Baktun
Encyclopedia
A baktun is 20 katun
cycles of the ancient Maya Long Count Calendar. It contains 144,000 days, equivalent to 394.26 tropical year
s. The Classic period of Maya civilization occurred during the 8th and 9th baktuns of the current calendrical cycle. The current (13th) baktun will end, or be completed, on 13.0.0.0.0 (December 21, 2012 using the GMT correlation). This also marks the beginning of the 14th baktun, as such a term is usually used among Mayanists.
J. Eric S. Thompson
stated that when a Long Count of, say, 9.15.10.0.0 is placed in the 9th baktun, we are almost certainly committing an error, like placing the year 2009 in the 2nd millennium
. However, that practice is so well established among Maya epigraphers and other students of the Maya that to change it would cause more harm than its perpetuation.
Katun (Maya calendar)
A k'atun or k'atun-cycle is a unit of time in the Maya calendar equal to 20 tuns or 7,200 days, equivalent to 19.713 tropical years. It is the 2nd digit on the normal Maya long count date...
cycles of the ancient Maya Long Count Calendar. It contains 144,000 days, equivalent to 394.26 tropical year
Tropical year
A tropical year , for general purposes, is the length of time that the Sun takes to return to the same position in the cycle of seasons, as seen from Earth; for example, the time from vernal equinox to vernal equinox, or from summer solstice to summer solstice...
s. The Classic period of Maya civilization occurred during the 8th and 9th baktuns of the current calendrical cycle. The current (13th) baktun will end, or be completed, on 13.0.0.0.0 (December 21, 2012 using the GMT correlation). This also marks the beginning of the 14th baktun, as such a term is usually used among Mayanists.
J. Eric S. Thompson
J. Eric S. Thompson
Sir John Eric Sidney Thompson was an English Mesoamerican archeologist and epigrapher. His contributions to the understanding of Maya hieroglyphs lead him to be one of the foremost mid-20th century anthropological scholars. He was generally known as J. Eric S...
stated that when a Long Count of, say, 9.15.10.0.0 is placed in the 9th baktun, we are almost certainly committing an error, like placing the year 2009 in the 2nd millennium
Millennium
A millennium is a period of time equal to one thousand years —from the Latin phrase , thousand, and , year—often but not necessarily related numerically to a particular dating system....
. However, that practice is so well established among Maya epigraphers and other students of the Maya that to change it would cause more harm than its perpetuation.