Chapter III (1)

ANTIQUITIES OF SALVADOR AND HONDURAS. RUINS OF COPAN.

SALVADOR -- OPICO REMAINS -- MOUNDS OF JIBOA -- RELICS OF
LAKE GUIJAR -- HONDURAS -- GUANAJA -- WALL -- STONE CHAIRS
-- ROATAN -- POTTERY -- OLANCHO RELICS -- MOUNDS OF AGALTA
AND ABAJO -- HACIENDA OF LABRANZA -- COMAYAGUA -- STONE
DOG-IDOL -- TERRACED MOUNDS OF CALAMULLA -- TUMULI ON RIO
CHIQUINQUARE -- EARTHEN VASES OF YARUMELA -- FORTIFIED
PLATEAU OF TENAMPUA -- PYRAMIDS, ENCLOSURES, AND
EXCAVATIONS -- STONE WALLS -- PARALLEL MOUNDS --
CLIFF-CARVINGS AT ARAMACINA -- COPAN -- HISTORY AND
BIBLIOGRAPHY -- PALACIO, FUENTES, GALINDO, STEPHENS, DALY,
ELLERY, HARDCASTLE, BRASSEUR DE BOURBOURG -- PLAN OF RUINS
RESTORED -- QUARRY AND CAVE -- OUTSIDE MONUMENTS --
ENCLOSING WALLS -- THE TEMPLE -- COURTS -- VAULTS --
PYRAMID -- IDOLS -- ALTARS -- MISCELLANEOUS RELICS --
HUMAN REMAINS -- LIME -- COLOSSAL HEADS -- REMARKABLE
ALTARS -- GENERAL REMARKS.

[Sidenote: ANTIQUITIES OF SALVADOR.]

Following the continent westward from Nicaragua, we have the state of Salvador on the Pacific side, stretching some one hundred and eighty miles from the gulf of Fonseca to the Rio de Paza, the Guatemalan boundary, and extending inland about eighty miles. Here, in the central province of San Vicente, a few miles southward from the capital city of the same name, I find the first well-authenticated instance in our progress northward of the occurrence of ruined edifices. But of these ruins we only know that they are the most imposing monuments in the state, covering nearly two square miles at the foot of the volcano of Opico, and that they consist of "vast terraces, ruins of edifices, and circular and square towers, and subterranean galleries, all built of cut stones. A single carving has been found here, on a block of stone eight feet long by four broad. It is in the true Mexican style, representing probably a prince or great warrior."[III-1] Several mounds, considerable in size and regular in outline, were noted on the plain of Jiboa west of San Vicente; also similar ones near Sonsonato in the south-western portion of the state. In the north-west on the Guatemalan boundary, aboriginal relics are vaguely reported on the islands of Lake Guijar, but of them nothing is known.[III-2] And concerning Salvador monuments nothing further is to be said, although Mr Squier heard of ruins in that state rivaling in extent and interest the famous Copan.[III-3]

* * * * *

On the other side of the continent, reaching also across to the Pacific at the gulf of Fonseca, north of Nicaragua, the Mosquito coast, and Salvador, is the state of Honduras. It extends over three hundred and fifty miles westward along the Atlantic shore, from Cape Gracias á Dios nearly to the narrowest point of the isthmus where America is a second time so nearly cut in twain by the gulfs of Honduras and Dulce. The mountain chains which skirt the valley of the Motagua on the south, known as the sierras of Grita, Espíritu Santo, Merendon, Copan, etc., form the boundary line between Honduras and Guatemala. The northern coast, closely resembling in its general character the Mosquito shore, has preserved along its marshy lagoons, so far as they have been explored, no traces of its early occupants. Yet on the coast islands some relics appear. On that of Guanaja, whence in 1502 Columbus first beheld the continent of North America, is reported a wall of considerable extent, only a few feet high, with three-legged stone chairs fixed at intervals in rude niches or fissures along its sides. Chair-shaped excavations in solid rock occur at several other points on the island, together with rudely molded but fantastically decorated vessels of earthen ware. The Guanaja remains are chiefly found in the vicinity of the Savanna Bight Kay.[III-4] On the neighboring island of Roatan fragments of aboriginal pottery and small stone idols are found scattered through the forest.[III-5]

The eastern interior of Honduras, by reason of its gold mines, has been more extensively explored than the Mosquito region farther south; yet with respect to the departments of Olancho and Tegucigalpa I only find the statement by Mr Wells that "mounds containing specimens of ancient pottery are often met with by the _vaqueros_ while exploring the gloomy depths of the forest, but these seldom survive the destructive curiosity of the natives;" this chiefly in the valleys of Agalta and Abajo, and on the hacienda of Labranza. The pottery takes the form of pans and jars to the number of ten to thirty in each mound; no idols or human remains having been reported.[III-6]

[Sidenote: COMAYAGUA RELICS.]

Still farther west, in the valley of Comayagua, midway between the oceans, about the head-waters of the rivers, to which the names Ulua, Goascoran, and Choluteca are applied as often as any others on the maps, there are abundant works of the former natives, made known, but unfortunately only described in part, by Mr Squier. These works chiefly occur on the terraces of the small branch valleys which radiate from that of Comayagua as a centre, in localities named as follows: Chapulistagua, Jamalteca, Guasistagua, Chapuluca, Tenampua, Maniani, Tambla, Yarumela, Calamulla, Lajamini, and Cururu. The ruins are spoken of in general terms as consisting of "large pyramidal, terraced structures, often faced with stones, conical mounds of earth, and walls of stone. In these, and in their vicinity, are found carvings in stone, and painted vases of great beauty." Concerning most of the localities mentioned we have no further details, and must form an idea of their nature from the few that are partially described, since a similarity is apparent between all the monuments of the region.

