The Mexican Calendar contains divisions as follows: The age, called huehuetiliztli, embraced two cycles of fifty-two years each, thus equalizing one hundred and four years. The cycle of fifty-two years was named xiuhmolpilli, xiuhmolpia, and xiuhtlalpilli, signifying the “binding up of the years” and consisted of four periods of thirteen years each. These periods or indictions were called “knots,” while the single years were called xihuitl or “new grass,” because anciently, before the invention of the calendar, the Nahuas were only able to distinguish the revolution of the years by the annual appearance of fresh vegetation and new grass. The age was but little used, the cycle being the common measure for long periods. The years in a given cycle were designated as among the Mayas, by means of the consecutive rotation of four signs, each accompanied with a numeral. The signs were tochtli, “rabbit”; acatl, “cane”; tecpatl, “flint,” and calli, “house.” The following table illustrates the rotation occurring in one cycle:
| 1st Tlalpilli. | 2d Tlalpilli. | 3d Tlalpilli. | 4th Tlalpilli. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Names of Years. | Names of Years Translated. | Names of Years. | Names of Years Translated. | Names of Years. | Names of Years Translated. | Names of Years. | Names of Years Translated. |
| Ce Tochtli | 1. Rabbit. | Ce Acatl | 1. Cane. | Ce Tecpatl | 1. Flint. | Ce Calli | 1. House. |
| Ome Acatl | 2. Cane. | Ome Tecpatl | 2. Flint. | Ome Calli | 2. House. | Ome Tochtli | 2. Rabbit |
| Yey Tecpatl | 3. Flint. | Yey Calli | 3. House. | Yey Tochtli | 3. Rabbit. | Yey Acatl | 3. Cane. |
| Nahui Calli | 4. House. | Nahui Tochtli | 4. Rabbit. | Nahui Acatl | 4. Cane. | Nahui Tecpatl | 4. Flint. |
| Macuilli Tochtli | 5. Rabbit. | Macuilli Acatl | 5. Cane. | Macuilli Tecpatl | 5. Flint. | Macuilli Calli | 5. House. |
| Chicoace Acatl | 6. Cane. | Chicoace Tecpatl | 6. Flint. | Chicoace Calli | 6. House | Chicoace Tochtli | 6. Rabbit. |
| Chicome Tecpatl | 7. Flint. | Chicome Calli | 7. House. | Chicome Tochtli | 7. Rabbit. | Chicome Acatl | 7. Cane. |
| Chico y Calli | 8. House. | Chico y Tochtli | 8. Rabbit. | Chico y Acatl | 8. Cane. | Chico y Tecpatl | 8. Flint. |
| Chico Nahui Tochtli | 9. Rabbit. | Chico Nahui Acatl | 9. Cane. | Chico Nahui Tecpatl | 9. Flint. | Chico Nahui Calli | 9. House. |
| Matlactli Acatl | 10. Cane. | Matlactli Tecpatl | 10. Flint. | Matlactli Calli | 10. House. | Matlactli Tochtli | 10. Rabbit. |
| Matlactli occe Tecpatl | 11. Flint. | Matlactli occe Calli | 11. House. | Matlactli occe Tochtli | 11. Rabbit. | Matlactli occe Acatl | 11. Cane. |
| Matlactli omome Calli | 12. House. | Matlactli omome Tochtli | 12. Rabbit. | Matlactli omome Acatl | 12. Cane. | Matlactli omome Tecpatl | 12. Flint. |
| Matlactli omey Tochtli | 13. Rabbit. | Matlactli omey Acatl | 13. Cane. | Matlactli omey Tecpatl | 13. Flint. | Matlactli omey Calli | 13. House. |
