Re: Why not 13 months? (Was La Systeme Metrique)

Jeffrey L Baker (jbaker@gas.uug.arizona.edu)
Tue, 8 Aug 1995 10:46:20 -0700

On 8 Aug 1995, Stephen Souter wrote:

> (BTW, at least one such calendar has already been devised, albeit for
> literary purposes: by Tolkien for _The Lord of the Rings_. If memory
> serves, his solution for the excess days was to not only deprive them of a
> place in any week, but to put them outside the months as well.)
>
> --
> Stephen Souter
> souters@mackie.edfac.usyd.edu.au

Placing the extra days outside of a month has actually been done.

In Prehispanic Mesoamerica, the 365 day calendar had five festival days
tacked on to the end of the year that were not part of any month.
These festival days were considered unlucky, and people were supposed
to go out of the house at this time.

Jeff Baker

P.S. I have considerably reduced the newsgroups this is being posted to.
It was getting a bit ridiculous.