Commentary Upon the Maya-Tzental Perez Codex: with a Concluding Note Upon the Linguistic Problem of the Maya Glyphs — John Shaqi
Commentary Upon the Maya-Tzental Perez Codex: with a Concluding Note Upon the Linguistic Problem of the Maya GlyphsGates, William
History
Commentary Upon the Maya-Tzental Perez Codex: with a Concluding Note Upon the Linguistic Problem of the Maya Glyphs
Gates, William
Codex Peresianus; Maya language -- Texts; Mayas -- History
The glyph [Hieroglyph] occurs 37 times on this side and, with a prefix
and a changed postfix, once on page 24.
With the exceptions noted, none of the above glyphs occur at all on the
reverse side of the MS.
There are finally 19 different Yax ([Hieroglyph]) compounds, occurring
in all 25 times, 16 of them on this side of the MS.
With three exceptions the above glyphs are the only ones that are
repeated in the Codex with any marked frequency. The three exceptions
are the face with tau-eye, already [Hieroglyph] mentioned, and the two
glyphs occurring as an initial [Hieroglyphs] pair twelve times on pages
15 to 18, sections _a_, _b_, _c_.
Of month signs used as such I am only [Hieroglyphs] satisfied of 12
Cumhu, at 18-b-4 and of 16 Zac, at 4-c-7. The glyph [Hieroglyph] at
7-c-2 may also be 1 Yaxkin.
The only cardinal point sign is that of the West, [Hieroglyph] occurring
at 4-b-14 and again at 16-a-6.
There are besides these numeral Cauacs, 15 other Cauac [Hieroglyph]
compounds, occurring in all 17 times on this side, and twice on pages
23, 24.
* * * * *
Upon turning over the Codex, we find that whereas on the side we have
been considering the scribe limited himself to the conventional red
numerals and backgrounds, with here and there a touch of brown, upon
this other side we have a wealth of color united with a harmony of
composition and structure that marks a very high degree of artistic
skill. It is not alone the accuracy of the drawing and the writing, such
as we have noted in connexion with the study of the glyphs, but the
whole manuscript as it lies open before us shows that sense of
proportion, that ability to unify without seeming effort a multitude of
details into a perfectly balanced whole, which is the positive mark of
developed and genuine culture. When we remember the exceeding difficulty
of combining primary colors into a brilliancy that is not garish, and
the equal difficulty of achieving artistic mastery in a conventional
treatment of forms, we are simply forced to recognize that we have here
the evidence of an advanced school of art with full rights of
independent citizenship. If the figures look strange and sometimes
distorted, we must remember that our whole training has been in the
realistic school, by which we are prone to judge all others, but by
which they must not be judged. We have no more right to weigh these
compositions in the scales of our art motifs than we have to weigh Greek
rhythm of quantity or Saxon of alliteration against our weights by which
we measure rhythm of rhyme and stress. In fact it is impossible for us
even to judge concerning the true harmonic effect of these other
measures, and it may well be doubted whether the very soul itself of our
meter is not empty and tinny as compared with these others--quality for
quality.
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