The Moonscale is an ancient, though highly accurate dating system, used mainly by academic s. It is named after Hirèrk, the westernmost province of Miyarris, an ancient civilisation long since lost. The current year in HM is 4110, of the Fourth Aeon.

History

The Moonscale was devised in Miyarris some time in the 9th millennium since Founding. Some believe it is even older, tracing it to the mythic Icerealm of Orodien, or even further back in history. Today, only Anarthis officially uses the calendar, but because almost every nation uses a calendar of its own relative to it's foundation or religion, the Moonscale is used as an accurate comparator.

Aeons

In it's original Miyarrain form, the Moonscale describes time as a great wheel, with a series of Aeons, of peace or strife, each separated by a transitional phase of turmoil, marked by floods, storms, famine and war. In fact, the scale accurately measures the cycle of Ice Ages and Interglacials, created by the world ’s axial and orbital oscillations.

Human civilisation began in the middle of the Primary Glacial, the longest and most stable part of the cycle, when sea levels were at their lowest and land area greatest. This was the First Aeon, now a mythic time of "God-Men", over 17 millennia ago.

The Second Aeon was a dark age, during which humans fell back into barbarism and spread out across the world. The high point of the Third Aeon was the establishment of Miyarrous, an advanced civilisation in a temperate crescent of land, to the east of modern Anasthias. The Miyarrain people strove to build a enlightened society based on logic and learning, dedicated to rediscovering the lost knowledge of ancient times.

Miyarrous was destroyed at the end of that age, approx four millennia ago. In the Fourth Aeon, Miyarrain refugees spread westwards to create new societies, blending with the established "barbarians" to create a synthesis of culture that has been the modern age.

Modern useage

Most modern governments view the Moonscale as an archaic allegorical tool, and do not believe that the predicted cataclysms are based on real events. Mercifully the Fourth Aeon is the Primary Interglacial, a long age of high sea levels and relative stability, and civilisation has another two thousand years to prepare for the Fifth Aeon.

The Calendar

The calendar is a model of Miyarrain logic, and is the world's most accurate calendar.

According to the Moonscale, each solar year has 414 days. This is divided into 10 months, each having four 10-day weeks, plus a one-day festival at the start of each month. This makes each month 41 days long, exactly the cycle of the moon Themsa - hence it being called the "moon scale". There are also four solar festivals at the four corners of the year, making the full 414 days. An extra leap day is added every 5 years.