Maya vigesimal numerals with zero
Numeración vigesimal maya con cero
- Date
- 36 BCE · confidence medium
- Place
- Chiapa de Corzo and Tikal, Mesoamerica
- Credited to
- Late Olmec and Maya cultures
- Field
- Knowledge & symbols
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What was discovered
A base-20 positional system with a sign for zero (a shell), used in the Long Count for dates. One of the few independent inventions of positional zero in the world.
Stela 2 at Chiapa de Corzo (36 BCE) bears the oldest known Long Count date; its zero was never used in general arithmetic calculation.
What it led to
- the Long Count calendar
- Maya astronomy (Venus tables)
Built on
- Mesoamerican base-20 counting
Made possible
- highly precise calendars