As in the Maya rotation of years no confusion could occur, so with the Mexican, as the same combination could be made only once in fifty-two years. The cycles themselves were distinguished by numbers. Confusion is liable to arise in studying the early writers, since the Toltecs and Aztecs began their reckoning on different signs, the former on Tecpatl, and the latter on Tochtli. The year consisted of eighteen months of twenty days each, to which were added five days called nemontemi or “unlucky days.” Every superstition seemed to centre in the nemontemi, for no business of importance nor enterprise of the most insignificant character would be undertaken upon these days. Both the names of the months and the particular month which served to begin the year, as well as the date of the first day of the year, have been fruitful subjects of controversy between authors. Mr. Bancroft has tabulated the names given by twenty-one writers, and shown the disagreements existing between them.[635] The dates for the first day of the year range between the ninth of January and the tenth of April. Gama, Humboldt and Gallatin, by careful calculations, have shown that the first year of a Nahua cycle commenced on the thirty-first day of December, old style, or on the ninth day of January, new style, with the month Titill and the day Cipactli.[636]
The names and order of the months, together with their etymologies, as adopted by Mr. Bancroft, are as follows: 1. Titill, meaning “our mother,” according to Boturini, or “fire,” according to Cabrera; 2. Itzcalli, translated “regeneration” by Boturini, “skill” by the Codex Vaticanus, and the “sprouting of the grass” by Veytia; 3. Atlcahualco, meaning the “abating of the waters.” Another name (Quahuillehua) applied to this month signified “burning of the mountains,” referring to the forests; 4. Tlacaxipehualiztli, is translated “the flaying of the people.” Another name applied to this month, Cohuailhuitl, means the “feast of the snake”; 5. Tozoztontli is rendered “small fast” or “penance”; 6. Hueytozoztli, means “great fast” or “penance”; 7. Toxcatl, a “necklace”; 8. Etzalqualiztli, “bean stew” or “maize gruel”; 9. Tecuilhuitzintli, “small feast of the Lord”; 10. Hueytecuilhuitl, “great feast of the Lord”; 11. Miccailhuitzintli, translated “small feast of the dead”; 12. Hueymiccailhuitl, “great feast of the dead”; 13. Ochpaniztli, “cleaning of the streets”; 14. Teotleco, “arrival of the gods.” The names Pachtli, “moss hanging from trees,” and Pachtontli, “humiliation,” were often applied to this month; 15. Hueypachtli, “great feast of humiliation,” sometimes called Tepeilhuitl, “feast of the mountains”; 16. Quecholli, “peacock”; 17. Panquetzuliztli, “the raising of flags and banners”; 18. Atemoztli, means the “drying up of the waters.”
The month, consisting of twenty days, was divided into four weeks of five days each. Mr. Bancroft states that each of the weeks began with one of the four signs—Tochtli, Calli, Tecpatl or Acatl, used to designate the years; but his own engraving of the Aztec month, and the order of the days on the Calendar-Stone, contradict this statement.[637] The following are the days in their proper order, with their translations affixed: 1. Cipactli, “sea-animal,” “sword-fish,” or “serpent with harpoons.” 2. Ehacatl, “wind.” 3. Calli, “house.” 4. Cuetzpalin, “lizard.” 5. Coatl, “snake.” 6. Miquiztli, “death.” 7. Mazatl, “deer.” 8. Tochtli, “rabbit.” 9. Atl, “water.” 10. Itzcuintli, “dog.” 11. Ozomatli, “monkey.” 12. Mollinalli, “brushwood” or “tangled grass.” 13. Acatl, “cane.” 14. Ocelotl, “tiger.” 15. Quanhtli, “eagle.” 16. Cozcaquauhtli, “vulture.” 17. Ollin, “movement.” 18. Tecpatl, “flint.” 19. Quahuitl, “rain.” 20. Xochitl, “flower.”
