The hurricane battle of Naranjo by Jens S. Rohark and Mario Krygier independent researchers Uploaded to www.academia.edu and www.researchgate.net on 22 April 2021 Fig. 1: The central medallion of altar 1 of Naranjo. Photo by Jens Rohark Many of the ancient Maya inscriptions contain dates which are easily readable and convertible into our European calendar system. This is the case when we find complete dates with a Long Count position. Occasionally there are inscriptions which do not contain a Long Count, only a Calendar Round, which is a date which repeats every 52 years. The inscription of altar 1 of Naranjo is one of the complicated cases, which we would like to analyze here. We will show that some of its dates have been interpreted differently by several researchers, and we will explain which set of dates is correct and why. Altar 1 of Naranjo contains a long inscription, starting with a mythological event. It mentions repeatedly the long living king Aj Nuumsaj Chan K´ihnich, formerly known as Aj Wosal. Originally the altar was probably placed next to stela 38 of Naranjo, which contains a similar inscription in the same finely incised style. We will take a look at the drawing made by Ian Graham. There is one tiny detail we have altered. The lower glyph inside the medallion was drawn by Graham with a number 8, however, the original clearly contains a bar with 4 dots, which is number 9 (see Fig. 1). The glyph reads bolon tsakbu ajaw, to be translated as “lord of the nine generations”, in the sense of “lord of many generations”. The rest of his drawing remains unaltered. Rohark, Krygier: The hurricane battle of Naranjo – page 1 Fig. 2: Altar 1 of Naranjo. Drawing by Ian Graham. CR dates are marked in yellow, war event in blue. The inscription is read starting with double column A, B, then double column C, D, then triple column E, F, G, then the remaining double columns H, I and J, K. We have marked all Calendar Round dates in yellow. There are 8 different dates in the inscription. One date appears twice, which makes 9 dates in total. There are no Long Count dates. The text starts with the accession date of the Mars monster on a day 12 Ok 18 K´ank´in. The day glyph is somewhat damaged, however we can find the same date and same event being mentioned on stela 1. A distance number connects with the next date, 13 Hiix 12 Xul. This distance number is very problematic. Not because it is damaged, but because it must definitely contain an error. We can see a distance of 4 days. This looks correct so far, since the distance from a day Ok to a day Hiix is precisely 4 days. Then there is 17 winal. It is damaged, and in theory it might be a number 18 or 19 as well; however, the winal coefficient is counted only to 17, since 18 winals are already one tuun year. There is a damaged tuun year glyph with the coefficient totally lost. Then there are 13 k´atun, 13 pik and 2 piktun. The calculation shows that no matter which the coefficient for the tuun year is, Rohark, Krygier: The hurricane battle of Naranjo – page 2 there is no way to connect the Calendar Round 12 Ok 18 K´ank´in with the next CR 13 Hiix 12 Xul via a distance number of 2.13.13.X.17.4. In the article “Naranjo altar 1 and rituals of death and burials”, the authors Grube and Schele argue that the corrected distance number 2.13.12.15.8.4. looks like the best choice. One can see that they corrected the number in the k´atun and winal position. Berthold Riese argued that the Calendar Round date was wrong. He suggested 5 Ok 18 K´ank´in and a distance number of 2.13.13.15.13.4. However, this also changes the distance number in the winal position. So far nobody seems to have offered a better solution. By the way, we also do not know why the CR of 12 Ok 18 K´ank´in was chosen as the accession date of the Mars monster in Naranjo. In the case of Palenque, the accession date of the Mars Monster fell on 1 Manik´ 10 Sek, some 1.2 Million years before Pakal´s coronation. In that case the date makes perfect sense, precisely on that day. It hides an impressive astronomical formula (See: “Die Krönung des Monsters von Palenque”). However, in the case of Naranjo we have not been able to find the reason for using this Calendar Round. As mentioned, the next CR date is 13 Hiix 12 Xul (last block in B, first block in C). It connects nicely with the next Calendar Round. The event was some ritual for a god, with the possible name of Chan Chipuy Ajaw. The ritual was performed by somebody with the title of Sak Chuwen, which is very common in the Naranjo area, in a place called Maxam. Then follows another distance number, which can be read as 2.2.6.3.3. The calculation shows that this number connects correctly with the next CR date, which is 7 Kaban (last block in D) 5 K´ayab (first block in E). According to the inscription, on this date king Aj Nuumsaj Chan K´ihnich inaugurated a temple at Maxam. It is interesting to see that he calls himself the 35 th in the succession since the Mars