Fig. 64.—The Signs for the Cardinal Points.
Another series of signs are intimately associated with these. They are shown Fig. [65], and read from left to right, South, East, North, West.
Fig. 65.—The “Directive Signs.”
Fig. 66.—The “Cuceb.”
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.