Chapter IV: Part 4

Modifications of Fig. 50, No. 1 are quite frequent. This sign has had various explanations, as typifying fire, lightning, or wind (Seler, Schellhas); but I believe it represents divine or magical power exerted by blowing. As I have explained in my _Nagualism_, “the act of blowing was the essential feature in the practice of the ‘medicine men.’ It symbolized the exercise and transfer of spiritual power.”[127] Where the deity is portrayed with this addition, he is in the act of exerting his divine influence. For examples, see the “bee god,” in Cod. Tro., pp. 5* and 10*, where the head is as in No. 2; and the scorpion, in Cod. Tro., p. 2, precisely like one in the Cod. Porfirio Diaz, lam. I. At times it also conveys the idea of speech, or vocal sound, or that from a drum, etc., _e. g._, Fig. 44, No. 3.

No. 3 represents the usual mode of portraying the antennæ of scorpions, insects, etc., of interest because the word for these in Maya, _matzab_, also means the rays of the sun and of light, and the figure might so be interpreted.

Dr. Förstemann believes that the circle of dots, as in the lower portion of No. 2, means “movement or precession;” as in Cod. Dres., p. 68. The sign is so surrounded, indicating the junction of two time-periods; or, as others would say, the crooked lightning darting from the sky.

In Fig. 51, Nos. 1 and 2, copied from the great tortoise of Copan, show the rain-clouds as conceived by the native artist. In the Codices they are seen in the day-sign _cauac_; and elsewhere. An almost identical conception appears in the pictography of the northern tribes.[128] Seler speaks of them as _Wolkenballen_, “cloud-balls,” an appropriate name for the element.

No. 3 has been explained by Thomas and Seler as the portrayal of trickling fluid; or, again, by the latter, as a “nose ornament.” Dr. Schellhas first saw its real intention. It is a picture of a twisted lock of hair, or “cork-screw curl,” worn by the Maya women. It appears in the monograms of various goddesses. Ideographically it has two meanings, one, woman or female; the other, down or downward; either from its name (which we do not know), or because it hangs downward. In the latter sense, it is in the hieroglyph of the Earth, as that which is down or below us, Fig. 52; although, as the Earth is the feminine principle in nature,—Mother Earth,—I would suggest that this is the intimation conveyed by the sign.

No. 1, Fig. 53, occurs with great frequency. Allen explains it as “the radical of the mouth,” others as “falling water,” etc., but I accept without hesitation Brasseur’s identification of it as the side view of the joint of a reed or maize stalk, with the meaning “union.” In the writing it is probably among other things the conjunctive conjunction, _yetal_, “and,” which explains its frequency. It is common in the form No. 2, in the Vienna Codex, signifying the union of day series (pp. 58, 61, 64, etc.); it may imply sexual union, as in the “Tableau des Bacabs” (see above, p. 50.)

Other signs for union are No. 3, which is a knotted head-dress common on males, and No. 4, from the Cod. Troano, p. 5, which perhaps indicates the union of two month periods, or the new and old moons, in relation. The middle design between the two crescents is frequent as an affix (_e. g._, Cod. Tro., p. 7, etc.).

I have already hinted at the significance of the “tree of life” in Mayan mythology. It is shown in the Codices under two forms, Fig. 55, Nos. 1 and 2. In the former it seems to be growing from a bottle-shaped vase. The leaves (omitted in this instance) are well shown in Cod. Tro., p. 17*. They are cordate and pendent.

No. 2 is taken from the Cod. Peres., p. 3; it beautifully shows the sacred tree, here distinctly anthropomorphic,[129] in the vase of the heavenly waters, lifting its fourfold branches. In the original, the god of the north star is resting upon them. Usually the tree is associated with Itzamna. Both forms are frequent in the Mexican manuscripts, and the myths relating to them have been subjects of study by various writers.[130]

Forms like Nos. 1 and 2, Fig. 56, and perhaps No. 3, are usually taken to represent a chopper or _machete_. The representation of this weapon or implement is seen in Cod. Tro., p. 17, where a man is killing a snake with one. In the conventional and negligent manner in which these characters are often written, it is not easy to distinguish them from others of different origin and meaning. Nos. 2 and 3 may be feather signs. Seler explains the machete as the symbol of striking or wounding (“Ausdruck des Schlagens”).

Characters like the above recur in all the forms of writing. No. 1 has been called by Seler the representation of “man,” but this is doubtful. It may be a variant of No. 2, which is a “closing hand” from Fig. 31, No. 3. Nos. 3 and 4, from Copan and Guatemalan pottery, follow closely the Codices. With a “comb affix,” Förstemann calls No. 4 “a well-known form of _moan_,” meaning the Pleiades (_Entziff._ IV); while Dr. Seler explains it as an owl symbol. The design enclosed is held to depict the bill of a bird.

The “Crotalean curve,” the outline of the jaws of the rattlesnake, _Crotalus horridus_, has been dwelt upon with emphasis by Allen and Maudslay as one of the most notable emblems in Maya art.[131] Fig. 58, Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, show some of its forms in the Codices, and No. 5, from Stephens, illustrates its radical. As a graphic element, it is less prominent than in architecture.

Fig. 59, Nos. 1–4, are outlines of objects often seen in the Codices. No. 1, which looks like a carriage-wrench, is in fact a serpent wand, as can readily be seen by comparing Cod. Tro., pp. 6, 7, 31*, with Cod. Dres., pp. 40, 42, 43.

No. 2 is the “medicine rattle.” Sometimes it was a gourd, at others of earthenware, as we see by the “pottery decoration” in Cod. Tro., 34, 35, etc. Sometimes it looks like a fan or a mirror.[132]

No. 3 is the hatchet, and No. 4 the chisel. The peculiar shape and mode of use of the latter are seen Cod. Tro., 34, etc. Both of these implements were made of metal obtained from Tabasco, and Landa especially says that the latter was that with which they carved their idols, exactly as we see in the MSS.[133]

The word for the tomahawk in Maya was _bat_; and from the same root come _batul_, “to fight;” _batab_, “a chief;” _batan_, “first or in front of;” _bat_, “hail;” for any of which ideas the weapon might be a symbol or a rebus. It is of frequent occurrence in the texts. One of its uses, I am persuaded, was to indicate a thunderbolt or stroke of lightning. The name for this in Maya was “the blow of the cloud,”[134] and in the group of the _moan_ sign and the tomahawk we have this well expressed.

