"Since the first edition of this pamphlet appeared in the year 1897 investigation in this department of scien­ce has made such marked progress notwithstanding the sli­ght amount of material that a revision has now become de­sirable. It can be readily understood that a new science an investigation on virgin soil such as the Maya study is ma­kes more rapid progress and develops more quickly than one pertaining to some old much explored territory. In addition to numerous separate treatises special men­tion should be made of Ernst Förstemann's commenta­ries on the three Maya manuscripts (Kommentar zur Ma­yahandschrift der Königlichen öffentlichen Bibliothek zu Dresden Dresden 1901 Kommentar zur Madrider Maya­handschrift Danzig 1902 and Kommentar zur Pariser Maya­handschrift Danzig 1903) which constitute a summary of the entire results of investigation in this field up to the present time."