Beneath the suspended calabashes was placed a small table containing piles of tortillas and calabashes of masa and water. In carrying out this ceremony it is essential that everything used in it be perfectly fresh and new; the leaves, sticks, bejuco, and jabin must be freshly cut, and the masa, sikil, balchè, and even the calabashes must be freshly made. The masa was taken from the large to the small shed, where the priest and several male members of the family sat around it. After flattening out a small ball of the masa the priest placed it on a square of plantain leaves and poured over it a little sikil (a thin paste made of ground pumpkin seed and water). Then the next man flattened out a piece of masa, which he placed over the sikil, and the process was continued until a cake was formed containing 5 to 13 alternating layers of masa and sikil. On top of each cake, as it was completed, the priest traced with his forefinger a cross surrounded with holes; these were first partly filled with balchè, which was allowed to soak into the cake, after which they were filled completely with sikil, whereupon the whole cake was carefully tied up in plantain leaf, with an outer covering of palm leaf (fig. 12). These cakes are known as tutiua; their number is generally gauged by the number of participants in the ceremony. When sikil is not available, a paste of ground black beans is used; in this case the cakes are known as buliua (Maya bul, "bean"; ua, "bread"). The priest next made a deep depression in a ball of masa about the size of a tennis ball, which he filled with sikil, covering it with the masa, so as to leave a ball of masa with a core of sikil.
A number of these balls, known as yokua, were made, each wrapped in plantain leaves. When finished, all of them were wrapped in a large palm leaf and tied into a bundle with split palm-leaf strands. Two more tutiua were next made, and lastly all the masa and sikil left were mixed together with a few ounces of salt. After being well kneaded this mass was divided into two portions, each of which was tied up in plantain and palm leaf coverings. In the meantime some members of the family had filled the pib or oven with firewood, over which they placed a layer of small blocks of stone. The priest next made a bowl of sachà (literally "white water," a drink made from ground corn and water), with which he filled the small calabashes on the altar, as well as the suspended calabashes; these he explained were for the tuyun pishan, or solitary souls. A turkey and four fowls were then placed in front of the altar, alive, while the priest lighted a black wax candle by blowing a piece of glowing wood to a flame; this candle he placed upon the altar. He next took up the turkey, around whose neck the assistant had placed a wreath of jabin leaves, and poured a little balchè down its throat, its legs being held by the assistant (fig. 13). While doing this the priest murmured the following prayer:
In kubic ti hahnal cichpan colel, ti San Pedro, San Pablo, San Francisco.
Translation
I offer a repast to the beautiful mistress, to San Pedro, San Pablo, San Francisco.
The turkey and the other fowls were then killed by having their necks wrung, and the carcasses of all five were removed to the house to be prepared by the women. The various bundles of masa and sikil in their leaf coverings were next removed to the pib, where the fire had burned itself out, leaving the hole half full of ashes and red-hot stones. A lining of plantain bark was laid over the stones, upon which the bundles were arranged; over these were placed more hot stones and over the latter palm leaves; lastly, the earth which had been dug from the pib was raked over all. The priest next took a small quantity of the sachà from a calabash, in a jabin leaf, and scattered it on the ground in three directions, meanwhile murmuring this prayer:
Cin kubic ti atepalob, ti noh yum kab yetel uahmetan, atepalob, tiaca tzib nah.
Translation
I offer to the majestic ones, to the great lord, corn cake, great ones. [Tiaca tzib nah is somewhat obscure. The reading, according to Don Juan Martinez, of Merida, should be tia ca Ɔib-nah.]
