Carl E. Guthe

“ When the difference groups [25] are divided into months it is found that it is an easy matter to arrange the months in an alternating series. The group of 177 days is composed of three 30-and three 29-day months, either of which when alternated can begin the group, which then ends with the other, i.e., 29, 30, 29, 30, 29, 30, or 30, 29, 30, 29, 30, 29. The group of 148 days consists of three 30-and two 29-day months, necessitating that it begin and end with a 30-day month when alternated, thus, 30, 29, 30, 29, 30. ”

“ For the sake of uniformity in the arrangement of the difference groups, the 178-day group of column 7 should occur in column 6, and for the same reason, the 148-day group of column 58 should occur in column 59. Professor Förstemann calls both of these variations errors, and arranges his version of the table so that each part is just like the other two. He gives no reason for his opinion other than the phrase “for the author [of the manuscript] had confused the differences 178 and 148....” ”

“ In general, then, the irregularities in the calendar recorded on these pages fall into two groups, those which are clerical errors of the scribe and do not therefore affect the solution advanced, and those which do not appear to be of the clerical type. In the light of the solution advanced, it has been shown that there are perfectly logical reasons for the latter group of apparent irregularities. ”

“ The entire record is based on the middle line of days until the end of the series. Here the day just below the last day of the middle line is 12 Lamat, the end of 46 tonalamatls (260-day cycle) , and the zero day of the recorded series. The tonalamatl was probably as easily used by the Mayas as “60 days” and “90 days” are used now. The entire calendrical system of the Mayas is based on the cycle principle. The series recorded in these pages was probably also a cycle, and in order to repeat it, 12 Lamat must again be used as the zero date. ”

“ Since this table has a place in the calendar of the Mayas (for a date probably occurs on page 52a) , it may be that these numbers refer to definite historical eclipses. If they do, they will afford a [17] means by which an absolute correlation between the Maya and the Julian calendars may be obtained. Professor Willson is at present working on this problem.
In order to determine the exact extent to which the eclipse seasons affect these pages in the Dresden Codex it is necessary to work out in as great detail as possible the calendar represented. ”

“ The last, and bottom, division of the page is filled with a series of black numbers which are of three values only, namely, 177, 148, and 178, of which the first is the most frequent. At more or less regular intervals a vertical strip is run from the top of the half-page to the bottom. This strip contains, in the upper part, eight or ten glyphs. Below them in all but the first strip is a constellation band, and below that a figure of some kind. These strips divide the number series into groups, and are called “pictures,” occurring on ten of the fourteen half-pages. ”

“ A study of the manuscript reveals that: (1) the series recorded represents 405 lunar months or three times 135 months, and that the series naturally falls into three great subdivisions of 3986 days each; (2) each [21] third consists of 23 columns or unequal subdivisions; (3) the intervals between the 178-day groups are 47 and 88 months; (4) the 148-day groups fall approximately at 47 and 41 month intervals (see Table X) ; (5) the first 178-day group in each third occurs between the 30th and 35th month inclusive, and the other 178-day group of the third comes 47 months later. ”

“ The complete disregard of all of the six normal 178-day groups by the lower numbers seems to imply that no attempt was made to have the latter agree with the actual differences in the upper numbers, a conclusion which is strengthened by the fact that none of the lower numbers shows evidence of the clerical errors in the differences of the upper numbers. ”