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34. A Possible Lunar Series on the Leyden Plate (1944)
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119 N o t e s o f M i d d l e A m e r i c a n A r c h a e o l o g y a n d E t h n o l o g y Carnegie Institution of Washington Division of Historical Research No. 34 May 15, 1944 A Possible Lunar Series on the Leyden Plate Karl-Heinz Nottebohm from 9.4.0.0.0, the moon age of which is recorded as 13 days on Stela 6, Tikal, gives a moon age from the Initial Series of the Leyden Plate of 27.5 days. The absence of a coefficient with the supposed Glyph C would indicate that a new moon was recorded. Teeple has shown that there may be an error of two or three days in these observations. It is therefore plausible that GlyphsA7b upper and lower state that the Initial Series was that of a new moon, and that that moon was the first of the group. The lower part of Glyph A8a is the so-called sky sign; the upper part is indistinct. This glyph should correspond to Glyph X of the Lunar Series. It contains elements of Form 6. Glyph A8b upper displays prominently the bone element which is a feature of Glyph B of the Lunar Series. This glyph should occupy this position immediately after Glyph X. The elbow element, however, is not present. Glyph A8b lower should, if our thesis is correct, be Glyph A of the Lunar Series. It must, however, be admitted that the usual features of that glyph are not discernible. Nevertheless, the material, as a whole, supports the identification of these glyphs as a Lunar Series. guateMala city Little attention has been paid to ‘the glyphs on the Leyden Plate following the record of Glyph G5 and Yaxkin in A7a. It is, however, quite probable that the remaining glyphs form a Lunar Series. Because of the positions of Glyph G5 and Yaxkin, I assume that the four sections comprising each of the two remaining glyph blocks are to be read in the sequence A7a upper, A7a lower, A7b upper, and A7b lower, and then the A8 block in the same order. There are, of course, many precedents for this manner of reading divided glyph blocks. A7b upper and A7b lower are quite similar. The element to the right of Alb lower is the moon symbol, and it is probable that the corresponding element in Alb-upper is the same. I suggest that the rather similar elements to the left of both signs represent hands. In that case the glyphs should represent Glyphs C and D of the Lunar Series, both without coefficients. The moon age corresponding to the Initial Series, 8.14.3.1.12, 1 Eb 5 Yaxkin, can be calculated from 8.16.0.0.0, the moon age of which is given as 25 days on Stela 18, Uaxactun. The interval is 13288 days, which is 450 moons and 1.2 days, indicating a moon age for 8.14.3.1.12 of 26.2 days. A similar calculation ...