The first design in Fig. 60 shows the aspersorium, _lilābal_, with which the high priest sprinkled the holy water (which was the dew collected in the early morning) during the ceremonies. To it were attached the rattles of the rattlesnake and tails of poisonous serpents.[135] It is often portrayed in the Codices and inscriptions.

The second design is the throwing-stick, in Nahuatl, _atlatl_. The admirable monograph of Mrs. Zelia Nuttall explains its important symbolic uses.[136] Examples where it is well portrayed are: Cod. Dres., p. 60, 65; Cod. Tro., pp. 21* and 22*.

The third design in Fig. 60 is what Seler calls a broom (Spanish, _escobilla_, Nahuatl, _mallinalli_,) and Schellhas, a feather. But that it is, as Brasseur said, a mimosa, seems clear from Cod. Tro., p. 29, where it is shown growing. In id., p. 32*^c, where it is above the turtle, it has an astronomic significance.

Other objects sometimes depicted are fans, _ual_ or _picit_; mirrors, _nen_; shields, _chimal_; and planting sticks, _xul_.

The designs shown in Fig. 61 recur in all the Codices, and I agree with Dr. Förstemann that they must refer to the celestial bodies and their relative motions (contrary to the view of Dr. Seler). That they have not all been identified is perhaps because none of the students of the subject has been astronomer enough to understand the lessons they convey.

A few we are certain about. No. 1 is the sun, No. 2 the moon; No. 13 must be “the rope of the moon” (see above p. 36) indicating its conjunction;[137] No. 12, from the Cod. Peres., might reasonably indicate its opposition; No. 14 is the pole star, occurring in Cod. Tro., pp. 20, 22, 23. Dr. Förstemann has offered certain reasons, reaching a moderate probability, that Nos. 3 and 4 symbolize the planet Mercury; Nos. 5 and 6 the planet Venus; No. 7, Jupiter; No. 8, Mars; and No. 11, Saturn; No. 15 I have seen only on the casts from Sastanquiqui, Peten, at the World’s Columbian Exposition.

These designs are arranged in rows of three or more, forming ribbons or bands, and therefore I shall refer to the series as “the constellation band.” Some members of it usually are placed above the representation of the sun and moon (day and night), frequent in the Codices and represented in Fig. 62.

This has been called “the heavenly shield,” a designation I shall retain. Its signification was first explained by Schellhas. The orbs are suspended from the “constellation band” by curious bearings, which seem to be developments from a form very common in the Mexican MSS., and which is shown in Fig. 63, No. 1, which, however, I have copied from a potsherd brought from Copan. Figs. Nos. 2 and 3, from the same source, also seem of astronomical intent, though No. 3 may be a variant of the _ik_ (comp. Cod. Dres., pp. 56, 57).

After considerable discussion the signs for the cardinal points have been definitely determined to be as in Fig. 64, reading from left to right, East, North, West, South. The East sign is composed of the _kin_ (sun) sign with the _ahau_ as a superfix and the “claw” postfix; the North has the north star god’s monogram with the lunar prefix; the West the _kin_ sign with the _mach_ as a superfix (see p. 83) and the “claw” postfix; the South has the _yax_ with the _mac_ superfix and sometimes an augment. Space will not permit a further analysis of these important composites, but each is highly significant. These signs never occur isolated, but always together; where one is found, the others may confidently be looked for.

Another series of signs are intimately associated with these. They are shown Fig. 65, and read from left to right, South, East, North, West.

The precise purpose of these has remained obscure. Dr. Seler has suggested that they indicate the colors which were assigned to the four directions. This is true as far as it goes, but does not explain many of their uses. My own studies have led me to believe they are primarily “directive signs,” intended to guide the learner in the use of the calendar wheel. This was somewhat intricate, made by the superposition of two surfaces, the lower marked with the cardinal points, etc., the upper, I take it, with these directive signs. That any quarter in the native astrology could be transferred into any other, explains why they are all found with all the signs of the cardinal points.[138] My view is borne out by the Books of Chilan Balam. In this work the rotation of the time-periods is called _cuceb_, “the squirrel,” and their beginning is marked with the Fig. 66. This is identical with several variants of the North “directive sign” above; and the reason it was called _cuceb_ was that the verb _cucul_ means “to move round and round” as they did their calendar wheels.

These four directive signs occur repeatedly as affixes. They may be read, (1) ideographically: either as directions, south, east, north, west; or for colors, yellow, red, white, black; or, (2) ikonomatically: for the homonyms of the names of these colors, that is, for the other meanings of the color names. These are numerous. Thus, _kan_, yellow, also means “jewels, money, food, abundance, a rope, a hamac;” _chac_, red, may also signify “strong, water, rain, the rain god, a tempest;” _zac_, white, is also an intensive particle, “much, very,” and is close to _zacal_, to weave, a web, and _zacan_, bread; while _ek_, black, may also be translated “dark, darkness, a star, dyewood, the fat of meat.” The sign for the East, the flint knife, may as such have the values assigned above to that object (see p. 89). This, however, does not make the method so complicated as one may think, for in all rebus-writing we find the ordinary signs employed are limited to a few recognized meanings.

5. _The Hieroglyphs of the Days._

In my work on “The Native Calendar of Central America” I pointed out that the hieroglyphs of the names of the days are to be looked upon as rebuses, and therefore do not tell us the real meaning of the name given the day. They are merely the pictures of some familiar visible object or objects, the name of which has more or less similarity to the name of the day, and would serve by an ocular representation to recall it to mind. To repeat what I there said on this essential point: “It is quite misleading to seek the real meaning or derivation of a day-name or other word from the figure which represents it in the hieroglyphic writing. The latter usually stands for a word of an entirely different meaning, the only connection being a more or less similarity of sound.”[139]

It should be remembered, therefore, that some of these hieroglyphics of the day-names recur as independent characters with other than calendar significations.

1. _Kan._ The object represented is a polished stone, shell pendant, or bead, in Maya, _kan_. It was their circulating medium, and it stands for _money_, and all which that magic word conveys,—food, prosperity, abundance.[140] The dot or eye in the upper portion is the perforation by which it was strung on a cord. Others explain it as an eye (Seler); a tooth (Brasseur); a grain of maize (Schellhas).