Afterward the priest repeated the performance with sachà from the calabashes on the altar, and lastly with some from the calabashes of the tuyun pishan. The sachà was then distributed in calabashes to the participants, it being essential that every drop of it be drunk. After a wait of about an hour all proceeded to the pib, which, after it had been sprinkled by the priest with balchè from a small calabash, was opened. The red-hot leaf-wrapped bundles were carried to the small shed, where the coverings were removed, exposing the tutiua and yokua, crisp, brown, and hot. These were placed upon the altar, with the exception of one tutiua, which was tied to the string holding the calabashes of the tuyun pishan. The cakes made from the remainder of the masa and sikil were now crumbled into a large calabash and mixed with another large calabash of kool (a reddish liquid made from water, ground corn, black pepper, and achiote). The two mixtures were stirred with a peeled wand of jabin till they formed a thick paste known as sopas. While the sopas was being made the hearts, heads, and intestines of the fowls were removed to the pib where they were buried, lest some animal by eating them should defile the offering. The cooked and dismembered turkey and other fowls were brought out to the small shed in calabashes; the livers, gizzards, and immature eggs were chopped up fine and well mixed with the sopas. A small calabash full of this mixture was placed with the calabashes of the tuyun pishan, while the rest, in a large calabash, the fowls' claws standing upright in it, was placed upon the altar, together with the dismembered birds wrapped in a clean cotton cloth. The priest next removed some balchè from the jar and filled a calabash, which he placed upon the altar, as he did so murmuring these prayers:
Ea, in cichpan colel kanleoox, yetel bacan tech in cichkelem tat yum San Isidro, ah kolkal, yetel bacan tech yum kankin, culucbalech ti likin, yetel bacan in chanttupchaac, culucbal chumuc caan, ti likin, yetel bacan yum canchaacoob; kin kubic yetel bacan ahooil atepalo chumuc caan, yetel bacan tech in cichkelem tata ahcanan kakabool, yetel bacan tech in cichkelem tata Cakaal Uxmal, yetel bacan tech in cichpan colel Santa Clara, yetel bacan tech in cichkelem tata yum xualakinik, yetel bacan tech in cichpan colel Xhelik, yetel bacan tech in cichkelem tatayum Santo Lorenzo, yetel bacan tech in cichpan colel Guadelupe, yetel bacan tech tun yum Mosonikoob, meyahnaheex ichil cool kat tocah. Cin kubic bacan letie Santo Gracia, utial a nahmateex, yetel bacan tech u nohchi Santo uai yokol cab halibe in yumen sates ten in cipil. Minan a tzul pachkeech letie Santo Pishan, Ooki in mentic letie Santo Promicia.
Translation
Now my beautiful lady of the yellow-leaf breadnut, as well as you, my handsome father San Isidro, tiller of the earth; as well as you, lord sun, who art seated at the east; as well as you, Chanttupchaac, who art seated in the middle of the heavens, in the east; as well as you, Yumcanchaacoob: I deliver to you, with the majestic servants in the middle of the heavens. As well as you, my handsome father, Ahcanankakabool; as well as you, my handsome father Cakaal Uxmaal; as well as you, my beautiful lady Santa Clara; as well as you, my handsome father Xualakinik; as well as you, my beautiful lady Xhelik; as well as you, my handsome father San Lorenzo; as well as you, my beautiful lady of Guadelupe; as well as you, Lord Mosonicoob, that blows within the milpa when it is burnt. I deliver then to you this Holy Grace, that you may taste it, and because you are the greatest Santos on earth. That is all my master. Pardon my sins; you have not to follow the holy souls, because I have made this holy offering.
Cin Kubic ti nah tatail, ti u cahil San Roque, u cahil Patchacan, ti Chan Sapote.
Translation
I offer you, great father, for your town of San Roque, your town of Patchacan, and Chan Sapote.
The assistant then brought up some burning incense (pom) on a piece of plantain bark, which the priest took, and after waving it about for a short time placed it upon the altar, after which he dipped out a small portion of balchè and scattered it in three directions, murmuring while doing so the following prayer:
Noh Nah ti Uxmal, ti atepaloob Ixcabach Chen Mani, ti Xpanterashan, Chacanchi, Chacantoc, ti Xnocachan, Xcunya, Yaxutzub, Yaxaban, ti atepaloob.
Translation
Great house of Uxmal, of the majestic Ixcabach, Chen Mani, of Xpanterashan, Chacanchi, Chacantoc, of Xnocachan Xcunya, Yaxatzub Yaxaban of the majestic ones.
A small portion of balchè was next passed around to each of the participants, the priest again scattering a little on the ground and repeating the prayer. The calabash, which was now nearly empty, was then removed to the house for the benefit of the women. It was soon brought back by the assistant and refilled from the jar, and the same procedure gone through again. This was repeated till no more balchè remained to be drunk. The priest then scattered some of the sopas in four directions, using one of the fowls' claws to scoop it up from the calabash, after which what remained of the sopas was divided up among the participants, each one being given a calabash in which a fowl's claw was placed for use as a fork. A small quantity of the mixture which remained was taken to the house for use of the women. Lastly the priest removed the tutiua and yokua from the altar, and divided these among the participants, giving each one at the same time a corn-husk cigarette. The ceremony was now finished, and the last act was completely to destroy all the objects used in it, including buildings, altar, calabashes, and chuyubs; this was done by fire.
