11 Aug: The ‘Long Count’ Begins
The 7,885 year-long calendar used by the Mayan people measure long stretches of time, ‘The Long Count’, began on 11th August, 3114 B.C.
The combination of a Haabʼ and a Tzolkʼin date identifies a day in a combination which does not occur again for 18,980 days (52 Haabʼ cycles of 365 days equals 73 Tzolkʼin cycles of 260 days, approximately 52 years), a period known as the Calendar Round. ARE YOU KEEPING UP.
In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly discover the rules of ‘Mayan Space Jam’; explain why people thought the world might end in 2012; and call into question the whole diary system on which their beloved podcast depends…
Further Reading:
• ‘Maya Cosmology & the Real 2012’ (Mary Lou Ridinger, TEDxSanMigueldeAllende, 2013 ):
• ‘Danger on the Court: The Deadly Ancient Mesoamerican Ball Game’ (Ancient Origins, 2020): https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history/ulama-mesoamerican-ball-game-deadly-sport-ancient-americas-003156
• ‘9 Interesting Facts About The Mayans’ (yocover, 2021):