2. _Chicchan._ The allusive design to suggest the name is supplied by the twisted threads _chich kuch_. See above, p. 96. Brasseur sees in it a petticoat, Seler a serpent’s skin, etc.

3. _Cimi._ Represented either by an eye closed as in death, _cimil_; or by the maggot (see above p. 65).

4. _Manik._ Correctly explained by Brasseur as a hand in the act of grasping, “une main qui se ferme.” Its phonetic value is not _kab_, hand, but _mach_, “to grasp” (see above p. 83).

5. _Lamat._ The figures bear a close resemblance to some of the sun signs. See Fig. 37. They seem to show the orb partly below a line—the horizon—which would give as a rebus _lamal kin_, the sunsetting; enough to recall the day name.

6. _Muluc._ The day sign _muluc_ and the month sign _mol_ have a resemblance, as do the words. The root _mol_ or _mul_ means a coming together, or piling up. The hurricane is called _molay ik_, “the winds united;” the word for religion is _umolay_, literally, “a congregation or meeting.” Both signs seem to portray one thing inside of another of the same kind, with a probable reference to the sense of the root.

7. _Oc._ Among its various meanings this word signifies “a trail” and “footprints.” Such seems the design in the first variant. Brasseur, and, following him, Seler, think that the others portray the ears of a dog, as in some Mayan dialects the dog is called _oc_. The full glyph is thus: It is of frequent occurrence in such a cartouche as shown in Fig. 67, where _a_ is the strengthened _pax_; (See p. 92), _b_, the dog sign; _c_, the haunch of venison; and _d_, the monogram of Xmucane with a vigesimal or personal prefix.

8. _Chuen._ The figure is that of a mouth, _chi_, with fangs; but as that was not very near in sound, a calabash, _chu_, is sometimes portrayed at the bottom of the circle, within. The mouth of no particular animal is intended, as is evident from allied designs; though Brasseur and Seler claim that it is of a monkey, Schellhas, of a snake, etc. The day name is close in sound to _chun_, the first, the beginning, and appears occasionally as a numeral (see above, p. 23). Piles of _chuen_ are shown as offerings, _e. g._, Cod. Dres., pp. 26, 42; Cod. Cort., p. 3. Do they mean “first fruits?”[141]

9. _Eb._ The face of an old man with a peculiar pointed ear mark. The word _eb_ means “ladder;” _ebtun_, a stone stairway; _ebzah_, to sharpen or point a flint; this last may explain the sharpened ear and dots.

10. _Ben_, or _Been_. Explained by Brasseur as showing a path, _be_; by Seler, as a mat and a straw roof. To me, it looks like a _be che_, a wooden bridge, the two supports of which are shown and which was sometimes covered with a straw mat. This rebus gives the first syllable of the name. In Tzental tradition _Been_ was the ancient hero who erected the inscribed stelæ (piedras paradas) at Quixté, near Comitan,[142] which the natives still decorate at certain times with garlands of flowers, etc.[143]

11. _Ix._ The usual figure contains a number of black dots. These suggest the word _xiix_, scattered grain husks. Seler thinks it shows “the round hairy ear and spotted skin of the jaguar.” Brasseur proposed that it conventionally portrays the feminine parts, as _ix_ is the feminine prefix in Maya.

12. _Men._ The head of an aged person, supposed by Brasseur and Seler to be Mother Earth. Sometimes it is extended worm-like, as in Fig. 43, No. 3.

13. _Cib._ Brasseur and Seler believe the enclosed spiral represents the fermented liquor, _ci_, trickling down. The “pottery decoration” (see p. 58) certainly indicates a jar or vase.

14. _Caban._ The design is that of the “cork-screw curl” of a woman, and stands for _cab_ (see p. 99).

15. _Ezanab._ The picture is of the sacrificial knife of flint, which closely corresponds with the name.

16. _Cauac._ The design shows a side face, with pendent clouds for the eye, the “windcross” for the ear, and, perhaps, as Seler thinks, the hairy mouth of the _moan_ bird. On the other hand, Rosny explains it as “the plan of a building,” and Thomas as “the sign for wood.”

17. _Ahau._ Usually considered to be the conventional drawing of a full face.

18. _Imix._ Generally regarded as representing a mammary gland, though it is not quite like those shown in the Codices. It is typical of prosperity and is often attached to the _kan_ sign. In the calendar it indicated the beginning of a time-period.[144]

19. _Ik._ The word means air, wind, breath, spirit, soul, and life. The design is a katun enclosing the sign of the four directions or four winds, the “wind-cross.” Brasseur calls it a flower, because it is sometimes shown with what looks like leaves emerging from it (Cod Tro., pp. 5*, 6*, etc.). This indicates, however, the spirit of life coming forth (or, as Seler thinks, is a sign of sacrifice; the same superfix occurs on the _kan_, Cod. Cort., p. 37, etc.).

20. _Akbal._ The word resembles _akab_, night, and is probably derived from it. The design may be that of a mouth with teeth (Brasseur, Seler), or the rays of the sun after sinking below the horizon. As a general glyph it is frequent with the signification of night and darkness, not necessarily in a bad sense.

6. _The Hieroglyphs for the Months._

These are more intricate than those of the days, and show wider variation. In the designs given below, the first on the line is from Landa’s work, the second and third are from the Dresden Codex.

1. _Pop._ The word means “a mat.” The principal element in the glyph is the south or yellow sign, referring perhaps to the color of a mat, with the alar subfix. The prefix to the first variant shows the “windcross.”

2. _Uo._ The usual meaning of this term is a prickly pear; also, a species of frog; _uooh_, a written character or letter. The prefix indicating speech (see p. 98) seems to indicate the latter. The chief element is the _mol_ sign with the night sun as a subfix.

3. _Zip._ The design shows the sun below the flint knife, that is, the slain or departed sun, a play on the phrase, _zipik kin_, the sun set (ponerse el sol, _Dicc. Motul_). The idea is strengthened by the _mac_ as a prefix, signifying “to extinguish.”

4. _Zodz._ The word means “bat,” and the design shows the head of one with the _kin_ as a superfix.

