Vintage Aztec Calendar Pendant
The Aztec calendar, like the Mayan calendar on which it was based, was organised around two cyclical patterns: a 365-day 'civil' cycle and a 260-day 'ritual' cycle. From the Encyclopedia Britannica:
"The ritual cycle, or tonalpohualli, contained two smaller cycles, an ordered sequence of 20 named days and a sequence of days numbered from 1 to 13. The 13-day cycle was particularly important for religious observance, and each of the 20 numbered cycles within the ritual year was associated with a different deity. Similarly, each named day was associated with a unique deity, and scholars believe that the combinations of ruling deities were used for divination. The civil year was divided into 18 months of 20 days each, plus an additional 5 days called nemontemi and considered to be very unlucky. Again as in the Mayan calendar, the Aztec ritual and civil cycles returned to the same positions relative to each other every 52 years, an event celebrated as the Binding Up of the Years, or the New Fire Ceremony. In preparation, all sacred and domestic fires were allowed to burn out. At the climax of the ceremony, priests ignited a new sacred fire on the breast of a sacrificial victim, from which the people rekindled their hearth fires and began feasting."
This double-sided gold charm is crafted after the 25 ton Aztec Calendar Stone discovered in 1790 and now housed in the National Museum of Anthropology, Mexico City. It's crafted in 14 carat gold and dates from the 1930s.
Era: Vintage, circa 1930
Size: 2.8cm by 1.9cm (including bail)
Marks: None, tested as 14ct gold
Condition: Good vintage condition
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