About Comayagua, or Nueva Valladolid, we are informed that "hardly a step can be taken in any direction without encountering evidences of aboriginal occupation," the only relic specified, however, being a stone idol of canine form now occupying a position in the walls of the church of Our Lady of Dolores. At Tambla, some leagues south-east of Comayagua, was found the fossil skeleton of a mastodon, whose tooth is shown in the cut, imbedded in a sandstone formation.[III-7] One of the stratified sandstone terraces of the sierra south-west of Comayagua forms a fertile table over three thousand feet above the level of the sea; and on its surface, in an area of ten or twelve acres inclosed by a spring-fed mountain stream, are the ruins of Calamulla, consisting simply of mounds. Of these, two are large, one about one hundred feet long, with two stages, having a flight of steps on the western slope. It shows clear traces of having been originally faced with flat stones, now for the most part removed. Most of the mounds are of earth in terraces, and some of rectangular outline have a small conical mound raised a few feet above the surface of their upper platform. Stone-heaps of irregular form also occur; perhaps places of sepulture; at least differing in their use from the tumuli of more regular outlines which may readily be imagined once to have supported superimposed structures of more perishable materials. The natives have traditions, probably unfounded, of subterranean chambers and galleries beneath this spot. In the same vicinity, near the banks of the Rio Chiquinguare, and about a league from the pueblo of Yarumela, is another group of mounds, lying partly in the forest and partly in lands now under native cultivation. These remains, although in a more advanced state of ruin, are very similar to those of the Calamulla group. It is noted, however, that the tumuli are carefully oriented, and that some have stone steps in the centre of each side. In one or two cases there even remained standing portions of cut-stone walls. Local tradition, which as a rule amounts to nothing in such cases, seems to indicate that these structures were already in a ruined state before the Spanish conquest. At the town of Yarumela, and presumably taken from the group described, were seen, besides a few curiously carved stones, six earthen vases of superior workmanship and design, one of which is represented in the cut, together with separate and enlarged portions of its ornamentation, which is both carved and painted. The flying deity painted in outline on one of its faces is pronounced by Mr Squier identical with one of the characters of the Dresden Codex.[III-8]

[Sidenote: RUINS OF TENAMPUA.]

At Tenampua, or Pueblo Viejo, twenty miles south-east of Comayagua, near Flores, is a hill of white stratified sandstone, whose sides rise precipitously to a height of sixteen hundred feet above the level of the surrounding plain. The summit forms a level plateau one half a mile wide and one mile and a half long from east to west. On the eastern half chiefly, but also spreading over the whole surface of this lofty plateau, is the most extensive group of ancient works in the whole region, and in fact the only one of which we have a description at all in detail. As in the other localities of this part of the state, the group is made up for the most part of rectangular oriented mounds, some of stone, but most of earth, with a stone facing. The smaller mounds are apparently arranged in groups according to some system; they vary in size from twenty to thirty feet in height, having from two to four stages. The larger pyramidal tumuli are from sixty to one hundred feet long and of proportionate width and altitude, with in many cases a flight of steps in the centre of the side facing the west.

[Sidenote: RUINS OF TENAMPUA.]

