Page:A Study of the Manuscript Troano.djvu/126

74 There are other plates on which these characters appear to indicate the cardinal points, but what has been given is sufficient to show the evidence upon which I base my opinion as to the meaning of the characters. The presence of these on Plates 25-28 of the Codex, in the manner there given, is perhaps the surest guide as to the quarters to which they respectively belong; the fact they are so often found occupying the four corners of the spaces of the plates of the Manuscript is what leads us to suspect that they indicate the cardinal points. The chief, and, so far as I can see, the only objection to this interpretation is the occasional change of order in the spaces; but, as we have seen, this seldom, if ever, occurs where they are in a line. The chief doubt is as to the points assigned them.

If my explanation is correct, then it is possible that the Maya words which they represent are as follows:

 No. 1 (Fig. 8), Likin, "east." No. 2, Xaman, "north." No. 3, Chikin, "west." No. 4, Ma-yam, "the middle of the earth" (south), or Nohol, "south."

The inverted character for Ahau in No. 3, and that for Manik in No. 1, may raise an objection in the minds of some to this interpretation, but the reader must bear in mind that I do not yet insist that these characters are the symbols for the words above given. They may refer to priests, utensils, or other things connected with or used during religious ceremonies; for example. No. 3 may be the symbol for Ahkin, "priest," No. 4, for Mayac, "table"; No. 2 for Am, the sacred stone used in casting the horoscope, &c., but at the same time these, by the relative positions they occupy during ceremonies, may serve to indicate the cardinal points, and hence the davs. This being the case, the characters, by long usage for this purpose, would ultimately become the symbols of this secondary signification.

Referring again to Landa's account of the festivals, heretofore quoted, we observe that one of the idols was finally placed on the heap of stones at the margin of the village In the lowest division of each of the plates—25-28 of the Codex—we see an idol resting on a character like this (Fig. 9); the idol on Plate 25, with a head somewhat similar to that of the Tlaloc