monster. Another distance number follows: 0.0.19.10.7., which connects almost correctly with the next CR date 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´ (bottom of E and F). There is only a small error of one day, because it is only 6 days from a day Kaban to a day Ak´bal. The distance number should be 0.0.19.10.6., as Berthold Riese and Greg Reddick noted correctly. On this day, something important happened. We have marked the event in blue color. According to the inscription, the sculls built up into pyramids, the blood streamed into pools. This phrase sounds familiar. It is also mentioned on the famous monument 6 of Tortuguero, where it is clearly connected to a war event against Comalcalco. This battle in the vicinity of Naranjo seems to have been even worse, because it was waged with the force of a hurricane, as the next glyph suggests. It is unlikely that the glyph describes an actual weather phenomenon, as some researchers have suggested. As it turns out, this battle date of the day 7 Night on the 11th day of the month of the Vampire Bat is critical for determining the chronology of all the dates mentioned so far. The next dates of the inscription are easy to read and to convert to the European calendar. However, there is no distance number which connects with the aforementioned battle date. The next dates, in the double column H, I, are all k´atun dates. On 9 Ajaw 3 Wayeb was the completion of the 6th k´atun. On 7 Ajaw 3 K´ank´in was the completion of the 7th Rohark, Krygier: The hurricane battle of Naranjo – page 3 k´atun. On 5 Ajaw 3 Ch´en was the completion of the 8th k´atun. We just need to take a look in the Tatsumi Codex in order to see that the 9th pik is meant. Therefore, those dates must correspond to the Long Count dates 9.6.0.0.0., 9.7.0.0.0. and 9.8.0.0.0. Fig. 3: Detail of Tatsumi Codex. Drawing by Jens Rohark. In order to understand where the problem lies, let us have a look at the dates as far as we know them now. Starting with the k´atun dates, we know the Long Count positions of every date. There shouldn´t be any problem with the reading of the last dates and with the last distance number. This is 0.12.0.0.0. of course, not 0.12.0.1.0. as is mentioned in the thesis of Camilo Alejandro Luin, who mistakes the eroded flower sign in the winal glyph with one dot. Fig. 4: Detail of altar 1 of Naranjo. Last distance number with coefficient of winal glyph corrected in red. Rohark, Krygier: The hurricane battle of Naranjo – page 4 LC or DN Calendar Round Gregorian date Julian date event 12 Ok 18 K´ank´in coronation of Mars monster 13 Hiix 12 Xul ritual for a god 7 Kaban 5 K´ayab inauguration of a temple 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´ 9 Ajaw 3 Wayeb 7 Ajaw 3 K´ank´in 5 Ajaw 3 Ch´en 22 March 554 AD 07 Dec 573 AD 24 Aug 593 AD 20 March 554 AD 05 Dec 573 AD 22 Aug 593 AD hurricane battle k´atun celebration k´atun celebration k´atun celebration 7 Ajaw 18 Sip 5 Ajaw 3 Ch´en 15 March 830 AD 24 Aug 593 AD 11 March 830 AD 22 Aug 593 AD 2.13.13.X.17.4. 2.2.6.3.3. 0.0.19.10.[6]. 9.6.0.0.0. 9.7.0.0.0. 9.8.0.0.0. 0.12.0.0.0. 10.0.0.0.0. 9.8.0.0.0. pik celebration future k´atun celebration Fig. 5: The dates of altar 1 of Naranjo. First version. We are interested in determining the Long Count positions for the first dates, with exception of the very first one, because it does not make much sense to indicate a Long Count date which lies thousands of years back in time. This would require a long discussion of how the Maya themselves would have indicated such dates. As there was obviously no consistency (just compare stela 10 of Tikal with stela 1 of Cobá), we will not attempt such an endeavor. We would like to fix, however, the next three Calendar Rounds with our calendar system. The crux of the matter is the following. The “hurricane” battle took place on 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´. The ruler Aj Nuumsaj Chan K´ihnich is mentioned, therefore we might naturally think that this date must be during his reign. We do not know his exact birthdate, but we know that his lived approximately from 534 AD to a bit later than 615 AD. His birthday is estimated on the basis that for the date 9.8.0.0.0. he is mentioned as a lord in the third k´atun. This means that in the year 593 AD he could not have been older than 60 years. If we calculate possible Long Count dates for 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´, we get two possible results: the first one is 9.5.10.1.3. 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´ in the year 544 AD, the next one is 9.8.2.14.3. 