INSCRIPTIONS OF THE GREAT PERIOD. 333 
We again face the same question as in the case of Altar Q, which is the 
contemporaneous date, the hotun-ending 6 Ahau 13 Kayab or the closing 
date, 8 Kan 12 Mol? Without, of course, being able to decide this question 
finally until all the glyphs in the text shall have been finally deciphered, it 
seems probable that, as in the case of Altar Q, the hotun-ending represents 
the contemporaneous date of this altar, and that its closing date was “ pro- 
phetic,”’ that is, in the sense that it was still in the future when the altar was 
dedicated. 
A number of such cases have already been described (pp. 227,228), but 
only those where the so-called “prophetic” dates were considerably in 
advance of the contemporaneous dates, 7. ¢., from 10 to 130 years. There 
are a number of cases, however, where these “prophetic” dates overlap 
the contemporaneous dates of their several monuments by less than a year. 
Four have already been described here at Copan: the latest dates on Stela 1; 
the reviewing-stand in the Western Court, and Altars Q and W’, and at least 
five others are known elsewhere: Stela 1 at Los Higos (see fig. 62 and pp. 
384-386); Stela 1 at Aguas Calientes; Stele 7 and 10 at Naranjo; and Stela 
C at Nakum. (See plate 1 for the location of these cities). The following 
summary of these texts shows how much each overlaps its current hotun- 
ending: 




Stela 1. SE ie: Altar Q. Altar W’ 
X10. 15,020 9.17.0.0.0 6.17, 5.0.0 9.17.5.0.0 
14.0 (280 days) 3.0 (60 days) 3.4 (64 days) 9.4 (184 days) 
g.11.15.14.0 9.17.0.3.0 Gr17 603.4 O17, 6.9.4 
Los Hicos. Acuas CALIENTES. Naranjo. Nakum. 
Stela 1. Stela 1. Stelz 7 and to. Stela C. 
9.17.10.0.0 9.18.0. 0. 0 9.19.0.0.0 9.19.10.0.0 
7.0 (140 days) 13.18 (278 days) 3.0 (60 days) 1.0 (20 days) 
0.17.10.7.0 9.18.0.13.18 92 19.,0.3..0 9. 19.10.10 


These overlapping periods are all 'ess than a year in length, varying 
from 20 to 280 days, and it seems reasonable to conclude therefrom that 
when such dates exceeded the current hotun-endings by such short periods 
as these, they in no way interfered with the primary function of such 
monuments as hotun-markers; rather these several final days were of such 
importance, and so near chronologically to the previous hotun-endings 
in each case, that they were included in the record of these previous hotuns 
rather than in that of their current hotuns. 
The style of Altar W’, as already noted, is of the best period. All the 
glyphs on the back are the very unusual full-figure variants, and in point of 
execution have but few peersinthecity. The relief is fairly high and rounded 
