In the Mamari moon calendar there are 8 periods evenly divided into two halves (36 + 36 glyphs), and in each of the periods a complex glyph has sun (hetuu) at left and moon (ika) at right (excepting the special Ca7-1):
The moon fishes are moving upwards during waxing and downwards during waning. The rima aueue signs are all of the same general kind (with 'knee'). At the time of full moon (inserted at the end of period 4) Metoro said te kava when commenting Ca7-21:
The form at left (another entity than marama at right) I once identifed as rima aueue when classifiying all glyphs. It is different from the other 8 rima aueue signs, it is an extension downwards from waxing moon (left). Sun is not involved. Waxing moon is drawn to be in a higher position than waning moon, which is necessary when a fluid should run from waxing to waning. A transfer from waxing to waning cannot occur before 33 glyphs, because 32 probably was the number used to express the last phase of 'multiplication' (growth). After 32 full moon has been reached, a time when moon does not grow any more (but still has not begun to wane). Although the Easter Islanders certainly knew that waxing and waning moon were just the two sides of a single 'coin', the left and right sides of Ca7-21 are drawn as two separate entities. The idea may have been to illustrate how the flow is blocked, that there is no input to waning moon and that therefore she is bound to wane. |