The structures that have been described are as follows, it being understood that they are but a part of the whole: A mound located on the very edge of the southern precipice commands a broad view over the whole plain of Comayagua, and its position suggests its possible aboriginal use as a station for fire-signals. Just north of this is an excavation, or perhaps a small natural valley, whose sides are faced with stone in steps leading up the slope on all four sides. In the centre of the eastern half of the plain, and consequently in the midst of the principal ruins, is what may be regarded as the chief structure of the group, commanding a view of all the rest. The annexed cut, made up from the description, will aid in giving a clear idea of the work. Two stone walls, an outer and an inner, about ten feet apart, each two feet thick, of which only a few feet in height remain standing, enclose a rectangular area of one hundred and eighty by three hundred feet. Cross-walls at regular intervals divide the space between the two into rectangular apartments now filled with earth to a depth of two feet. The walls terminate on the western side in two oblong terraced mounds between which is the only entrance to the enclosure; while on the opposite side in a corresponding position on the eastern wall is a mound equal in bulk to both the western ones combined. Within the inclosure is a large pyramidal mound in three stages, with a flight of steps on the west, situated just south of a central east and west line. From its south-west corner a line of imbedded stones runs to the southern wall; and between the pyramid and the gateway is a small square of stones. A similar mound, also provided with a stairway, is found in the north-east corner of the enclosure. The stones of which the walls and facings are made, indeed of all the stone work at Tenampua, are not hewn, but very carefully laid, no mention being made of mortar. All the structures are carefully oriented. At the south-east corner of the plateau is a second enclosure which has a gateway in the centre of each of its four equal sides, but whose dimensions are not given. This has in its area two mounds, each with a stairway. Elsewhere, its location on the plateau not being stated, is a raised terrace, or platform, three hundred and sixty feet long, containing one of the most remarkable features of the place, in the form of two parallel mounds one hundred and forty feet long, thirty-six feet wide at the base, ten feet high, and forty feet apart at their inner and lower edges. The outer sides have double walls like those of the chief enclosure, divided into three compartments, and having served apparently as the foundations of three separate buildings. The inner side of each mound slopes in three terraces, the lower ones being faced with large flat stones set upright. In a line with the centre between these parallels and at a distance of one hundred and twenty paces is a mound with a stairway on its southern slope, and at a distance of twenty-four paces on the same line, but in a direction not stated, are two large stones carefully placed with a space of one foot between them. The conjectural use of these parallels, like that of somewhat similar ones which we shall meet elsewhere, is for the accommodation of the ancient nobility or priesthood in their games or processions. On the west end of the plateau are two perpendicular excavations in the rock, twenty feet square and twelve feet deep, with a gallery three feet square leading northward from the bottom of each. The natives have an idea that these passages lead to the ruins of Chapulistagua, but they are probably of natural formation with artificial improvements, and of no great extent. The remains of a pyramid are found in the vicinity of the holes. Near the centre of the plateau, in a spot naturally low and marshy, are two large square excavations which may have been reservoirs. In addition to the works described are over three hundred mounds or truncated pyramids of different sizes, scattered over the surface of the plateau, to the location and arrangement of which, in the absence of a plan, we have no guide. They are covered with a heavy growth of timber, some of them supporting pine-trees two feet in diameter. Only one was opened and its interior found to consist simply of earth, except the upper terrace which was ashes and burned matter, containing fragments of pottery and of obsidian knives. The pottery is chiefly in the form of small flat pans and vases, all decorated with simple painted figures; and one small gourd-shaped vase, nearly entire, was filled with some black indurated matter so hard as not to be removable. As to the original purposes to which the structures of Tenampua were devoted, speculation points with much plausibility to religious ceremonies and temples in the case of the enclosures and larger pyramids; to sepulchral rites in that of the smaller mounds; while the strong natural position of the works on a plateau with high, precipitous, and at nearly every point inaccessible sides, indicates that defense was an important consideration with the builders. The supposed reservoirs favor this theory, which is rendered a certainty by the fortifications which protect the approach to the plateau at the only accessible points, on three narrow ridges connecting this hill with others of the range. These fortifications are walls of rough stone, from six to fifteen feet high and ten to twenty feet thick at the base, according to the weakness or strength of the location. Gullies on the slopes which might afford a cover for approaching foes are carefully filled with stones; and the walls themselves, which also have traces of towers at intervals, while presenting a perpendicular exterior, are terraced on the inside for the convenience of the defenders. Yet the poor thin soil, incapable of supporting a large number of people, indicates that it was not probably a fortified town, but that it must be regarded as a place sacred to the gods, to be defended to the last, and possibly a refuge for the people of the towns below in cases of extreme danger.[III-9]

[Sidenote: CLIFF-CARVINGS OF ARAMACINA.]

Southward from Comayagua, toward the Pacific shore, we find relics of former times near Aramacina, in the Goascoran region. Here the smooth vertical face of a sandstone ledge forms one side of a natural amphitheatre, and is covered, for a space of one hundred by fifteen feet, with engraved figures cut to a depth of two and a half inches, the incisions serving as convenient steps by which to mount the cliff. Some of the engravings have been destroyed by modern quarry-men; of those remaining some seem to be ornamental and arbitrary, while in others the forms of men and animals may be distinguished. They are pronounced by the observer identical in style with the inscriptions of Nicaragua and Salvador, of whose existence in the latter state we have no other intimation.[III-10]

* * * * *

But one group of antiquities in Honduras remains to be described,--Copan, the most wonderful of all, and one of the most famous of American ruins. The location is in a most fertile tobacco-producing region near the Guatemalan boundary, on the eastern bank of the Rio Copan, which flows northward to join the Motagua some fifty miles below the ruins, at a point something more than one hundred miles above its mouth in the bay of Honduras.[III-11]

Some rapids occur in the Copan River below the ruins, but in the season of high water it is navigable for canoes for a greater part of its course. The name Copan, so far as can be known, was applied to the ruins simply from their vicinity to an adjacent hamlet or Indian pueblo so named, which is located at the mouth of a small stream, called Sesesmil by Col. Galindo, which empties into the Copan a little higher up. This pueblo has greatly deteriorated in later times; formerly both town and province were rich and prosperous. Indeed, in the sixteenth century, in the revolt which broke out soon after the first conquest, the cacique of Copan resisted the Spanish forces long after the neighboring provinces had been subdued. Driven eventually to his chief town, he opposed barricades and ditches to the advancing foe, but was at last forced after a desperate struggle to yield to Hernando de Chaves in 1530. It was formerly supposed that the place where he made his brave stand against Chaves was identical with the ancient city since called Copan, its ruin dating from its fall in 1530. It is now believed, however, that there was no connection whatever between the two, and that, so far as the ruined city of antiquity is concerned, history is absolutely silent. This conclusion is based on the facts that Cortés in his famous march through Honduras in 1524, although passing within a few leagues of this place, heard nothing of so wonderful a city, as he could hardly have failed to do had it been inhabited at the time; that there is not the slightest resemblance between the ruined structures to be described in these pages and the town besieged by Chaves as reported in the chronicles of the period; and above all that the ruins are described by Palacio as being very nearly in their present state, with nothing but the vaguest traditions respecting their origin, only about forty years after the fall of the brave cacique, the latter fact, however, not having been known to those authors who have stated that Copan was inhabited at the conquest.[III-12]

[Sidenote: EXPLORATION OF THE RUINS.]

