Page:Queen Moo and the Egyptian Sphinx.djvu/73

 parts of the earth they inhabited, and of the adjoining countries.

The sign that most attracts the attention is, that Bishop Landa says must be read Yax-kin, and was that of the seventh month of the Maya calendar. Literally these words mean the "vigorous sun." If, however, we inter- pret the symbol phonetically, it gives us "the country of the king, which is surrounded by water;" "the kingdom in the midst of water." It will also be noticed that it is placed at the top of the tree, to indicate that that "tree" is the kingdom. Next to it, on the left, is the name Mayach, which indicates that it is the "kingdom of Mayach," which will be- come plain by the analysis of the symbols. To begin with, is a wing or feather, insignia worn by kings and warriors. Placed here it has a double meaning. It denotes the north, as we will see later on, and also shows that the land is that of the king whose emblem it is. The character stands for ahau, the word for king, and we have already