5. _Zec_, or _Tzec_. The design is explained by Brasseur as a death’s head, Maya, _tzekel_; by others, as an open mouth with teeth (compare _chuen_, p. 112). The projecting curved lines above the head are supposed by Schellhas to represent a peculiar mode of wearing the hair. But as _tzec_ means “scorpion,” they may depict conventionally the claws of that animal.[145]

6. _Xul._ The three signs are quite unlike. The first presents the conical bill of a bird of the finch or sparrow family; the second, the horned owl or the falcon (?); the third, a conventionalized bird’s head. The second may be ikonomatic for _xulub_, horns. The word _xul_ means to end or to finish; and, the end, limit, or extremity.

7. _Yaxkin._ This means “new sun” or “strong sun.” The glyph expresses this by the _yax_ sign, “new” or “strong;” the _kin_ (sun) sign and the dotted postfix, _ual_, month. According to the Dicc. Motul, the phrase _dze yax kin_ was applied by the Mayas to the hottest part of the summer.

8. _Mol._ See remarks on the day sign _muluc_, p. 111. Dr. Förstemann suggests that the above designs represent either (1) a snail in its shell, or (2) an egg with its yolk, or (3) the sun after setting. Seler holds that it shows the heart, Maya, _ol_, within the body, making a rebus for _mol_.

9. _Ch’en._ This means a spring or well of water. The second sign shows a water jar bearing the sign of fluid, with reference to the sense of the word. The first is more complex. The main element is a face with a _moan_ mouth, referring to water; for an eye the infix _u_, for month; and two prefixes, the sign of union (see p. 100), and above it what may be a variant of _ben_ (see. 113).

10. _Yax._ The feather sign _yax_ (see p. 94) is the superfix to the _cauac_ sign, which carries the postfix _ual_, month.

11. _Zac._ This word means “white,” and this is here expressed by the _cauac_ sign carrying as a superfix the north directive sign (see p. 109), as white was the color sacred to the North.

12. _Ceh._ The meaning of _ceh_ is “deer,” and the design shows the flint knife used in slaughtering that animal, placed as a superfix to the _cauac_ sign.

13. _Mac._ The first glyph represents the cover of a jar, the name of which in Maya is _mac_, thus making a perfect rebus.[146] The second, not plain, is a variant of the _kan_ or _imix_, with the “comb” subfix. In this month was celebrated the important rite of _tupp kak_, “the extinguishing of the fire,” the aim of which was to secure rain for the growing crops. The figure may refer to this.

14. _Kan kin._ This expression means “the yellow sun.” The first glyph is a perfect rebus, showing the sun sign, _kin_, and the south directive sign (see Fig. 65), which means “yellow.” The second glyph is the sign for a breast-bone, a shield, or dog (see p. 125).

15. _Muan._ The head of the _muan_ bird, the crested falcon, with his ears or horns, see p. 74.

16. _Pax._ The only or main element is the drum, _pax che_, above explained (see p. 91).

17. _Kayab._ The main element was recognized by Schellhas as the head of a turtle. In Landa’s alphabet this has the value _a_ or _ak_. It is applied as a rebus to recall the first syllable of the name.

18. _Cum ku._ The glyph in one case combines _kan_ and _cum_, with prefixes of _cauac_ and _cib_. Dr. Förstemann fancifully explains it as portraying “from one point two flashes of lightning or sun’s rays striking the maize field.” Rather, we have here the rebus _cum kan_, recalling the name, and the _cauac_ sign, which is repeated in a number of the month signs.

7. _The Hieroglyphs of the Deities._

I have already mentioned that in the texts the gods are severally represented by their signs or monograms. The credit of defining these in a clear and satisfactory manner is due almost entirely to Dr. Schellhas, and I shall here present the results of his careful studies, retaining his alphabetic nomenclature, which has in some degree been accepted by Dr. Förstemann and others.

_A._ The god of Death.

His signs are clearly established and vary but little, Nos. 1–4. Two of them are usually written. The prefix to 1 and 3 has been already referred to (see p. 84). The bean (or flint) appears as a prefix in No. 2, as a subfix in No. 3. Frequently associated with his monogram is No. 5, which Seler explains as the sign of the owl. No. 6, from Cod. Dres., p. 50, with a skull for a head-dress, may be a priest of this divinity; No. 7, from Dres., p. 22, may also be a priest or a companion.

_B._ Itzamna, or “the god with the snake-like tongue.”

His hieroglyphs are, beyond mistake, Nos. 8 and 9. The directive sign, No. 10, is occasionally associated with his monogram. In Cod. Dres., p. 33, one of his attributes is shown in No. 11, the hand closing on the rattles of the crotalus. The food symbols, Nos. 12, 13, 14, 15, are often connected with him. Some regard them as the four elements, etc.

_C._ The North Star, or “the god with the ornamental face.”

It is easy to recognize his monogram, Nos. 16, 17, 18, 19, 21. I have already explained the “pottery decoration” (above, p. 58). As prefixes, we find the bean, No. 20; the crescent, as in 21; the number 13, indicating completeness or perfection; and the vase, as in 16 and 17.

_D._ Cuculcan, “the moon god, or night god.”

The complete hieroglyph is No. 22, generally followed by No. 23. He is “the old man god,” with one tooth, as in No. 24; sometimes connected with the moon symbol as in No. 25; and often holds in his hand the aspersorium, shown in Nos. 26 and 27. See p. 105.

_E._ Ghanan, “a male maize god.”

His usual monogram is No. 28. No. 29 is a picture of the maize plant from Cod. Tro., p. 29, from which Dr. Schellhas argues that the head-dresses of this divinity, as shown in Nos. 30–34, are conventional designs for growing maize. My own collations persuade me that the maize should here be understood as a general symbol for vegetable growth, fertility, and the harvests.

_F._ The god of War, or, “a companion of the god of death.”

His hieroglyphs, shown in Nos. 35–41, often contain the number 11. The black line is characteristic. His signs appear in connection with all four cardinal points.

_G._ Kin ich, “the sun god.”

His monogram is uniform No. 42. It is the sun with the _ben ik_ superfix and alar postfix. (See p. 90). His nose ornament, No. 43, and the “flower,” No. 44, are usually distinctive of his portraits.[147]

_I._ “The serpent goddess.”

Her signs are not distinct. Dr. Schellhas believes them to be Nos. 49–51; but I cannot accept that they are intended for the same individual.

_H._ “The serpent god.”