This region has never been really explored with a view to the discovery of ancient relics. The few visitors, of whose explorations I give the history and bibliography in full in the annexed note,[III-13] have found enough of the wonderful in the monuments known to exist since the sixteenth century, without pushing their investigations back into the dense and almost impenetrable forest away from the immediate banks of the river. The difficulty attending antiquarian research in a country where the whole surface is covered with so dense a growth that progress in any direction is possible only foot by foot with the aid of the native machete, may be imagined. A hot climate, a moist and malarious atmosphere, venomous serpents and reptiles, myriads of diminutive demons in the form of insects, all do most vigorous battle against the advances of the foreign explorer, while the apathetic natives, whether of American or Spanish blood, feel not the slightest enthusiasm to unveil the mysterious works of the antiguos.

For what is known of Copan the world is indebted almost entirely to the works of the American traveler, Mr John L. Stephens, and of his most skilful artist-companion, Mr F. Catherwood;[III-14] and from the works of these gentlemen, with the slight notes to be gleaned from other sources, I proceed to give all that is known of what is commonly termed the oldest city on the American continent. I will begin by giving Juarros' description in full, since few or none of the objects mentioned by him can be identified with any of those met in the following pages. "In the year 1700, the Great Circus of Copan, still remained entire. This was a circular space, surrounded by stone pyramids about six yards high, and very well constructed; at the bases of these pyramids were figures, both male and female, of very excellent sculpture, which then retained the colours they had been enamelled with; and, what was not less remarkable, the whole of them were habited in the Castilian costume. In the middle of this area, elevated above a flight of steps, was the place of sacrifice. The same author (Fuentes) relates that, at a short distance from the Circus, there was a portal constructed of stone, on the columns of which were the figures of men, likewise represented in Spanish habits, with hose, ruff round the neck, sword, cap, and short cloak. On entering the gateway there are two fine stone pyramids, moderately large and lofty, from which is suspended a hammock that contains two human figures, one of each sex, clothed in the Indian style. Astonishment is forcibly excited on viewing this structure, because, large as it is, there is no appearance of the component parts being joined together; and, although entirely of stone, and of an enormous weight, it may be put in motion by the slightest impulse of the hand. Not far from this hammock is the cave of Tibulca; this appears like a temple of great size, hollowed out of the base of a hill, and adorned with columns having bases, pedestals, capitals and crowns, all accurately adjusted according to architectural principles; at the sides are numerous windows faced with stone exquisitely wrought. All these circumstances lead to a belief that there must have been some intercourse between the inhabitants of the old and new world at very remote periods."[III-15]

[Sidenote: EXTENT OF THE RUINS.]

The ruins are always spoken of as extending two miles along the bank of the river; yet all the structures described or definitely located by any visitor, are included in the much smaller area shown on Mr Stephens' plan, with, however, the following exceptions: "A stone wall with a circular building and a pit, apparently for a reservoir," is found about a mile up the river; the quarry which supplied material for all the structures and statues,--a soft grit interspersed with hard flinty lumps,--is in a range of hills two miles north of the river, where are scattered many blocks rejected by the ancient workers, one being seen on the very top of the range, and another, the largest noted, half-way between the quarry and its destination at the ruins; Fuentes' wonderful cave of Tibulca is in the same range of hills, and may be identical with the quarry, or, as Col. Galindo thinks, with a natural cave in a mountain two leagues distant; one monument is mentioned at a distance of a mile across the river on the summit of a mountain two thousand feet high, but this does not appear to have been visited; and finally, the natives reported to Mr Hardcastle a causeway in the forest, several leagues in length. Yet although so very little is known of outside monuments, there can be no doubt that such exist, not improbably of great extent and interest; since, although heaps of ruins and fragments are vaguely reported in every direction, no attempt at a thorough examination has ever been made or indeed could be, except by removing the whole forest by a conflagration during the dry season.[III-16]

The plan on the opposite page shows the ruins in their actual state, according to Mr Stephens' survey, together with a restoration to what seems to have been something like their original condition. The union of the two effects in one plate is, I believe, a sufficient reason for indulging to this extent in a fancy for restoration, justly condemned by antiquarians as a rule.[III-17]

Returning then to the limits of the plan, we find portions of a wall, _a_, _a_, _a_, which when entire, as indicated by the dotted lines, seems to have enclosed a nearly rectangular area, measuring in general terms 900 by 1600 feet. Whatever treasures of antiquity may be hid in the depths of the forest, there can be but little doubt that this enclosure embraced the leading structures or sacred edifices of the ancient town. These walls would seem at least twenty-five feet thick at the base, and are built, like all the Copan structures, of large blocks of cut stone, of varying but not expressly stated dimensions. They are built, in parts at least, in terraces or steps, and painted. Only one authority speaks of the use of mortar.[III-18]

[Sidenote: THE GREAT TEMPLE.]