The day was divided into sixteen hours.[638] Sahagun and several authors state that the loss of six hours in each Aztec year was counterbalanced by the addition of a day every four years. Gama demonstrates this to be a mistake, and states that they added twelve and a half days at the close of every cycle of fifty-two years. Mr. Bancroft cites this fact, and states the time added to have been thirteen days.[639]
The Nahuas had also a ritual calendar, for the purpose of reckoning their religious feasts, which was altogether different from the civil system, except that it employed the twenty days, the year of 365 days, and at the end of a cycle added the thirteen days to compensate for the time lost during that period.[640] The year consisted of two parts, the first composed of twenty weeks of thirteen days each (for there were no months in the ritual year) making 260 altogether. This portion of the year was called Meztli pohualli or the “lunar computation,” from the fact that half of the time during which the moon is visible is thirteen days. The smaller part, composed of 105 days reckoned by a continuation of the periods of thirteen days, was called Toualpohualli or “solar computation.”[641] The days were numbered from one up to thirteen, the fourteenth day of the first solar month being counted the first of another lunar week, and thus the reckoning continued. However, it will be observed that the same number would fall twice on one name in the course of a year; accordingly accompanying signs were provided for the regular names of days. The duplication could not occur if the second division embraced 104 days instead of 105.
The distinguishing signs were nine in number, called quecholli, “lords of the night.” They were as follows: Tletl, “fire”; Tecpatl, “flint”; Xochitl, “flower”; Centeotl, “goddess of maize”; Miquiztli, “death”; Atl, “water”; Tlazolteotl, “goddess of love”; Tepeyollotli, “a mountain deity”; Quiahuitl, “rain,” the god Tlaloc. The lords of the night, though reckoned from the first of the year, were not mentioned except in connection with the 105 days of the second division.
The reader will more clearly understand the relation of the two systems to each other by constructing a table of four parallel columns. In the left-hand column place the months of one year, numbering the days of each month in order, but beginning on the ninth day of January. In the second column place the names of the Mexican months, numbering the days of each month from one to twenty in regular order. In the third column place the names of the Mexican days, twenty in number, repeating them in their regular rotation throughout the year, but in addition prefix to the names such numerals as will fall opposite to each in the process of dividing them off into thirteens. These divisions into thirteens represent the ritual weeks. Acatl being the 13th day of the month will end the first week of the year, and Ocelotl being the 14th day of the month will constitute the 1st day of the second week. In the fourth column place the nine signs of the “lords of the night” in regular order. Divide the year into periods of nines, and it will be found that the same combination of days of the month (twenty days), of days of the week (thirteen days), and the “lords of the night,” will not recur for a considerable period.
The most remarkable embodiment of this complex system is found in the symbols and concentric zones graven upon the face of the Calendar Stone, described in the last chapter. The interpretation of its mysterious disk was partly accomplished by the learned antiquarian Leon y Gama; Gallatin, and after him Bancroft presented those investigations to the public. In 1875 (Nov.), Don Alfredo Chevero, of the Liceo Hidalgo of Mexico, published his Calendario Azteca, in which it was shown that many of Gama’s interpretations would have to be abandoned. It was proven that the “Calendar Stone” was a sun-disk or stone of sacrifice, and that Gama had pursued his investigations with a mistaken view of its character. Chevero’s account of the history of the stone is full and satisfactory, Duran being the authority cited. An interpretation of some of the concentric zones, two in particular, is attempted with a result somewhat different from that obtained by any other investigator. Recently, Prof. Ph. Valentini, by the light of his extensive researches into Nahua literature, has compelled the sun-disk to give up its secrets. The illustration on the preceding page is a reproduction of a pen-and-ink drawing made by the Professor from the most recent and correct photograph which has been made of the Calendar Stone. It was kindly furnished for this work. The same conclusion concerning the character of the stone was reached independently by both Chevero and Valentini. The latter’s account of the stone and its history is drawn from Tezozomoc, and though agreeing in the main facts with Duran’s account as rendered by Chevero, bears the evidence upon its face of independent research.[642] The originality of Prof. Valentini is vindicated in his masterly interpretation of all the zones of the Calendar Stone. Whether the interpretation will ever give way to some other is a question of the future, though it is probable that it will not.