on 
July 26;? and on this basis of correlation these eight possible dates were 
17 Mac, 18 Mac, 29 Mac, or o Kankin; or 3 Zip, 4 Zip, 5 Zip, or 6 Zip 
of the Maya year, none of which, however, appears on either monument, 
although the Initial Series terminal date on Stela 12 (13 Mac) is only 4 
days earlier than the first of these. 
Although the above results are unsatisfactory, the writer believes these 
two monuments may yet be found to record important and recoverable 
astronomical data, possibly even sufficient to permit an exact correlation of 
Maya and Givers chronology.’ 
The upper part of Stela 12, a piece about 25 cm. long, as already men- 
tioned, is missing. The front of this fragment presented the upper half of 
the Initial Series introducing glyph, the lower half of which is shown in plate 
17. The next glyph, a3, plate 17, is effaced; it doubtless recorded “9 cycles.” 
Fortunately the katun coefficient, B3a, is one of the clearest glyphs in the 
entire inscription, being unmistakably 10, which restricts the range of 
possible dates for this Initial Series to a definite 20-year period in the Long 
Count. 
Although the remaining terms of this number, the tun, uinal, and kin 
coefficients in A4a, B4a, and asa respectively are sufficiently clear, their forms 
are so unusual that it is better to -= attempt first to identify the Initial 
Series terminal date recorded in B5,A9. This is 6 Ahau 13 ?, all being 
perfectly clear but the month-sign. 
The next point is to determine at what places in Katun 10 the day 6 
Ahau could have had a month coefficient of 13. Referring to Goodman’s 
tables, it will be found that there are only seven places where these condi- 
tions are fulfilled, as follows: 
g.10. 2.13.0 °6 Ahau 13 Zac 9.10.15. 0.0 6 Ahau 13 Mac 
9.10. 6. 6.0 6 Ahau 13 Zip g.10.18.11.0 6 Ahau 13 Tzec 
910%-721-0 .6 Ahad Trax 9.10.19. 6.0 6 Ahau 13 Cumhu 
g.10.10.12.0 6 Ahau 13 Mo'! 

1This extract is from a letter written under date of November 29, 1916. 
2Landa says the Maya year began on July 16, but as he wrote between 1561 and 1566, the Old Style was still 
in use, and in order to reduce this reading to its present equivalent it is necessary to add 10 days, July 16 of his 
time being July 26 to-day. 
°This problem of the exact correlation of Maya and Christian chronology will be found reviewed in Appendix I. 