In the north-west corner of the enclosure, nearly filling its northern half, is the chief structure which has been called the Temple. Its dimensions are 624 feet north and south by 809 feet east and west.[III-19] From the remains the Temple in its original state is seen to have been an immense terrace, with sides sloped toward the land but perpendicular on the river, on the platform of which were both pyramidal elevations and sunken courts of regular rectangular outlines. The river wall, _b_, _c_, rises perpendicularly to a height, in its present ruined state, of from sixty to ninety feet, and the annexed cut gives its appearance from the opposite side of the river; but the original elevation of the terrace overlooking the river, judging from portions still intact, was about a hundred feet, some twenty-five or thirty feet of this elevation, at least at the northern end, being, however, the height of the original bank above the water; so that the terrace-platform of the whole Temple, _d_, _d_, _d_, must have been about seventy feet above the surface of the ground. The whole is built of cut stone in blocks a foot and a half wide by three to six feet long, and, without taking into account the excess of superimposed pyramids over sunken courts, must have required in round numbers over twenty-six million cubic feet of stone in its construction.[III-20]

The land sides on the north, east, and south, slope by steps of about eighteen inches each to a height of from thirty to 140 feet according as they are more or less fallen, extending also in some parts to the general level of the terrace-platform, and in others reaching in one incline to the top of the upper pyramids, E, E.[III-21] On the main platform are two sunken rectangular courts, marked on the plan A and B, whose floors or pavements seem to be about forty feet above the surface of the ground, and thirty feet below the level of the terrace. The court A is ninety by 144 feet, and ascends on all sides in regular steps like a Roman amphitheatre. The west side ascends in two flights each of fifteen steps, separated by a terrace twelve feet wide, to the platform overlooking the river, on which, at _i_, are the ruins of what were apparently two circular towers. From a point half-way up the steps a passage or gallery _m_, _n_, just large enough to afford passage to a crawling man, leads horizontally through to the face of the river-wall, the opening in which, visible from the opposite bank, has given to the ruins the name among the natives of Las Ventanas. Just below the entrance to this gallery, at _o_, is a pit five feet square, and seventeen feet deep, from the bottom of which a passage leads into a vault five feet wide, ten feet long, and four feet high, which, according to Col. Galindo's measurement, is twelve feet below the pavement of the court; the opening into this pit, at _o_, seems however to have been made by Galindo by excavation. The entrance to the court A is by the passage-way, C, C, from the north, the floor of which is on a level with that of the court. Similar steps lead up to the river-terrace on the west, while the pyramid D on the east rises to a height of 122 feet on the slope in steps or stages each six feet high and nine feet wide. The passage-way is thirty feet wide and over 300 feet long, and it seems probable that a flight of steps originally led up to the level of its entrance at _p_. The Court B is larger, but its steps are nearly all fallen, and it is now only remarkable for its altar, which will be described elsewhere.[III-22]

As I have said, all the steps and sides bear evident traces of having been originally painted. The whole structure is enveloped in a dense growth of shrubs and trees, which have been the chief agents in its ruin, penetrating every crevice with their roots and thus forcing apart the carefully laid superficial stones. Two immense ceiba-trees over six feet in diameter, with roots spreading from fifty to one hundred feet, are found on the summit of the lofty pyramid D.

[Sidenote: PYRAMIDS AT COPAN.]

Besides the temple, there are three small detached pyramids, I, F, G, the former fifty feet square and thirty feet high, between the last two of which there seems to have been a gateway, or entrance, to the enclosure. There are moreover the terraced walls _v_, _v_, of the plan, which require no additional description, but which extend for an unknown distance eastward into the forest. There are also shapeless heaps of fallen ruins scattered in every direction.[III-23]

[Sidenote: STATUES OR IDOLS.]

[Sidenote: SCULPTURED OBELISK.]

Next to the ruined Temple in importance, or even before it as an indication of the artistic skill of its builders, are the carved obelisks, statues, or idols, which are peculiar to this region, but remarkably similar to each other. Fourteen of these are more or less fully described, most of them standing and in good preservation, but several of this number, and probably many besides, fallen and broken. Their positions are shown on the plan by the numbers 1 to 14. It will be noticed that only one is actually within the structure known as the Temple, three standing at the foot of its outer terrace within the quadrangle H, and the remainder in a group at the southern part of the enclosure, two of the latter being at the foot of terraced walls. These statues are remarkable for their size and for their complicated and well-executed sculpture. Of the eight whose dimensions are given, the smallest, No. 13, is eleven feet eight inches high, three feet four inches wide and thick; and the largest, Nos. 2 and 3, are thirteen feet high, four feet wide, and three feet thick. The material is the same soft stone taken from the quarry which furnished the blocks for building the walls. As to their position, Nos. 3, 11, and 13 face toward the east; Nos. 1, 5, and 9, toward the west; and No. 10 toward the north; the others are either fallen or their position is not given. No. 1 is smaller at the bottom than at the top, and Col. Galindo mentions two others, on hills east and west of the city, which have a similar form; all the rest are of nearly uniform dimensions throughout their length. Several rest on pedestals from six to seven feet square, and No. 13 has also a circular stone foundation sixteen feet in diameter. In each a human face occupies a central position on the front, having in some instances something that may be intended to represent a beard and moustache. The faces are remarkably uniform in the expression of their features, generally calm and pleasant; but in the case of No. 11 the partially open lips, and eye-balls starting from their sockets, indicate a design on the part of the artist to inspire terror in the beholder of his work. The hands rest in nearly every instance back to back on the breast. The dress and decoration seem to indicate that some were intended for males, others for females; this and the presence or absence of beard are the only indications of sex observable. The feet are mostly dressed in sandals, as shown clearly in the cut from No. 7. Above and round the head is a complicated mass of the most elaborate ornamentation, which utterly defies verbal description. Mr Stephens notes something like an elephant's trunk among the decorations of No. 8. The sides and usually the backs are covered with hieroglyphics arranged in square tablets, which probably contain, as all observers are impelled to believe, the names, titles, and perhaps history of the beings whose images in stone they serve to decorate. The backs of several, however, have other figures in addition to the supposed hieroglyphics, as in No. 8, where is a human form sitting cross-legged; and in No. 10, in which the characters seem to be human in a variety of strange contortions, although arranged in tablets like the rest; and No. 13 has a human face in the centre of the back as well as front. The sculpture is all in high relief, and was originally painted red, traces of the color being well preserved in places protected from the action of the weather. I give cuts of two of these carved obelisks, Nos. 3, and 6, to illustrate as fully as possible the general appearance of these most wonderful creations of American art, the details and full beauties of which can only be appreciated in the large and finely engraved plates of Catherwood.

