"XXXVI.—Sacrifices of the new year at the sign of Muluc—Dancing on the stilts—Dance of the old women with the dogs of baked earth.
"The year of which the dominical letter was Muluc had for the omen Canzienal. When the time arrived, the nobles and the priest elected the chief who should celebrate the feast. This done, they modeled, as in the preceding year, the image of the idol called Chac-u-Uayeyah, and carried it to the heap of stones at the eastern side, where they had left it the year before. They made a statue of the god called Kinch-Ahau, which they placed in a suitable spot in the house of the chief; then, from there, setting out by a road neatly swept and ornamented, they returned together with their accustomed devotion to the statue of Chac-u-Uayeyab.
"Having arrived here, the priest perfumed it with his incense and fortythree grains of bruised corn, which they called zacah; he gave to the nobles the incense called chahalte to put in the censer, after which they cut off the head of a. fowl, as formerly. They raised up the statue on a litter called Chacté and carried it with devotion, while the crowd executed around it certain war dances called Holcan-Ohot, Batel-Ohot. They carried at the same time, to the leaders and the principal citizens, their drink composed of three hundred and twenty-four grains of burnt corn, as before.
"Arrived at the house of the chief they placed the statue facing that of Kinch-Ahau, and presented to it the customary offerings, which they divided afterwards as at the last time. They offered to him bread made in the form of the yolk of an Qgg, and others like the hearts of deer, and another composed with diluted spice. There were, as ordinarily, good men who drew blood from themselves by piercing their ears and anointing with it the stone of the idol named Chacan-Cantun[1]
"Here they took small boys and forcibly pierced their ears, making incisions on them with knives. They guarded this statue until the end of the evil days; meanwhile they burned before it their incense.
"When these days were passed they carried it to the north side, where they were to receive it the next year, and deposited the other in his temple, after which they returned home to prepare for the ceremonies of the new year They believed that if they neglected to celebrate the aforesaid ceremonies they would be exposed to great evils of the eyes.
- ↑ Doubtless intended for Chac-Acantun.