The hieroglyph and the personage, No. 45, are doubtful. He is supposed to be shown in Cod. Dres., pp. 11, 12, 20, etc. Nos. 46 and 47, from Cod. Tro., p. 17, are also assigned him. The rattle, No. 48, appears as a hieroglyph in Cod. Dres., p. 61, and elsewhere. I doubt this deity.

_K._ “The god with the ornamented nose.”

The hieroglyph is No. 52, often accompanied by the “dog” sign, No. 53. I have already expressed the belief that this is merely one of the manifestations of Itzamna. (See p. 54.)

_L._ Ical Ahau, “a black god.”

Dr. Schellhas distinguishes between a divinity whose sign is No. 54, and “_M_,” “a second black god,” whose hieroglyph is No. 55, 56, and whose face is shown No. 57. He appears in Cod. Dres., pp. 13, 16, 43, and is common in the Cod. Tro. The sign No. 58 is occasionally associated, as in Cod. Tro., p. 5, and Cod. Cort., p. 28.

_N._ “A god with the features of an old man.”

His sign is No. 59, which may be translated “5 Zac,” and may refer to his festival on that date (Seler). His face and peculiar head-dress, with the _pax_ sign, are shown No. 60. These do not strike me as representing divinity, but simply “old age.”

_O._ “A goddess with features of an old woman” (Xmucane?). Her hieroglyphs are shown Nos. 61, 62; the latter is more frequent.

_P._ “A figure with features of an old man.”

It is seen Cod. Dres., p. 21, with the sign No. 63. It is doubtful if a deity is intended.

_Q._ “An isolated deity.”

Shown Cod. Dres., p. 20, with the signs Nos. 64 and 65; probably a mere personage.

_R._ The _moan_ bird.

He is often associated with the god of death, and bears the hieroglyphs Nos. 66–69, sometimes with the 13.

_S._ No. 70 is the usual hieroglyph of the dog, and _T_, No. 71, is that of the vulture.

_U._ No. 72 is the sign of the jaguar, as seen in Cod. Tro., p. 17, and in Cod. Dres., pp. 8, 26.

_V._ The turtle or tortoise. Its monogram is seen Nos. 73, 74, 75. It is the _a_ of Landa’s alphabet. There is no doubt but that the turtle’s head and not that of the parrot is intended, though some have thought otherwise.

-----

Footnote 101:

“The Ancient Phonetic Alphabet of Yucatan,” in the _American
Historical Magazine_, for 1870.

Footnote 102:

A notable exception to this, commented on by de Rosny, is seen on
pages 18 and 19 of the _Codex Peresianus_. Why the rule should be
reversed in those sections is still a problem.

Footnote 103:

_Study of the MS. Troano_, Preface, p. viii.

Footnote 104:

Alfredo Chavero, _Antiguedades Mexicanas_, p. xi (Mexico, 1892). The
_Codex Porfirio Diaz_ must be read from right to left.

Footnote 105:

D. G. Brinton, “The Alphabets of the Berbers” in _Proceedings of the
Oriental Club of Philadelphia_, p. 64 (Philadelphia, 1894).

Footnote 106:

For instances, the numerals in connection with the snakes in Cod.
Dres., pp. 61–64, and 69–73, are to be read from right to left, and
from below upward, beginning at the last page of the series, and
proceeding toward the left on the extended sheet. Förstemann,
_Entzifferung_, No. II, 1891.

Footnote 107:

In the _Archives de la Société Américaine de France_, for 1887, pp.
27, 28, 113, etc.

Footnote 108:

In this connection I would call the especial attention of students to
the article by Dr. Schellhas, “Vergleichende Studien auf dem Felde der
Maya-Alterthümer,” in the _Internationales Archiv für Ethnographie_,
1890. He there illustrates their methods of tattooing, wearing the
hair, personal ornaments, costumes, utensils, etc., as shown in the
Codices and other remains.

Footnote 109:

On the interpretation of these and allied signs the student should
consult Garrick Mallery, _Sign Language among the North American
Indians_, in _Rep. of the Bureau of Ethnology_, Vol. 1, and W. P.
Clark, _The Indian Sign Language_ (Philadelphia, 1885). It is not
possible for me here to give more than the most meager details on this
important topic.

Footnote 110:

Bird’s wing in Maya is _xik_. Close in sound is _xikal_, queen (señora
principal, _Dicc. Motul_). The first wing feather was also called “a
knife” (la primera pluma de la ala del halcon se llama “cuchillo
maestre,” “_u cicil ulum_.” _Dicc. de San Francisco_).

Footnote 111:

In the museum of the University of Pennsylvania there is a beautiful
vase from Guatemala, with a vitrified surface; on it a face and head,
with a necklace entirely of this sign, repeated in a pattern.

Footnote 112:

“_Tup_; ciertas arracadas de palo antiguas; y llamanse ahora las
arracadas ó zarcillos.” _Dicc. Motul._

Footnote 113:

In Maya a comb is _xel_. This as a verb means “to cut in two;” and as
a numeral prefix it divides in half unities less than 20; as _xel u
yox kinbe_, “two-and-a-half-day journeys.” Ikonomatically, the comb
sign may have these significations. Landa gives it as the sign for
_ca_, perhaps, as Valentini suggests, for _cac_, to pull out hair.

Footnote 114:

_Uil_ also means anything favorable or advantageous—“cosa provechosa,”
_Dic. Motul_. The word _u_ never means “vase,” as Prof. Thomas has
repeatedly stated, following the unreliable Brasseur.

Footnote 115:

“Los navajones para los sacrificios, de los quales tenian buen recaudo
los sacerdotes,” p. 107, Ed. Madrid.

Footnote 116:

_Relacion de la Villa de Valladolid_ (1579), Chap. XIV. I am aware
that some variants of this glyph have a striking resemblance to a
_penis flaccidus cum testiculis_; but after close comparison I have
rejected this rendering. Thomas sees in the two shells “tortillas.”

Footnote 117:

_Cosas de Yucatan_, p. 112 (Ed. Madrid). What looks like the _kan_
sign below it is the strap which fastens it.

Footnote 118:

Mr. Marshall H. Saville, in a paper published in the _Journal of
American Folk-lore_, September, 1894, and stated to have been read
before the American Association the preceding month, entitled “A
Comparative Study of the Graven Glyphs of Copan and Quirigua,”
observes of the design of the _paxche_ that it “is probably a drum.”
No expression to this effect was in the paper as read before the
Association, and in the following number of the Journal Mr. Saville
concedes that I was the first to offer this identification.