[Sidenote: SACRIFICIAL ALTARS.]

Standing from six to twelve feet in front of nine of the fourteen statues, and probably of all in their primitive state, are found blocks of stone which, apparently, can only have been employed for making offerings or sacrifices in honor of the statues, whose use as idols is rendered nearly certain by the uniform proximity of the altars. The altars are six or seven feet square and four feet high, taking a variety of forms, and being covered with sculpture somewhat less elaborate than the statues themselves, often buried and much defaced. Two of them, belonging to Nos. 10 and 7, are shown in the accompanying cuts. The former is five and a half feet in diameter, and three feet high, with two grooves in the top; the latter seven feet square and four feet high, supposed to represent a death's head. The top of the altar accompanying No. 9 is carved to represent the back of a tortoise; that of No. 13 consists of three heads strangely grouped. The grooves cut in the altars' upper surface are strongly suggestive of flowing blood, and of slaughtered victims.[III-24]

I will next mention the miscellaneous relics found in connection with the ruins, beginning with the court A. The vault already spoken of, whose entrance is at _o_, was undoubtedly intended for burial purposes. Both on the floor of the vault and in two small niches at its sides were found human bones, chiefly in vessels of red pottery, which were over fifty in number. Lime was found spread over the floor and mixed with human remains in the burial vases; also scattered on the floor were oyster and periwinkle shells, cave stalactites, sharp-edged and pointed knives of chaya stone, and three heads, one of them "apparently representing death, its eyes being nearly shut, and the lower features distorted; the back of the head symmetrically perforated by holes; the whole of most exquisite workmanship, and cut out or cast from a fine stone covered with green enamel." Another head, very likely one of the other two found in this vault, its locality, not, however, being specified, is two inches high, cut from green and white jade, hollow behind, and pierced in several places, probably for the introduction of a cord for its suspension. Its individual character and artistic workmanship created in Col. Galindo's mind the impression that it was customary with this people to wear as ornaments the portraits of deceased friends.[III-25]

Two thirds of the distance up the eastern steps at _u_, is the colossal head of the cut, which is about six feet high. Two other immense heads are overturned at the foot of the same slope; another is half-way up the southern steps at w; while numerous fragments of sculpture are scattered over the steps and pavement in every direction. There are no idols or altars here, but six circular stones from one foot and a half to three feet in diameter, found at the foot of the western stairway of the passage C, C, may have supported idols or columns originally.[III-26]

[Sidenote: ALTAR OF THE TEMPLE.]

In the court B, the only relic beside the statue No. 1 is a remarkable stone monument, generally termed an altar, at _x_. This is a solid block of stone six feet square and four feet high, resting on four globular stones, one under each corner. On the sides are carved sixteen human figures in profile, four on each side. Each figure is seated cross-legged on a kind of cushion which is apparently a hieroglyphic, among whose characters in two or three cases the serpent is observable. Each wears a breastplate, a head-dress like a turban,--no two being, however, exactly alike--and holds in one hand some object of unknown significance. The cut shows the north front of the altar. The two central figures on this side sit facing each other, with a tablet of hieroglyphics between them, and may readily be imagined to represent two kings or chiefs engaged in a consultation on important matters of state. According to Mr Stephens' text the other fourteen figures are divided into two equal parties, each following its leader. But the plates represent all those on the east and west as facing the south, while those on the south look toward the west. The top is covered with hieroglyphics in thirty-six squares, as shown the cut on the preceding page. A peculiarity of this altar is that its sculpture, unlike that of all the other monuments of Copan, is in low relief.[III-27]

[Sidenote: MISCELLANEOUS RELICS.]