This Cha chac ceremony as performed by the Santa Cruz and Icaichè Indians bears a strong resemblance to certain ceremonies performed before the conquest, in honor of the Chacs, or Rain gods, and also to ceremonies carried out at the present day by the Lacandon Indians.
The names given to the modern priests were, according to Landa, all in use in his day. The Chacs were four old men chosen to assist the priests.[3] The men was an inferior priest or sorcerer, while the name Ahkin[4] was applied after the conquest, both to their own and to Christian priests by the Maya. Landa also mentions (Chap. XL, p. 260) a fiesta given to the Chacs, in conjunction with other gods, held in one of the plantations, when the offerings were consumed by the people after being first presented to the gods; these offerings consisted of turkeys and other fowls, corn cake, sikil, and posol,[5] all of which are used in the modern Maya Cha chac.
The god Yumcanchacoob (Lord of all the Chacs) of the Santa Cruz probably corresponds to Nohochyumchac (Great Lord Chac) of the Lacandones, as does the Ahcanankakabol (keeper of the woods) of the Santa Cruz, to the Kanancash of the Lacandones, whose name has practically the same significance. A belief in Xtabai, or spirits, and Ikoob, or Wind gods, seems common alike to the Santa Cruz, the Lacandones, and the Indians of Yucatan.
PART 2. MOUND EXCAVATION IN THE EASTERN MAYA AREA
INTRODUCTION
Classification of the Mounds
In the following pages is a description of the mounds opened during the last few years in that part of the Maya area now constituting British Honduras, the southern part of Yucatan, and the eastern border of Guatemala (pl. 7). For descriptive purposes these mounds may be divided, according to their probable uses, into six main groups:
1. Sepulchral Mounds.—This group includes mounds which, originally constructed for other purposes, were afterwards used as burial sites.
2. Refuse Mounds.—This group includes kitchen middens, shell heaps, deposits of waste material remaining after the manufacture of lime, and heaps of stones gathered from the surface of the ground.
3. Foundation Mounds.—As the buildings themselves invariably stood on the summits of flat-topped mounds, such mounds, capped with the débris of the earlier structures, formed the bases of later ones.
4. Defensive Mounds.—Some of these mounds were crescent-shaped; others were in the form of a horseshoe.
5. Lookout Mounds.—These mounds extend in chains, at intervals of 6 to 12 miles, along the coast and up some of the rivers; they are lofty, steep-sided, and usually form the nuclei of groups of other mounds. As a rule they contain neither human remains nor artifacts, though in one or two of them superficial interments seem to have been made at a comparatively late date.
6. Mounds of Uncertain Use.—No trace of human interment was found in these mounds. Many of them are too small at the summit to have supported buildings, and it seems probable that they are sepulchral mounds, in which no stone, pottery, or other indestructible objects were placed with the corpse, and in which the bones have entirely disintegrated. The larger mounds of this class, many of them flat topped, are carefully constructed of blocks of limestone, marl dust, and earth, and no doubt at one time served as bases for buildings either small temples or houses—which, being built of wood, have long since vanished.
Most of the mounds are distributed in small and large groups, the latter usually containing one or more examples of each class, the former consisting for the greater part of small burial mounds, probably of late date, as they are less carefully constructed than the mounds of the larger groups, and the objects which they contain are of rougher and cruder workmanship.
The burial mounds comprise more than half of all the mounds opened, followed in order of numbers by (a) foundation mounds; (b) mounds of uncertain use; (c) refuse mounds; (d) lookout mounds; (e) defensive mounds.
It has been found that, as a rule, rich land contains many mounds; poor land, fewer; and sour-grass savannah, pine ridge, and swamp, none at all. The better the land the more numerous the mounds scattered over it, as is natural, since the more fertile the land the denser the population it would sustain. Not all the mounds opened have been described, as small burial mounds, especially in the same group, in both construction and contents, resemble one another closely, as do foundation mounds also.
This part of the Maya area must either have been occupied during a very considerable period or at one time must have supported a dense population, as wherever it is possible to cultivate the soil, especially to raise maize, mounds are to be found in great abundance; moreover, the surface everywhere bears such indestructible rubbish as potsherds, flint chips, and fragments of obsidian knives. It would probably be impossible to find anywhere in this area an acre of moderately good land on which dozens of such objects could not be discovered. This indicates that what is now dense tropical bush, with a few small Indian villages scattered through it at considerable intervals, was at one time a highly cultivated and thickly populated country.