Footnote 119:

Duran: _Hist. de las Indias_, Trat. I, Lam. 29; Trat. II, Lam. 6.

Footnote 120:

I quote the explanation from the _Dicc. de Motul_,—“_Paxaan_: cosa que
esta quebrada, como vasija, cabeza, barco, etc.; cosa que esta
desparecida; _paaxan in cab_, huido se me han mis abejas; _paaxan in
cuchtel_, _paaxan in cahal_, despoblado se me ha el pueblo, ido se me
ha mi gente. Y asi se puede decir de muchachos, de hormigas, humo,
niebla, nublados, dolor de cabeza, de la voluntad, etc., anadiendose
al _paaxan_ el nombre de la cosa.” In a similar sense the phrases
_paaxal yit caan_, “the edge of the sky is broken,” _paaxal u chun
caan_, “the beginning of the sky is broken,” are translated, “reir el
alba, venir el dia, ò amanecer asi.”

Footnote 121:

In the Tzental dialect the drum entirely of wood was called _culinte_;
that with a skin stretched across it, _cayob_. Lara, _Vocabulario
Tzental_, MS.

Footnote 122:

A similar design is found on Mexican shields, _e. g._, _Lienzo de
Tlascala_, plate 12, _Cod. Porf. Diaz._, lam. s. and on the curious
sculptures at Monte Alvan, Oaxaca, figured in Captain Dupaix’s Second
Expedition, plate 21, in Kingsborough’s _Mexican Antiquities_.

Footnote 123:

Probably the “morriones de madera,” to which early writers allude as
part of the armor of a Maya warrior.

Footnote 124:

“Torcer hilo con huso; _chich kuch_. Hilo torcido; _chichin bil
kuch_.” _Dicc. de Motul._ Meanings of _chich_, are: “strong, swift,
hard, violent,” also “grandmother.”

Footnote 125:

Father Ximenes speaks of the “asiento del rey;” “tenia un docel de
pluma; sobre el guarda polvo, tenia cielos de diversos colores, tres,
dos, etc.” _Origen de los Indios de Guatemala_, p. 196. The symbol is
therefore one of power and authority, rather than of a mere inanimate
object.

Footnote 126:

See Antonio Peñafiel, _Nombres Geograficos de Mexico; Estudio
Jeroglifico_, passim (Mexico, 1885). I would especially recommend this
easily obtainable work to the student who would familiarize himself
with the method of “ikonomatic” writing as it was used by the ancient
Mexicans. Another series of admirable examples are in the “Lienzo de
Tlascala,” published by the Junta Colombina (Mexico, 1892), under the
editorship of the distinguished antiquary, Don Alfredo Chavero.

Footnote 127:

_Nagualism; a Study in Native American Folk-lore and History_, p. 20,
note. Sometimes water was used, when the word in Maya is _puhaa_, “to
blow water,” and is translated in the dictionaries, “rociar con la
boca.”

Footnote 128:

Mallery: _Picture Writing of the American Indians_, p. 700. The double
curves that we see on the snake, Cod. Cort., p. 15, etc., I construe
as the sign of the sky. The expression in Maya was _u nak caan_, “la
boveda del cielo;” literally, the “belly” of the sky.

Footnote 129:

The transformation of the human into the arboreal form and its
opposite are frequently referred to in the myths and pictography of
the red race. Some interesting observations upon this point, by the
Rev. S. D. Peet, may be found in the _American Antiquarian_, for
September, 1894.

Footnote 130:

See the Codex Borgia, plates 8, 16, 17, 18, 19; Cod. Vaticanus, plate
65; Cod. Colomb., Lam. 5, 17; Cod. Vienna, pp. 18, 37, etc.; and
consult Pousse in _Arch. de la Soc. Amer._, 1887, p. 102; Schellhas,
_Zeitschrift für Ethnologie_, 1886, p. 53.

Footnote 131:

Dr. Harrison Allen: _An Analysis of the Life Form in Art_, p. 37
(Philadelphia, 1875); A. P. Maudslay: _Biol. Cent. Amer. Archæology_,
Part II, plate 23, etc.

Footnote 132:

Mr. E. P. Dieseldorff, in a description of a very beautiful decorated
vase from the vale of Chamá, Guatemala, says that fans were not in use
among the natives, and that the object in the paintings usually
identified as such is a “soplador,” or fire-blower, made of woven palm
leaves, and still found in every house. _Verhand. der Berliner
Anthrop. Gesell._, 1894, p. 374.

Footnote 133:

“Tenian cierto azofar blando y con alguna poca mezcla de oro, de que
hazian las hachuelas de fundicion y unos cascabelejos con que vaylavan
y una cierta manera de escoplillos con que hazian los idolos.”
_Relacion de Yucatan_, p. 107. (Madrid edition.)

Footnote 134:

_U hadz muyal_, literally, “its blow, the cloud.” Another figure which
seems to indicate the same is the broad, pointed object seen in the
hands of deities. Cod. Cort., p. 28; Cod. Tro., pp. 29, 30, 38, 39. It
is the same as the Nahuatl _tlauitequiliztli_, portrayed in the hands
of Tlaloc, in plate 70, of Boban’s _Catalogue Raisonné_ of the Goupil
collection.

Footnote 135:

The name is from _lil_, to sprinkle, _haa_, water, and _bal_, the
instrumental termination. The _Relacion de la Villa de Valladolid_,
1579, cap. xiv, says: “el ahkin llevaba un hisopo, atado en el muchas
colas de vibora y culebras ponzoñosas.”

Footnote 136:

The _Atlatl or Spear Thrower of the Ancient Mexicans_. By Zelia
Nuttall (Cambridge, Mass., 1891).

Footnote 137:

See Cod. Dres., p. 50. Precisely the same design recurs in the
(Mexican) Codex Borgia, published in Kingsborough’s _Mexican
Antiquities_. No. 11 is also a Mexican calendar sign (Gama).

Footnote 138:

I hesitated some time to assign the flint knife to the East, but
believe the evidence is in its favor. As Chavero has pointed out
(_Antiguedades Mexicanas_, p. xxxv), in Mexican symbolism, the
_tecpatl_ belongs decidedly to the West.