The head shown in the cut is one of the fragments lying on the ground at the foot of the terraces that inclose the quadrangle H. On the slopes of these terraces, particularly of the eastern slope of the pyramid _e_, half-way from top to bottom, are rows of death's heads in stone. It is suggested that they represent the skulls of apes rather than of human beings, and that this animal, abundant in the country, may have been an object of veneration among the ancient people. One of the skulls is shown in the cut. The next cut pictures the head of an alligator carved in stone, found among the group of idols towards the south. Another is mentioned by Col. Galindo, as holding in its open jaws a figure, half human, half beast. A gigantic toad, standing erect, with human arms and tiger's claws, was another of the relics discovered by the same explorer, together with round plain stones pierced by a hole in the centre. Mr Davis talks of an architrave of black granite finely cut; and M. Waldeck corrects a statement, in a work by Balbi, that marble beds are to be found here. The portrait in the cut is from the fragments found at the north-west corner of the temple near _b_.[III-28]

[Sidenote: GENERAL CONCLUSIONS.]

Most of the general reflections and speculations on Copan indulged in by observers and students refer to other ruined cities in connection with this, and will be noted in a future chapter. It is to be remarked that besides pyramids and terraced walls, no traces whatever of buildings, public or private, remain to guide us in determining the material or style of architecture affected by the former people of this region. The absence of all traces of private dwellings we shall find universal throughout America, such structures having evidently been constructed of perishable materials; but among the more notable ruins of the Pacific States, Copan stands almost alone in its total lack of covered edifices. There would seem to be much reason for the belief that here grand temples of wood once covered these mighty mounds, which, decaying, have left no trace of their former grandeur.

Col. Galindo states that the method of forming a roof here was by means of large inclined stones. If this be a fact, it must have been ascertained from the sepulchral vault in the temple court, concerning the construction of which both he and Stephens are silent. The top of the gallery leading through the river-wall would indicate a method of construction by means of over-lapping blocks, which we shall find employed exclusively in Yucatan and Chiapas. No article of any metal whatever has been found; yet as only one burial deposit has been opened, it is by no means certain that gold or copper ornaments were not employed. That iron and steel were not used for cutting implements, is clearly proved by the fact that hard flinty spots in the soft stone of the statues are left uncut, in some instances where they interfere with the details of the sculpture. Indeed, the chay-stone points found among the ruins are sufficiently hard to work the soft material, and although in some cases they seem to have required the use of metal in their own making, yet when we consider the well-known skill of even the most savage tribes in the manufacture of flint weapons and implements, the difficulty becomes of little weight. How the immense blocks of stone of which the obelisks were formed, were transported from the quarry, several miles distant, without the mechanical aids that would not be likely to exist prior to the use of iron, can only be conjectured.

The absence of all implements of a warlike nature, extending even to the sculptured decorations of idol and altar, would seem to indicate a population quiet and peaceable rather than warlike and aggressive; for though it has been suggested that implements of war are not found here simply because it is a place sacred to religion, yet it does not appear that any ancient people has ever drawn so closely the line between the gods of war and the other divinities of the pantheon.[III-29]

Of the great artistic merit of the sculpture, particularly if executed without tools of metal, there can be no question. Mr Stephens, well qualified by personal observation to make the comparison, pronounces some of the specimens "equal to the finest Egyptian sculpture."[III-30] Mr Foster believes the flattened forehead of the human profile on the altar-sides to indicate a similar cranial conformation in the builders of the city.[III-31]

With respect to the hieroglyphics all that can be said is mere conjecture, since no living person even claims the ability to decipher their meaning. They have nothing in common with the Aztec picture-writing, which, consequently, affords no aid in their study. The characters do, however, appear similar to, if not identical with, some of those found at Palenque, in Yucatan, in the Dresden Codex, and in the Manuscript Troano. When the disciples of Brasseur de Bourbourg shall succeed in realizing his expectations respecting the latter document, by means of the Landa alphabet, we may expect the mystery to be partially lifted from Copan. It is hard to resist the belief that these tablets hold locked up in their mystic characters the history of the ruined city and its people, or the hope that the key to their significance may yet be brought to light; still, in the absence of a contemporary written language, the hope must be allowed to rest on a very unsubstantial basis.[III-32]

[Sidenote: ORIGIN OF THE RUINS.]

Concerning the age and origin of the Copan monuments, as distinguished from other American antiquities, there are few or no facts on which to base an opinion. The growth of trees on the works, and the accumulation of vegetable material can in this tropical climate yield but very unsatisfactory results in this direction. Copan is, however, generally considered the oldest of American cities; but I leave for the present the matter of comparison with more northern relics. Palacio claims to have found among the people a tradition of a great lord who came from Yucatan, built the city of Copan, and after some years returned and left the newly built town desolate; a tradition which he inclines to believe, because he says the same language is understood in both regions, and he had heard of similar monuments in Yucatan and Tabasco. Among the inhabitants of the region in later times, there is no difference of opinion whatever with respect to the origin of the ruins or their builders; they are unanimous in their adherence to the 'quien sabe' theory.

FOOTNOTES:

[III-1] _Squier's Cent. Amer._, p. 341; _Baldwin's Anc. Amer._, pp. 123-4.

[III-2] 'Hier sollen sich gleichfalls noch ununtersuchte interessante indianische Monumente finden.' _Reichardt_, _Cent. Amer._, p. 83. 'Nothing positive is known concerning them.' _Squier's Cent. Amer._, p. 341. Hassel says they are the remains of the old Indian town of Zacualpa. _Mex. Guat._, p. 368.

[III-3] _Squier's Nicaragua_, (Ed. 1856,) vol. ii., p. 335.

