The combination of the 260 with the 365-day calendar results in a larger cycle of 18,980 days (the lowest common multiple of 260 and 365); this combination has been called the calendar round. Its four elements (number-glyph Kin and number-glyph Winal) together are only repeated every 18,980 days. On a large number of Maya monuments the date is only recorded in the Calendar Round.


The Maya kept a count of the days, which begins on the initial date of this Maya era. This count is called the "Long Count" or the "Initial Series". According to the GMT 584,285 correlation the present Long Count initiated on August 13, 3114 BC (Gregorian).

The long count system is very simple, each Kin is worth one day, when the kin reaches 20, you start the count again (from 0) and add one to the Winal, when the Winal reaches 19 you start again from 0, an one to the Tun, when the Tun reaches 20 you do the same with the Katun, when the Katun reaches 20 you do the same with the Baktun, finally when the Baktun reaches 20, it's suppose to be the start of a new era.

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Introduction|The two calendars|Interactive Calendar