Golden Number

The Golden Number is a number between 1 and 19 indicating the place of a year in the Metonic Cycle, according to which the new moon of any month occurs on the same day every 20 years. When the Metonic Cycle came into use in 432 BC, inscriptions made with golden letters were set up in large cities such as Athens indicating the number of the year in the cycle. In the year 1 BC, the new moon fell on January 1. To find the golden number of any year, add 1 to the year and divide by 19. The remainder is the golden number of that year. If there is no remainder, the golden number is 19. The golden number is used in finding the date of Easter.