We decided to offer you a custom-made jewel based on the Mayan calendar, a Pre-Columbian civilization of Mexico. You will be able to own a unique piece of jewelry made in sterling silver that will hold a special meaning for you because the date is unique to you. It can be made for a wedding, an anniversary, a birth… There are plenty of options.

Your date in the Mayan calendar

On internet, you will find a lot of sites explaining the Maya calendar and how to calculate your birthday.

We will avoid you the hard work of calculating it yourself by sending you the sketch corresponding to your dates (similar to the sketches you will see on this page).

You can check the grid below and choose the model that you like by clicking on the button "request for a preliminary design". You will be redirected to fill in a form. We will answer you back as soon as possible.

Sometimes, you will be able to see different glyphs assigned to these calendar systems. The Maya territory was vast and sometimes divided. They have a long history. Therefore, it is normal to have slight variations in the representation of the Maya calendar glyphs.

We mainly use glyphs presented on this page but if you wish something a bit different, do not hesitate to contact us.

The different types of jewels Maya calendar glyphs

The choice of a theme for a jewel based on the Maya calendar lets us a lot of options on the possibilities or decorations and the types of jewels.

According to the importance given to the different calendar systems by the Mayas, we can offer the following options:

• If you choose one glyph: the day given by the Tzolkin calendar. It is the most practical calendar and the closest to the Maya population. It gives the destiny sign of a person of this Mexican civilization.
• If you want it to be more complete and right, you have to use the wheel of the Maya calendar, that is to say two glyphs, one from the Tzolkin and one from the Haab.
• Eventually, in order to be even more precise, we offer the long Count date. Of course, the jewel will be bigger because of the number of glyphs.

Each of the jewels that we offer in the Maya calendar series is a unique and personal piece because it represents a date that is linked to you. Therefore, we cannot offer you the same conditions as for our other custom order jewels. We will not be able to put the jewel in our shop afterwards if you do not like it because it is too personal. So first, we will send you the sketch corresponding to your date. If you want to go on and have the jewel made, we will only make it once you buy your cart.

We only offer some examples of different types of jewels but do not hesitate to contact us to tell us if you would like something else: rings, brooches, earrings, pendants, cufflinks…

Our sterling silver jewels made with the date of the Maya calendar

	Stud earrings with a date of the Tzolkin calendar (1 x 1.3cm approximately)
	Stud earrings with two different dates of the Tzolkin calendar (1 x 1.3cm approximately)
	Stud earrings with the date of the Mayan calendar wheel (1 x 1.3cm approximately)
	Pendant with the long Count date (7 x 2 cm)
	Brooch with the long Count date (5 x 2 cm)
	Earrings with the long Count date (7 x 2 cm)
	Earrings with the two different long Count dates (7 x 2 cm)
	Ring with a Tzolkin glyph
	Maya Long Count Calendar ring

The Mayan calendar, explanations

We talk about the Maya calendar but actually, the term "Maya calendars" in plural would be a better expression. Indeed, this Pre-Columbian civilization of Mexico mainly used three calendars in order to assess time. But there are actually a lot of them. We mainly find:

• The sacred calendar called Tzolkin, made of 260 days.
• The civil calendar called Haab, of 365 days.
• The long Count calendar.

All the calendars were controlled by the "scientists" of that period, that is to say priests. They owned the mathematic and astronomic knowledge. Their rank was called Ah Kin.

Very often, it is said that the Mayan calendar has Olmec origins, their mother civilization. The similarity with other systems such as the ones of the Aztecs of the Mixtecs shows identical workings, which could probably have a common origin.

The Maya Tzolkin calendar

The word Tolkin means "the counting of the days". This Mayan calendar is made of 260 days named Kines. They are composed of 20 months and 13 days. Months are represented by glyphs, and days by numbers.

You can find two origins for calculating in this civilization: first is the relation with the human gestation, or the link with the planet Venus.

It was used to plan agricultural activities (periods and durations of rains, sowings, harvests…), the periods for hunting and fishing, religious ceremonies, and also to define the destiny of people.

In fact, the number and the glyph allowed a divine interpretation, positive or negative, which would interfere in the life of the Mayas. The Tzolkin birthday of a Maya would actually strongly define his destiny.

The Mayan Haab calendar

The Maya Haab calendar measures the solar year. It is made of 365 days divided in 18 months (Uinales) of 20 days (Kines). The cycle ends by 5 extra days in order to complete the calendar that is called Uayeb. They were considered as harmful and no activity was made during that period.

The Haab is the basis of the religious community calendar and would indicate the ceremonies of the year.

The wheel of the Maya calendar

Nor the Tzolkin neither the Haab would count the years. Therefore, it is the combination of both systems that must have been used to settle the daily life and rituals of the Mayas. It is the minimum date that you will find on most of the Mayan monuments.

The Tzolking and the Haab are combined to create a longer cycle of 52 years at the end of which you will start all over again. At the end of this cycle, both calendars would start from zero. This system is generally represented by 3 gear wheels: the smallest one (B) marking the numbers of the days of the the Tzolkin wheel (A), embedded in the big Haab wheel (C).

This cycle is made of 52 Tunes or Haabs, or 18 980 Kines (days). The new cycle was celebrated by the ceremony of the new fire that would correspond to a century in our time conception.

The Mayan long Count

The Maya long Count was used to encode an important event in a more precise way and as a complement to the dates given by the Haab and the Tzolkin.

The long Count, corresponding to a Maya era, started on the 0.0.0.0.0 4 Ahau and 8 Cumkú that would correspond to the 11th of august 3114 before Christ in the Gregorian calendar (according to what Is generally accepted).

As everybody now knows, the cycle of the Mayan long Count ended on the 20th of december 2012 or on the 12.19.19.17.19 3 Cuauc 2 Kankin. No end of the world… But a new Maya era which started on the 21 of december 2012, or on the 13.0.0.0.0 4 Ahau 3 Kankin.

The system of calculating time is based on the number 20. Each unit represents then a multiple of 20. Each of these levels had a specific name. The Maya basic unit was the Kin or a solar day. Here is the grid for these units:

Maya name	Days	Equivalent	Meaning	Glyph
Kin	1		"time" or "sun"
Uinal	20	20 Kin	"human being"
Tun	360	18 Uinal	"stone"
Katún	7 200	20 Tun ou 360 Uinales	"20 years"
Baktún	144 000	7 200 Uinales, 400 Tunes ou 20 Katunes

You can find other units, multiple of twenty, but hardly used by Mayas: piktún, kalabtún, kinchinltún, and alautún.

The 9 lords of the night from the Maya calendar

In order to complete and to be exact on the Maya long Count dating, we have to add one of the lords of the night.

It is another calendar cycle of 9 days. Each represents one of the lords of the night and it is placed first in the order of the calendar.

We know nothing about them, not even their names. So they were named after a reference that goes from G-1 to G-9. But even if we don't know a lot about them, they had to be present on one of our jewels made with the Maya calendar.

G-1		G-2		G-3
G-4		G-5		G-6
G-7		G-8		G-9

The introduction glyphs for the Maya dates

Eventually, in order to complete it, a date was marked by an introduction glyph that is specific to each month. It was generally larger to cover the whole thing.

Ceh

Zec

Zip

There are other Mayan calendar systems that are less used, such as the moon series that give information on the moon phases. We can also find the solar cycle based on the equinoxes and solstices, or on Venus. All were used by Maya priests in their divination system.