[III-4] _Young's Narrative_, p. 48. Mr Young also saw, but does not describe, several 'curious things' besides these chairs where once the antiguos seated, perhaps, their gods of stone.

[III-5] _Sivers_, _Mittelamerika_, p. 182. 'I understand the adjacent island, Roatan, exhibits yet more proofs of having been inhabited by an uncivilized race.' _Young's Narrative_, p. 48. 'Jusqu'à ce jour on n'y a découvert aucune ruine importante; mais les débris de poterie et de pierre sculptée qu'on a trouvés ensevelis dans ses forêts, suffisent pour prouver qu'elle n'était pas plus que les autres régions environnantes privée des bienfaits de la civilisation.' _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. iv., pp. 612-3.

[III-6] _Wells' Explor. Hond._, p. 553. Sivers, _Mittelamerika_, pp. 166-7, without reference to any particular locality, mentions pottery as frequently found in graves and among ruins, including pipe-heads, cigar-holders, drinking-cups, sacrificial vessels, and jugs.

[III-7] _Squier's Cent. Amer._, pp. 132-3; _Scherzer's Trav._, vol. ii., p. 95; _Id._, _Wanderungen_, p. 371; _Wappäus_, _Geog. u. Stat._, p. 310; _Harper's Mag._, vol. xix., p. 610, with a cut of the mastodon's tooth.

[III-8] _Visit to the Guajiquero Ind._, in _Harper's Mag._, vol. xix., pp. 608-11. For account of the Dresden _MS._, see vol. ii. of this work.

[III-9] _Squier's Cent. Amer._, pp. 134-9; _Scherzer's Trav._, vol. ii., pp. 95; _Id._, _Wanderungen_, p. 371; _Wappäus_, _Geog. u. Stat._, p. 310.

[III-10] _Atlantic Monthly_, vol. vi., p. 49. Las Casas has the following on the province of Honduras at the time of the conquest: 'Tenia Pueblos innumerables, y una vega de treinta leguas y mas, toda muy poblada ... la ciudad de Naco que tenia sobre dos cientas mil animas, y muchos edificios de piedra, en especial los templos en que adoraban.' _Hist. Apologética_, _MS._, cap. lii.

[III-11] On the north bank of the Copan, in latitude 14° 45´, longitude 90° 52´, four leagues east of the Guatemalan line, twenty leagues above the junction of the Motagua, which is sixty-five leagues from the bay. _Galindo_, in _Amer. Antiq. Soc., Transact._, vol. ii., pp. 547-50. Latitude 14° 39´, longitude 91° 13´ west of Paris; six hundred and forty mètres above the sea level; forty-five leagues from San Salvador, fifty-eight leagues from Guatemala. _Id._, in _Antiq. Mex._, tom. i., div. ii., p. 76. 'Thirty miles east of Chiquimula.' _Cyclopedia._ Three hundred miles from the sea, (perhaps by the windings of the stream). By reason of accidental injury to the instruments the latitude and longitude could not be obtained. Situated on the east bank of the stream according to plan. _Stephens' Cent. Amer._, vol. i., p. 132. 'Until lately erroneously located in Guatemala, are many miles within the boundaries of Honduras, and but a few days' travel from the original landing-place of the Spanish discoverers.' _Wells' Explor. Hond._, p. 552. Not to be confounded with Coban, metropolis of Vera Paz, one hundred and fifty miles west of Copan. _Gallatin_, in _Amer. Ethnol. Soc., Transact._, vol. i., p. 5.

[III-12] 'Copan was a colony of Tultecos.' 'The Spaniards found Copan inhabited, and in the summit of its perfection.' _Galindo_, in _Amer. Antiq. Soc., Transact._, vol. ii., pp. 546, 549. On the expedition of Cortés referred to, see _Alaman_, _Disertaciones_, tom. i., pp. 203-25; _Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yucathan_, pp. 45-58; _Cortés_, _Cartas_, pp. 396-492; _Gomara_, _Conq. Mex._, fol. 245-74; _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iii., lib. vii., cap. viii., to lib. viii., cap. vii.; _Peter Martyr_, dec. viii., lib. x.; _Prescott's Mex._, vol. iii., pp. 278-99; _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. i., p. 588; _Villagutierre_, _Hist. Conq. Itza_, pp. 39-50; _Helps' Span. Conq._, vol. iii., pp. 33-57. Stephens seems to be in some doubt as to the identity of ancient and modern Copan, there being 'circumstances which seem to indicate that the city referred to was inferior in strength and solidity of construction, and of more modern origin.' _Cent. Amer._, vol. i., pp. 99-101. 'The ruins of the city of that name and their position do not at all agree with the localities of the severe battle which decided the contest.' 'There is every appearance of these places (Copan and Quirigua) having been abandoned long before the Spanish conquest.' _Gallatin_, in _Amer. Ethno. Soc., Transact._, vol. i., p. 171. 'Whatever doubts may have existed on the Subject, and as regards the high antiquity of the Ruins of Copan ... they are set at Rest by this Account of Palacio. They were evidently very nearly in their present Condition, at the Time he wrote, three hundred Years ago.' _Squier's Pref._ to _Palacio_, _Carta_, p. 9. 'Certain it is that the latter was a ruin long before the arrival of the Spaniards.' _Squier's Cent. Amer._, p. 345.