Referring to Yucatan before the conquest, Landa uses the words, "toda la tierra parescia un pueblo;"[6] while 200 years after the conquest Villagutierre[7] mentions by name 10 tribes with whom the Itzas were at war, who lived to the east of the lagoon, nine days' journey away—in a region corresponding to the territory of coastal tribes of British Honduras and Quintana Roo.
Ancient Inhabitants of the Region
From the contents of the mounds we are able to deduce many valuable facts relating to the physical appearance, social life, religion, and art of the former inhabitants of this area.
PHYSICAL APPEARANCE
A very accurate idea of the physical appearance of these people may be derived from the figurines, paintings, stucco moldings, and skeletons found in the mounds. It would appear that they very closely resembled the modern Maya Indians.[8] They were broad of face, with small features and rather high cheek bones; without beard or mustache, but with straight, black, coarse hair, which was allowed by both men and women to grow long.
The skull was naturally brachicephalic, and as this characteristic was (and is now by the Maya) admired, it seems to have been almost invariably accentuated artificially by pressure applied over the occipital and frontal regions during early infancy.[9] The average cephalic index of eight skulls removed from the mounds was found to be 110. The following list gives the average lengths of a number of bones of adults taken from the mounds, though in no case were all the bones of one individual found in a sufficiently perfect condition to permit of their accurate measurement:
Humerus, 29.21 cm.
Ulna, 25.38 cm.
First phalanx (little finger), 3.04 cm.
Femur, 36.83 cm.
Tibia, 33.27 cm.
Metatarsal bone of great toe, 5.33 cm.
The bones are small, the ridges for muscular attachment not well marked, and the phalanges, metacarpal, and metatarsal bones small and delicate, indicating a body with rounded contours, poor muscular development, and small extremities. The front teeth in some cases were filed, in others filled with round plugs of obsidian, iron pyrites, or jadeite, for ornamental purposes.
DRESS
Among the lower class the men seem to have worn no garment except the maxtli, consisting of a loin-cloth wound several times around the waist, the ends hanging down in front and behind, like small aprons. The women wore two garments, similar to those of the modern Maya, the huipil, or loose, sleeveless upper garment reaching to the hips (at the present this is worn longer, reaching well below the knees) and a short, loose skirt, both of cotton, and both embroidered in colors at the borders.[10] The warriors wore in addition to the maxtli a breastplate of thick quilted cotton, saturated with salt, arrow and spear proof, and ornamented with bows, studs, and tassels. To its upper border was attached a hollow bar, through which passed a cord, continued round the back of the neck, holding the breastplate in place.
Both warriors and priests wore very elaborate headdresses. Those of the former were decorated with plumes of feathers and many of them held in front the head of some animal carved in wood,[11] as the jaguar, eagle, peccary, snake, or alligator. Some of the headdresses of the priests were shaped like a bishop's miter, while others resembled the Egyptian headdress. All classes wore sandals of leather or platted henequen fiber. The ornaments worn consisted of large circular ear plugs of shell, greenstone, or pottery, many with a tassel dependent from the center; studlike labrets at each side of the mouth; and occasional triangular ornaments attached on each ala of the nose. Round the neck were worn strings of beads, some in the form of human or animal heads, others with a gorget of greenstone or shell in the form of a human mask dependent from them. Wristlets and anklets of large oval beads, fastened with ornamental loops, were common, and copper finger rings have been found on two occasions, though it is possible that these may not have been introduced till after the conquest. Among the upper classes the ornaments were made from jade, greenstone, iron pyrites, obsidian, mother-of-pearl, and copper; among the lower, from pottery, shell, and stone.
WEAPONS
The offensive weapons of the natives here dealt with consisted of flint and obsidian tipped arrows,[12] javelins, and spears, flint and stone axes, with slingstones, and stone-headed clubs, made for the most part of hard limestone. Their defensive weapons were small circular shields of leather-covered wickerwork and thick cotton breastplates.
HOUSES
The lower classes probably lived exclusively in thatched pimento-walled houses, identical in construction with those used by the Maya of the present day; naturally, these have completely disappeared, but the former sites of villages composed of such huts may easily be recognized by the presence of half-choked wells and the great number of malacates, broken pots, weapons, implements, ornaments, and rubbing stones, which are to be found scattered all over them. The priests, caciques, and upper classes doubtless lived in the stone houses, the remains of which lie buried in considerable numbers in the mounds. The walls of these houses were of stucco-covered stone and lime, the floors of hard cement, and the roofs, no doubt, of beams and thatch, as many of them are too wide to have been covered by the so-called "American arch."
