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<a name="Ancient-time-signatures"></a>
Previous: <a rel="previous" accesskey="p" href="Ancient-flags.html#Ancient-flags">Ancient flags</a>,
Up: <a rel="up" accesskey="u" href="Alternative-note-signs.html#Alternative-note-signs">Alternative note signs</a>
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<h5 class="subsubsection">2.8.2.6 Ancient time signatures</h5>
<p><a name="index-mensuration-sign-2240"></a><a name="index-time-signatures-2241"></a>
There is limited support for mensuration signs (which are similar to, but
not exactly the same as time signatures). The glyphs are hard-wired to
particular time fractions. In other words, to get a particular mensuration
sign with the <code>\time n/m</code> command, <code>n</code> and <code>m</code> have to be
chosen according to the following table
<blockquote>
<p>
<a href="../06/lily-82ae106c.ly">
<img align="middle"
border="0" src="../06/lily-82ae106c.png" alt="[image of music]">
</a>
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Use the <code>style</code> property of grob <a name="index-TimeSignature-2242"></a><a href="../lilypond-internals/TimeSignature.html#TimeSignature">TimeSignature</a> to
select ancient time signatures. Supported styles are
<code>neomensural</code> and <code>mensural</code>. The above table uses the
<code>neomensural</code> style. This style is appropriate for the
incipit of transcriptions of mensural pieces. The <code>mensural</code>
style mimics the look of historical printings of the 16th century.
<p>The following examples show the differences in style,
<blockquote>
<p>
<a href="../8c/lily-6d8b6262.ly">
<img align="middle"
border="0" src="../8c/lily-6d8b6262.png" alt="[image of music]">
</a>
</p>
</blockquote>
<p class="noindent">
<h5 class="subsubheading">See also</h5>
<p class="indent">
<p>Notation Reference: <a href="Time-signature.html#Time-signature">Time signature</a>, gives a general introduction to
the use of time signatures.
<p class="noindent">
<h5 class="subsubheading">Known issues and warnings</h5>
<p>Ratios of note durations do not change with the time signature. For
example, the ratio of 1 breve = 3 semibreves (<em>tempus perfectum</em>) must
be made by hand, by setting
<pre class="example">breveTP = #(ly:make-duration -1 0 3 2)
...
{ c\breveTP f1 }
</pre>
<p class="noindent">This sets <code>breveTP</code> to 3/2 times 2 = 3 times a whole note.
<p>The <code>old6/8alt</code> symbol (an alternate symbol for 6/8) is not
addressable with <code>\time</code>. Use a <code>\markup</code> instead
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