Scientists have deciphered the Zapotec calendar and say it is much older than that of the Maya
Scientists have deciphered a mysterious Zapotec symbol and discovered that it represented the lunar cycle more than 2,200 years ago. This discovery revealed that their system of timekeeping is significantly older than the Maya calendar and was much more accurate than previously thought.
Researchers have finally unraveled one of the most enigmatic symbols of ancient Mesoamerica—the so-called “W Glyph,” which had puzzled archaeologists for decades. It turns out that the Zapotecs did not simply decorate stones with symbols, but kept very precise records of the lunar phases, and did so much earlier than previously thought. Scientists from the University of California, Riverside, reported on the breakthrough, and the results of the study were published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment. They analyzed inscriptions from Monte Albán and proved that the numbers next to “Glyph W” clearly follow the rhythm of the lunar cycle—approximately 29.53 days.
In fact, the Zapotecs counted not just days, but the evenings following the appearance of the new moon, recording each time how its appearance in the sky changed. This allowed them to accurately determine the phase of Earth’s satellite and link it to rituals, political events, and calendar cycles.
As biochemist Tim Lyons explained, this process has a complex chemical basis in nature:
“When pyrite comes into contact with water, it breaks down. It breaks down into iron and sulfur, forming sulfuric acid, as well as sulfate and other toxic metals.” Furthermore, when these compounds enter the water and interact with oxygen, they literally “rust,” forming orange hues that give rise to the modern term “rusty rivers” in various climate studies.
It is important to note that the Zapotecs did not abandon their primary calendars—the 260-day ritual year and the 365-day civil year. They simply added another level of time measurement that tied events to the actual movement of the Moon. The “Glyph W” symbol itself was first discovered back in 1928, but its meaning remained a mystery for a long time. Now, however, scientists have proven that it denoted specific phases of the lunar cycle, rather than ritual or abstract calendar dates, as previously believed.
Thanks to this discovery, it has become clear that the Zapotec inscriptions date to the period between 496 and 221 BCE. This is approximately 857 years earlier than the first known lunar records in Mayan civilization. “It wasn’t a lunar calendar in the modern sense. They simply added a third level of time measurement,” the researchers explain.
The researchers were also surprised by the very principle of time organization: the day for the Zapotecs likely began not at midnight, as it does now, but around noon. This allowed for more precise coordination of lunar observations and the recording of events. Ultimately, the researchers concluded that the Zapotecs were far more advanced astronomers than previously thought. They didn’t just gaze at the sky; they created a complex system that linked the cosmos, religion, and politics into a single logical structure.
Most importantly, this discovery completely changes our understanding of the development of calendars in ancient Mesoamerica, showing that sophisticated systems for measuring time appeared there much earlier than previously thought. Arkeonews reports on this.
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