Footnote 139:

_The Native Calendar of Mexico and Central America_, p. 4
(Philadelphia, 1893).

Footnote 140:

“_Kan_: cuzcas ò piedras que servian à los indios de moneda y de
adorno al cuello.” _Dicc. de Motul._ I owe this identification to my
late friend, Dr. C. H. Berendt, a profound Maya scholar. Its
correctness will be confirmed by examining Cod. Cort., p. 12. Cod.
Dres., p. 48, etc. This circulating medium of the Mayas is mentioned
in the _Relacion de Valladolid_, 1579, cap. 33. In purchasing a wife
the expression was _ah coy kan_, “he who must pay _kans_,” as these
were the consideration. (_Dicc. Motul._) Other meanings of _kan_ are:
yellow, and hence ripe fruit, the yolk of an egg, cooked maize, etc.;
anything precious or valuable; a measure of length; a set task; a net,
and to fish or hunt with one.

Footnote 141:

Variants of the _chuen_ are extremely frequent in the mural
inscriptions, and its correct interpretation, therefore, highly
important. As stated in the text, I believe they generally stand for
_chun_, which means “the foundation, the beginning, the first, the
cause.” We find such expressions as _tu chun che_, “at the foot of the
tree;” _tu chun uitz_, “at the base of the hill,” etc. In Tzental,
_chu_ is the teat or mamma, _chunel_, to suck the teat. In many
inscriptions the position of the _chun_ is antithetic to the _pax_,
the one indicating the beginning, the other the end of a series.

Footnote 142:

Nuñez de la Vega, _Constituciones Diocesanas_, p. 10. The story was
that Been inscribed his own name upon them. I have not ascertained
that this locality has been examined by modern travelers. It might
offer valuable material.

Footnote 143:

E. Pineda, _Descripcion Geografica de Chiapas_, pp. 7, 8.

Footnote 144:

See Förstemann, _Entzifferung_, IV, S. 15.

Footnote 145:

Seler observes, on doubtful premises,—“_Tzec_ scheint der Zermalmer zu
bedeuten.”

Footnote 146:

“_Mac_, tapa de vasija.” The opinion of Allen that the sign represents
the extended arms, the “great span,” is inappropriate. The measure
called _mac_ was much greater (doce brazas, Pio Perez). Another
meaning of _mac_ is the sea turtle and its shell (galapago y concha
del).

Footnote 147:

Dr. Seler, in _Zeitschrift für Ethnologie_, 1891, p. 111, gives
another monogram for Kin ich—the _cauac_, with the “blowing” prefix
(see p. 98) and the “machete” subfix.

V. Specimens of Texts.

In the selection of the following texts I have been guided principally by the desire to illustrate Mayan palæography as presented on different surfaces, paper, stone, earthenware, etc., and as it is found in the various regions occupied by tribes of Mayan culture and affinity. Some of the examples have not been previously published, and for this reason have a special value.

Fig. 68 I would explain as the god of time bringing in the dead year. It is part of the ceremonies depicted as belonging to the close of the year. That the wolf-headed figure represents time, the Devourer, I infer from its relations in the early pages of the Ferjevary Codex, where it is shown eating a string of days, etc. (in Kingsborough’s _Mexican Antiquities_).

These ceremonies are represented in the Cod. Troano, pp. 20–23, and the Cod. Dres., pp. 25–28. The recognition of their significance is principally due to Prof. Cyrus Thomas.

The god arrives in the vase of the heavenly waters. In his left hand he holds the rattle, in his right the magic wand, or magician’s staff, _caluac_, and the medicine bag (Maya _chimil_, Nahuatl, _xiquipilli_); around his waist is the broad carrying-band, in the loop of which he has the dying year, _kan_.

In Fig. 69 is another scene from the same ceremonies. The person on the right is the celebrant, holding a beheaded fowl in his right hand, while his left strews grain. Before him is a haunch of venison and a turkey. Above the latter is the moon symbol with the number 15. To the left of these stands the statue of Mam, the Grandfather, a log folded in a robe and surmounted by the leaves of the Tree of Life.[148] In front are seen the serpent’s head, the sign of Time; below this are footprints, to indicate that time is gone; and beneath the form of the god is the sign _pax_, with the meaning, “it is ended.”

In interesting contrast to these two is Fig. 70, showing the beginning of a time-period. On the left, two dogs, back to back beneath the same canopy, indicate the closing of one period and the beginning of another. On the right, the serpent of time, resting on the earth, brings to the heavens the new sun. The youthful god between the serpent’s jaws carries the world-sign for an eye, and holds in his hand the symbol _yax kin_, “new sun.” Above are appropriate hieroglyphs, the tenor of which the diligent student of my previous pages will have little difficulty in catching.

In Fig. 71 the God of Growth and Fertility holds an elaborate _caluac_ surmounted by a bird, its apertures filled with shells. Behind him is seated the God of Death, his _caluac_ tipped with a formidable spear-head. The God of Growth has not his own monogram, but that of the old Cuculcan.

When we recall that the shell is the sign for “nought,” the indication seems that the God of Death with his spear will bring to nought the efforts of the God of Fertility.

We see in Fig. 72 the North Star in a series of relations to other celestial bodies or divinities. Beginning at the left, he is seated on his own sign which is surrounded by rays; next, he is upon the sign of the four winds and four quarters of the earth; in the third he is suspended in a sling from the “constellation band” between the sun and a planet; and fourth, he is above the clouds, which rest upon a canopy protecting a pile of _kans_, money or food emblems.

The three figures in Fig. 73 present the beneficent deities, each bearing in the hand the food symbol, _kan_.

The group copied in Fig. 74, show the God of Death followed by Kin ich, who seems remonstrating with him, who in turn is followed by the God of War with a wrathful visage. The positions of the hands are especially noteworthy. The sign _mol_ leads each of the cartouches.

In Fig. 75 Cuculcan is making fire from the friction of two pieces of wood. On his head is the _moan_ symbol, on his thigh the _kin_. Each of the three cartouches begins with the drum sign. His own monogram is the third member of the second cartouche.

In Fig. 76 the text is the same in each of the three cartouches except the monograms of the three divinities represented.

In Fig. 77 each cartouche begins with _mol_, and is immediately followed by the monogram of the god. The lower glyphs differ materially.

