Eduard Seler
Published: 2013-09
Total Pages: 110
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This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1901 edition. Excerpt: ...or else was attached to that of the triangular ray. The combination of trapeze and ray we see, for instance, on a carved wooden kettledrum (teponaztli) of Mixtec origin in the Museo Nacional de.lexico, on the Tenango monolith published by Clavigero,1 and on stone carvings at Chichen Itza.' The superposition of trapeze and ray may be noticed on the Tlaloc figures, which in Codez Borgia 27, 28, indicate the four years, or the four quarters of the tonalamatl period, and the five years coinciding with three Venus periods.3 Lastly, a superposition of trapeze and ray is seen on the body and tail end of our device, xiuhoouanmutlli, and on the body and tail end of the two snakes which form the border of the great calendar stone in the Museo Nacional de Mexico, and show on their body the element "13. acatl," the year of the birth of the sun. Thus this superposition of trapeze and snake is exhibited on both forms, the back device of the Fire God and the snake of the calendar stone. And that no doubt should remain as to the meaning of this distinctive feature, in Codex Borbonicus the triangular terminal ray of the xiuhcouanaualli is further encompassed by a tuft of grass; for xiwitl means " grass." And, as I have above pointed out, the designer of our manuscript has not omitted to give the yellow bloom of the grass, although he forgot to draw and paint the grass itself. Now, what is the explanation of this peculiar device? The comparison with the snake of the calendar stone strongly suggests that it is to be taken as the year's snake, and' the god wearing it as bearer of the year, who ushers in the year, whose feast inaugurates the year. Although such an interpretation has much in its favour, and is...
