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© Copyright 2000, Jim Loy
The Egyptian calendar consisted of 360 days, divided up into three
seasons (inundation, winter, summer) of four months of thirty days each. At the
end of the year, 5 "epagomenal" feast days were added, for a year of
365 days. The years were counted from the beginning of the current king's
reign. So, year 2 was the second year of his reign. The months of a season were
normally numbered (1 through 4) rather than named.
With only 365 days, the calendar gained 1/4 day on the true astronomical year, every year. And the calendar was in use for thousands of years. So most of the time, the calendar season and day did not match reality. At times the Inundation season was observed at radically different times of the year, such as in the actual winter. The Egyptians knew this, and apparently were not concerned. They were able to accurately calculate the real time of the inundation, regardless of what their calendar said.