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´ in the year 596 AD. This means, if the first date is right, that the king would have participated in a battle before his coronation and also at a very young age of some ten years. If the later date is right, then it means that the battle date is about three years after the last k´atun celebration, when he was of an age of maybe 62 years. This version seemed to be the more plausible one for Linda Schele, Nikolai Grube, Barbara MacLeod, Christophe Rohark, Krygier: The hurricane battle of Naranjo – page 5 Helmke and Camilo Alejandro Luin, among others. Other epigraphists like Berthold Riese, Michael Grofe or Stephen Houston seem to prefer the earlier variant in the year 544 AD. As far as we have seen, nobody has ever given any reason why they prefer the earlier or later variant. Fig. 6: Possible Long Count dates for 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´. Program by Mario Krygier. The placement of the battle date influences on the placement of the two earlier dates. In the following table we see what the earlier and later set of the three dates in question look like: CR date earlier dates LC Julian date 7.2.4.5.14. 13 February 310 BC later dates LC Julian date 7.4.17.0.14. 31 January 258 BC 7 Kaban 5 K´ayab 9.4.10.8.17. 17 February 525 AD 9.7.3.3.17. 4 February 577 AD 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´ 9.5.10.1.3. 03 June 544 AD 9.8.2.14.3. 21 May 596 AD 13 Hiix 12 Xul Fig. 7: The earlier and later set for the difficult dates of altar 1 of Naranjo. Rohark, Krygier: The hurricane battle of Naranjo – page 6 Looking at the thesis of Luin, we see that he indicates a “Christian date” (without saying if he means Gregorian or Julian date) of 31 January 257 for 7.4.17.0.14., which makes the reader think that the date is after Christ. However, it is before Christ. Also, the year is 258 BC, not 257 BC. In an older article, David Stuart offers the 31 of January 282 – again, without indicating “before Christ” or Gregorian or Julian date. Where the year of 282 comes from, nobody knows… It is also unclear why he indicated a distance number of 2.13.13.7.11.4., which supposedly connects 12 Ok 18 K´ank´in with 13 Hiix 12 Xul. If you count this distance number back from 13 Hiix 12 Xul, you reach 13 Ok 18 K´ank´in, not 12 Ok 18 K´ank´in. Or, if you prefer the other way round, if you count this distance number forward from 12 Ok 18 K´ank´in, you reach 12 Hiix 12 Xul instead of 13 Hiix 12 Xul. Anyway, how can we solve this mystery? How can we know if the earlier or later set of dates is correct? We will go into the details of the inscriptions again, in order to find the answer. Later on, we will have a look at the night sky of those dates which will give us the definitive answer. There is one detail mentioned by Michael Grofe which seems important. He writes that the battle date should lie before the k´atun date 9.6.0.0.0. We agree. The whole timeline of the inscription is a forward count. There is no indication that there would be a jump back into the past from the battle date. Another very important fact is that the last k´atun date is a future date. Let´s have a look at the last k´atun date, which is the only date mentioned twice. The first time it is mentioned, the inscription says: 5 Ajaw 3 Ch´en u tsutsaw 8 winikhaab aj nuumsaaj, “on the date 5 Ajaw 3 Ch´en, Aj Nuumsaaj completes the 8th k´atun”. This is interesting, because it doesn´t say that he completed it. Neither does it say that the will complete it. It is a somewhat vague statement which does not indicate if the date 9.8.0.0.0. 5 Ajaw 3 Ch´en had happened or not at the moment of the carving of the inscription. The second time this date is being mentioned, however, the formulation is clear. At the very end of the inscription, it says: “0 days, 0 winals, 0 tuun years and 12 k´atuns later, will be the completion (tsutsjom) of the 10th pik on 7 Ajaw 18 Sip, and there will be (utom) the scattering of incense by (the king) Aj Nuumsaaj on the day 5 Ajaw 3 Ch´en.” This leaves no doubt that the date 9.8.0.0.0. in the year 593 AD had not yet happened at the moment of the carving of the inscription. This means that a battle date of either 544 AD or 596 AD can only have happened in 544 AD. Therefore, the earlier set of those three dates must be the right one. The fact that the king is mentioned before his coronation, should not trouble us too much. Other kings are mentioned before their coronation. It is also no big news that later kings are mentioned to have participated in battles at a young age. The famous Mixtec king 8 Deer Jaguar Claw was born in a year 12 Reed. In a year 7 Reed he was not only participating in a battle, but making his first conquest. As the Nuttall Codex indicates, he conquered the Hill of the Eagle. This means that at this time he was barely 8 years old, Rohark, Krygier: The hurricane battle of Naranjo – page 7 because according to the count of the year bearers, the years following 12 Deer are: 13 Flint, 1 House, 2 Rabbit, 3 Reed, 4 Flint, 5 House, 6 Rabbit and 7 Reed. Fig. 8: The early life of the Mixtec king 8 Deer. Codex Nuttall. Drawing by Jens Rohark. The young king K´ahk´ Tiliw Chan Chahk of Naranjo, crowned at an age of only 5 years, supposedly participated in a number of battles before the age of 10. We must not forget that some public