Charles P. Bowditch

“ It would seem as if the Mayas probably called the beginning day of a month by the name of the current month, and that they attached the zero to it, meaning that no days of that month had elapsed. Moreover such a plan is very much easier for calculation and there is less liability to error; for it is natural to think of a day with the number 20 as following a day with the number 19 and as being the last day of a month containing 20 days, rather than the beginning day of a month. ”

“ The chief evidence in favor of giving the 0 or 20 glyph the meaning of 20 is, that this glyph is often drawn with a hand stretching across its lower part, especially when the main part of the glyph is a face. Now the face glyphs which represent the cycle of 144,000 days and the katun of 7,200 days are very similar, except that the cycle glyph has also a hand across its lower part, and the cycle is equal to 20 katuns ”

“ In the first row of dates, we find that the third date on page 48 is 12 Chen. The number of days at the bottom of the page which need to be counted forward in order to reach the fourth date is 8. If the beginning day of the month were marked by the Mayas with 1, then the last day would be marked with 20, and by adding 8 days to 12 Chen, we should reach 20 Chen. But the date is not 20 Chen. The month is Yax,—the month immediately following Chen,—and the glyph which takes the place of the number has a form resembling two half-circles placed side by side. ”