All the above specimens of texts have been photographed from the Codices, without restoration. They show, therefore, not only the general character of those documents, but also their state of preservation. In many instances the pages have been defaced, and portions of the inscriptions upon them injured. Sometimes it is possible to restore the obliterations by a comparison of parallel passages, and this has been done successfully by various scholars.

The extracts have been selected also with the object of showing the representations of the most prominent deities, Itzamna, Kin ich, Cuculcan, the God of Death, etc., in the manner in which we find them in the Codices.

In this interesting inscription from Central Yucatan, we recognize familiar signs, as the medicine-drum and the cloud-signs at the bottom, and _cauac_, _chikin_, _yax_, etc., within the square area. It is sufficient to prove that at Kabah the same writing was in use.[149]

There is some reason to suppose, however, that in this part of the Mayan territory there had been a development of this writing until it had become conventionalized into a series of lines and small circles enclosed in the usual square or oval of the katun. I have seen several examples of this remarkable script, and give one, Fig. 79, part of an inscription on a vase from Labna, Yucatan, now in the Peabody Museum.[150]

The tablets at Palenque are too extensive a study for me to enter upon in the present work. The engraving, Fig. 80, is merely to show the character of the writing and to present the “initial glyphs,” upon which, in Copan and elsewhere, Mr. Maudslay lays so much stress (see above, p. 23).

Incidentally, they seem to me to prove that the proper reading of the tablet is to begin at the top of the two right-hand columns, read them together downward (as Thomas suggested), then the next two to the left in a similar manner; but the last two on the left, those headed by the great _pax_, should be read from below upward. This differs from any scheme yet proposed, but alone corresponds with the natural sequences of the groups of glyphs. The terminal (upper left) glyph shows the _pax_ surmounted by the _xihuitl_ and this by the “trinal” signs. The student of the preceding pages will not be at a loss to explain their purport.

I have already referred (above, p. 54) to the singular “bas-reliefs of Chiapas.” They are covered with elaborate designs carved in low relief on the argillaceous slate of which they consist. Nearly all have hieroglyphics of a decorative Mayan character. For the sake of comparison I add Fig. 81, a tracing of the four glyphs which are placed in front of the tapir on the “tapir tablet.”

The interesting group, Fig. 82, is the most complete example of the ancient writing I know of, from the region of the Zotzils. The original, formerly in the possession of Don Secundino Orantes, in the city of Chiapas, measures 26 by 17 inches. The front is badly injured, but the back well preserved. We find in this cartouche of twenty glyphs enough familiar forms to convince us of the identity of the graphic method. _Pax_, _chuen_, the iguana, etc., are soon recognized. The copy was made by the late Dr. C. H. Berendt.

Toniná is about 80 miles south of Palenque and near Ococingo, whence Mr. Squier obtained the amulet bearing the neat inscription shown in Fig. 83. The original is now in the American Museum of Natural History, New York City.

The beautiful inscription, Fig. 84, hitherto unpublished, is on a burial vase from the Quiche district of Guatemala, near Huehuetenango. It is not only the longest and most perfect example known of Quiche palæography, but it is also the most extensive inscription I have seen on pottery from any part of the Mayan territory. The original, a vase of high artistic merit, is in the Museum of the University of Pennsylvania. Again we see familiar signs, the _imix_, the _pax_, the numerals, the bean subfix, etc.

* * * * *

The limits which I have prescribed for this work do not permit me to add further comparisons in Mayan palæography. Fortunately, the student can find ready access to abundant examples. The inscriptions of Copan and Quiriguá, of Chichen Itza, and Palenque, are or will be represented with admirable fidelity in Mr. Maudslay’s work already referred to; others from Tikal have been made accessible by the labors of Berendt, Charnay and de Rosny; and we are justified in believing that before many years the intelligent explorations of competent archæologists will add hundreds of texts from the relics in stone, clay, and wood which still exist to attest the character of ancient Mayan literature.

* * * * *

The most urgent duty resting upon the present generation of students interested in this subject is to collect and accurately reproduce as many of these texts as possible, before they are destroyed or lost. Extended comparisons will ultimately reveal their meaning, as will readily be seen from the advances in that direction chronicled in the preceding pages.

-----

Footnote 148:

See Cogolludo: _Historia de Yucatan_, Tom. I, p. 317.

Footnote 149:

This inscription, painted on stucco, was copied by H. F. Becker and
printed in the _Archives de la Société Américaine de France_. See de
Rosny, _L’Interpretation des anciens Textes_ Mayas, p. 12., note
(Paris, 1875).

Footnote 150:

Another example is in the Thompson collection, and a third, somewhat
similar, also from a vase from Yucatan (now in Berlin), has been
published by Dr. Schellhas, _Internat. Archiv. für Ethnographie_, 1890
(p. 3 of his separatum).

I. INDEX-VOCABULARY OF MAYA WORDS.

(T. _signifies the Tzental dialect_.)

_ac_, a tortoise, or turtle, 35, 74

_acan_, mead, 42

_ac ek_, a constellation, 35

_aghan_, T., young ear of maize, 62

_ahau_, ruler, lord, 41; a day name, 115

_ahau can_, rattlesnake, 68, 75

_ahau can mai_, chief priest, 68

_ahau katun_, 22

_ahau tzab can_, the rattlesnake, 75

_ah-caluac_, the staff bearer, the mayordomo, 52

_ah-ch’om_, a vulture, 73

_ah-chun can_, high priest, 68

_ah-coy-can_, v. p. 110, note

_ah-cunal than_, word-conjurer, 68

_ah-kin_, priest, 68

_ah-kin-mai_, chief priest, 68

_ah koh-keuel_, a masked priest, 69

_ahlo_, the macaw, 73

_ah-mac ik_, wind conjurer, 68

_ah-poou_, the milky way, 35

_ah-pul_, a conjurer, 68

_ah-uai-chac_, rain conjurer, 68

_ah-uai xibalba_, conjurer of departed souls, 68

_ah-zahcab_, Venus, 34

_akbal_, night, darkness, 56; a day name, 116

_alau_ (64,000,000), 19

_anhel_, to stand erect, 46

_bacab_, 40

_bac-baquetic_, a numeral, 19

_balam_, the jaguar, 72

_bak_, four hundred, 19