Maya inscriptions are clear examples of propaganda. The young Maya king warriors are an obvious case. We also question very much Houston´s conclusion that king Aj Nuumsaaj was “an active figure by 9.4.10.8.17, February 17, 525.” (Houston, page 3). This contradicts the information of the k´atun count. As it seems he was not yet born in 525 AD, when the temple was inaugurated. Otherwise he would have easily reached more than a hundred years and his scribes would have erred in his k´atun count. The supposed position as the 35th king since the reign of the Mars monster, some 22000 years earlier, falls into the same category. Finally, we will have a look into the night sky for both the earlier and later variant of the problematic dates. We have seen already that logic leads us to favor the earlier set of dates. We will see in a moment that the astronomical data confirm this conclusion. We remember which astronomical events were favored by the Classic Maya: the passing of the moon by a planet, conjunctions and passing of moon or planets through zenith. We also Rohark, Krygier: The hurricane battle of Naranjo – page 8 remember that a Maya date is counted from midday to midday, therefore one Maya date encompasses the whole night. The following table contains the astronomical events for the three difficult dates, both for the earlier and later set. CR date LC 13 Hiix 12 Xul earlier dates Julian date 7.2.4.5.14. 13 February 310 BC astronomical events Jupiter at zenith, moon just passed Saturn, Venus appearing as Morning Star 7 Kaban 5 K´ayab 9.4.10.8.17. 17 February 525 AD moon at zenith, (3 nights ago was conjunction of Venus and Saturn) 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´ 9.5.10.1.3. 03 June 544 AD moon just passed Mars, (in 4 nights will be conjunction of Venus and Jupiter) later dates LC Julian date 13 Hiix 12 Xul 7.4.17.0.14. 31 January 258 BC nothing 7 Kaban 5 K´ayab 9.7.3.3.17. 4 February 577 AD nothing (in 3 nights will be conjunction of Venus and Saturn) 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´ 9.8.2.14.3. 21 May 596 AD nothing Fig. 9: Astronomical evens for the earlier and later set of difficult dates of altar 1 of Naranjo. The result of this investigation is very clear. There are a number of interesting astronomical events going on for the earlier set of the three difficult dates, whereas there is nothing going on for the later set of those dates. As an example, we will have a closer look at the battle date. We will see the night sky for the night before and during the battle date. It is very clear that precisely in the night of the battle, the moon had just passed Mars. This may not be a coincidence, since the inscription starts with the accession of the Mars monster as first king of Naranjo. Rohark, Krygier: The hurricane battle of Naranjo – page 9 King Aj Nuumsaaj Chan K´ihnich may or may not have participated in this famous battle. He certainly was not present at the inauguration of the temple in the year 525 AD. Fig. 10: The night before the battle of 9.5.10.1.3. 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´. Fig. 11: The night of the battle of 9.5.10.1.3. 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´. Rohark, Krygier: The hurricane battle of Naranjo – page 10 Finally, we would like to mention an important observation by Michael Grofe. He noted that the distance number of 2.2.6.3.3. appears to be designed in order to express the sidereal year. He writes: “The interval of 304,623 days is very close to a whole multiple of the modern astronomical sidereal year (just 0.8 day longer), placing the sun on 7.2.4.5.14, February 8, 310 BC (Fig. 9b) in precisely the same position at which it appeared on the later date 9.4.10.8.17, 7 Kaban 5 K´ayab (Fig. 9a). However, the time of year has shifted by 11 days. This appears to be yet another clear use of the calculation of the sidereal year in deep time intervals.” (Grofe, pp. 224, 225). The length of the sidereal year is indicated by Grofe with a value of 365.256512759 days, derived from the Serpent Numbers of the Dresden Codex. This is the final version of the dates of altar 1 of Naranjo: LC or DN Calendar Round Gregorian date Julian date 12 Ok 18 K´ank´in event coronation of Mars monster 2.13.12.15.8.4.? 7.2.4.5.14. 13 Hiix 12 Xul 08 February 310 BC 13 February 310 BC ritual for a god 2.2.6.3.3. 9.4.10.8.17. 7 Kaban 5 K´ayab 19 February 525 AD 17 February 525 AD inauguration of a temple 0.0.19.10.[6]. 9.5.10.1.3. 7 Ak´bal 11 Sots´ 05 June 544 AD 03 June 544 AD 9.6.0.0.0. 9 Ajaw 3 Wayeb 22 March 554 AD 20 March 554 AD 9.7.0.0.0. 7 Ajaw 3 K´ank´in 07 Dec 573 AD 05 Dec 573 AD 9.8.0.0.0. 5 Ajaw 3 Ch´en 24 Aug 593 AD 22 Aug 593 AD hurricane battle k´atun celebration k´atun celebration k´atun celebration 0.12.0.0.0. 10.0.0.0.0. 9.8.0.0.0. 7 Ajaw 18 Sip 5 Ajaw 3 Ch´en 15 March 830 AD 24 Aug 593 AD 11 March 830 AD 22 Aug 593 AD Fig. 12: The dates of altar 1 of Naranjo. 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