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Calendars of the Place of Reeds

Posted 13 January 2011

260 day ritual calendar

In this, the most common and ancient of Mesoamerican calendars, 20 day names pairs with 13 day numbers, yielding a count of 260 days (Miller & Taube, 1993). This calendar was the most important for foretelling the future; each day sign and number offered clues for interpretation. Many gods and humans took their name from this calendar, and both gifts and faults were conferred by the birth date. The 260 days probably derives the need to predict the birth date, as it roughly corresponds to the human gestation period, i.e. from time of the first missed menstrual cycle to birth.

The 260 year was grouped into 20 trecena of 13 days (Miller & Taube, 1993). The first day of each trecena always had the day number 1. The auguries of this first day applied to all days within the trecena.

The day names differed slightly depending on the region, but the following table is indicative (based on Miller & Taube, 1993, p. 49, and the Aztec Calendar page of the Mexico Connect site).

Aztec Day Name Meaning, Association Aztec Patron Augury for those born in the trecena 1-Day Name

Crocodile

Surface of the earth

Tonacatecuhtli- Lord of our Sustenance; male aspect of dual gods

Wind

Wind

Quetzalcoatyl- Plumbed Serpent; god of knowledge and the preisthood

House

Night, darkness, jaguar

Tepeyolohtli- Heart of the Mountain; jaguar god of the interior earth

Lizard

Maize, abundance

Huehuecoyotl- Old Coyote; back-biter or mischief-maker

Serpent

Serpent

Chalchiuhtlicue- Lady of the jade skirt; goddess of ground waters

Death

Death

Tecciztecatl-He from the sea-snail; moon god

Deer

Deer

Tlaloc- He who makes things sprout; god of rain and earth fertility

Rabbit

Venus, Rabbit

Mayahuel- She of the maguey plant; goddess of pulque (maguey wine)

Water

Water

Xiuhtecuhtli- Lord of the year; fire god, patron of rulers

Impoverished; entire trecena generally bad.

Dog

Dog

Miclantecuhtli- Lord of Mictlan (Region of the Dead); god of death

Monkey

Monkey

Xochipilli- Flower Prince; god of flowers and plants

Grass

Patecatl- He from the Land of Medicines; god of medicinal plants

Reed

Tezcatlipoca- Smoking mirror; major creator of god, god of fate

Jaguar

Jaguar

Tlazolteotl- Eater of Filth; earth mother

Eagle

Eagle

Xipe- Totec- Our Flayed Lord; god of seeding and planting

Vulture

Itzapapalotl- Obsidian Butterfly; stellar and agricultural goddess

Motion

Earth, earthquake

Xolotl- Twin; Monster god, twin of Quetzalcoatl

Flint

 Flint

Chalchiuhtotolin- Guise of Tezcatlipoca; god of night and the mysterious

Rain

Rain, Storm

Chantico- In the House; goddess of the hearth

Flower

Sun

Xochiquetzal- Flower of the Rich Plume; goddess of flowers

365 day vague calendar

The 365 day vague calendar corresponded roughly to the solar year, but lacked the leap years (Miller & Taube, 1993). This lack meant the calendar drifted slowly out of alignment with the seasons, and seasonal festivals would need to be moved. The 365 year was divided into 18 veintena of 20 days, plus 5 unlucky days at the end of the year. The unlucky days were considered particularly dangerous and a child born during that time was ill-omened.

Each vague year was named after a day in the 260 day ritual calendar - these days were called yearbearers and historical dates were given by the yearbear name (Miller & Taube, 1993). Most people, including the Maya, named their vague years after the first day of the ritual calendar; the Aztecs named them after the last day of the 18th veintena, i.e. the day before the unlucky days.

The following table is based on the Aztec Calendar page of the Mexico Connect site.

Veincena No.

Veincena Name

Aztec Patron Gods

Aztec Rituals

I.

Ceasing of Water

Tlaloc, Chachihutlicue

Children sacrificed to water gods

II.

Flaying of Men

Xipe-Totec

Gladiatorial sacrifice; dances by priest wearing the flayed skin of victims

III.

Little Vigil

Coatlicue, Tlaloc

Flayed skins buried, child sacrifices

IV.

Great Vigil

Centeotl, Chicomecacoatl

Blessing of new corn; maiden sacrificed

V.

Dryness

Tezcatlipoca, Huitzilopochtli

Impersonators of these major gods sacrificed

VI.

Meal of Maize & Beans

Tlaloques

Impersonators of water deities sacrificed by drowning; ritual bathing and dances

VII.

Small feast of the Lords

Huixtocihuatl, Xochipilli

Impersonators of the gods sacrificed; ceremony of salt workers

VIII.

Great feast of the Lords

Xilonen

Feast for goddess of young corn, lords offer gifts and feast for commoners

IX.

Birth of Flowers

Huizilopochtli

All the gods festooned with garlands; feasting on corn-meal cakes and turkey

X.

Fall of Fruit

Hueymiccaihuitl (great feast of the dead) Xiuhtecuhtli

Ceremonial pole climbing competition; Sacrifice to fire gods by roasting victims alive

XI.

Sweeping of the Roads

Tlazolteotl

Sweeping of house and roads; mock combat

XII.

Return of the Gods

Tezcatlipoca

Ceremonies welcoming gods returning to earth; ceremonial drunkenness, sacrifices by fire

XIII.

Feast of the Hills

Tlaloc

Ceremonies for mountain rain gods; human sacrifices and ceremonial cannibalism

XIV.

Precious Feather

Mixcoatl-Camaxtli

Ritualistic hunt following fast; sacrifice of game and ceremonial feasting

XV.

Raising of the Banner

Huitzilopochtli

Homes and fruit trees decorated with paper banners; race-procession; massive sacrifices

XVI.

Water Descends

Tlaloc

Festival honouring water gods; children and slaves sacrificed

XVII.

Stretching

Llamatecuhtli

Sympathetic magic to bring rain; women beaten with straw-filled bags to make them cry

XVIII.

Resuscitation

Xiuhtecuhtli

Image of god made from amaranth dough; feasting on tamales stuffed with greens

Empty days

Five unlucky days; no rituals, general fasting

52 year bundle

Every 52 years (18,98 days) the 260-day calendar and the 365-day calendar synchronised (Miller & Taube, 1993). The Aztecs called this a Year Bundle and celebrated the completion of a year bundle with a new fire ceremony in the Raising of the Banner veincena.

References

Aztec Calendar page of the Mexico Connect site.

Miller, M., & Taube, K. (1993). An Illustrated Dictionary of the Gods and Symbols of Ancient Mexico and the Maya. London: Thames & Hudson.