Mexican and Central American antiquities, calendar systems, and history; (1904) (14804473403)

Identifier: mexicancentralam28bowd (find matches)
Title: Mexican and Central American antiquities, calendar systems, and history;
Year: 1904 (1900s)
Authors: Bowditch, Charles P(ickering), 1842- (from old catalog) ed Seler, Eduard, 1849-1922 Förstemann, Ernst Wilhelm, 1822-1906 Schellhas, Paul, 1859- (from old catalog) Sapper, Karl Theodor, 1866- (from old catalog) Dieseldorff, Erwin P. (from old catalog) Wesselhoeft, Selma, (from old catalog) tr Parker, Alberta M., (from old catalog) tr Jay I. Kislak Reference Collection (Library of Congress) DLC
Subjects: Maya calendar Calendar
Publisher: Washington, Gov't print. off.
Contributing Library: Internet Archive
Digitizing Sponsor: Internet Archive



Text Appearing Before Image:
but which has beencut away, intentionally, as it seems. The north side was the principalside in all the palaces. It lay along the principal axis, since the prin-cipal courts of all the palaces open toward the south, and the mambuilding, with its adjoining court, lies on the north side of the chief 306 SELER) EXPLANATION OF WALL PAINTINGS 807 court. Hence the sun glyph in the middle of this side in Palace IVmust certainly be looked upon as the sign of the palace. There is in fragment 1, besides pedunculate oculiform elementsand the stone knives, which here represent the rays of the sun glyph,a design, already mentioned, which consists of an eye with an eyebrowrolled up at the ends, on which rest elongated (protruding) eyes,between which latter are inserted three pointed elements resemblingrays. In the Mexican figurative symbolism eyes are very generallyemployed to express radiating light. Lustrous stones (emerald, tur-qouise, and muscovite) are expressed heiroglyphically by a disk that
Text Appearing After Image:
Fig. 72. Symbols and figure of deities, from Mexican codices. is marked differently according to the nature of the stone, and on itscircumference are drawn four eyes placed in the form of a cross (seethe hieroglyph chalchiuitl, emerald , in the pyramidal structure ofthe temple, <z, figure 75). The stars shining down from the nightsky are designated by eyes which are attached to the surface and tothe rim of a stripe or half circle painted in a dark, nebulous color(see the representation of day and night in the middle design offigure 58 and the drawing of night with the symbol of the moon, aiabbit in a watery field, in figure 65 and <7, figure 72). It seems, therefore, certain that the composite designs in fragment1 are intended to represent radiating light. One is even tempted 308 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY (bull. 28 to ascribe to them a special meaning. If the eyes mean stars, thiseye snrounded by other radiating eyes might be intended toindicate an especially brilliant star;