Many of these buildings were doubtless used as temples, but probably the majority of them were private houses.[13] In one of them an interment had taken place beneath the floor of the house before the structure was destroyed.[14]
ARTS
The former inhabitants of this part of the Maya area do not seem to have fallen far behind those of northern Yucatan in the arts of sculpture upon stone, stucco molding, mural painting, ceramics, and the manufacture of stone implements and weapons, as excellent examples in all these fields have been found.
At Seibal, Holmul, Naranjo, and Benque Viejo, cities of the old Empire lying along the British Honduras-Guatemala frontier, examples of sculptured stelæ and altars have been found, equal in fineness of workmanship to those found at any other site within the Maya area. The molded stucco figures at Pueblo Nuevo are beautifully executed, while the painted stucco upon the temple walls at Santa Rita is probably the finest example of this kind of decoration yet brought to light in the whole Maya area. The colors used (green, yellow, red, blue, black, and white) seem to have been derived from colored earths and vegetal dyes ground to a paste in small shallow stone mortars with spatulate flint grinders, which have been found with traces of paint still adhering to them. Ornaments in the form of human and animal faces and heads nicely cut from jadeite and greenstone are not uncommon. Some bear incised hieroglyphic inscriptions. The greenstone shell from Kendal, described later on, in its fineness of finish and accurate imitation of the natural form, is a remarkable example of gem cutting.
Most of the domestic pottery used was of a rather coarse hard red ware. This comprises large amphora-like water jars, shallow dishes, saucers, and bowls, used probably to hold food; cooking pots of various sizes and shapes, chocolate pots with upright spouts, and disks for baking tortillas. In addition to these, thick brittle vessels of very coarse pottery, some of exceptionally large size, are found, which were probably used as receptacles for corn, beans, pepper, and other light dry substances. Of the finer kinds of pottery some are ornamented with incised devices, executed after the vessels had been fired, others are covered with devices in polychrome, and still others with ornaments molded while the clay was plastic. Lastly, these three methods, or any two of them, may be combined in the decoration of any one vessel.
The objects most frequently depicted on the vases are human heads, simple glyphs, animal and mythological figures, and flowers. Most of the vessels are polished, some of them to a high degree, but the art of glazing does not seem to have been understood. The finer kinds of pottery are thin, tough, light, and very hard. The appliqué work, displayed best in incense burners, upon which the figure of the god in high relief is built up bit by bit, is rather coarse, but in some examples very effective. Stone implements and weapons of great variety have been discovered, including ax, spear, javelin, and arrowheads, knives, clubs, throwing stones, hammerstones, scrapers, chisels, borers, paint and corn grinders, fiber cleaners, and many others. Flint, chert, obsidian, greenstone, and limestone were the materials most commonly used in the manufacture of implements and weapons. Very remarkable eccentrically shaped objects, including crosses, crescents, rings, and a variety of other forms, chipped with great care and precision, from flint, chert, and obsidian, are also found, though not in great numbers. They seem to be confined almost exclusively to this part of the Maya area.
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
With the exception of clay whistles of from one to four notes, no musical instruments have been found in the mounds, unless the hollow cylinder (101/2 inches high by 4 inches in diameter) from Yalloch may be regarded as a small hand drum similar to those mentioned by Landa as having been in use at the time of the conquest,[15] and somewhat resembling the clay jar with a piece of gibnut hide stretched over the opening for a head, still in use as a drum among the Lacandones.[16] The late Sir Alfred Moloney obtained in the village of Succots a tunkul, or wooden drum, with two rubber-tipped drumsticks, which had been brought by the Indians from Guatemala at the time of their emigration from that country. This had been handed down from Alcalde to Alcalde from time immemorial, and was used to summon the villagers on special occasions, as a fire or the election of new Alcaldes.
FOOD
The staple article of diet among the ancient Maya seems to have been maize, as it is at the present day among their descendants. Numbers of rubbing-stones and rubbers, both broken and whole, are found in the mounds, as are also the clay disks used for baking corn cakes. The bones of various animals, which had probably been used for food, are also found; among these are the peccary, gibnut, armadillo, puma, tapir, and manatee, together with woula (snake), alligator, and (of birds) the curassow and wild turkey. Shells of the conch, cockle, oyster, and freshwater snail are also found in abundance. The Maya probably kept small domestic animals and birds,[17] as great numbers of rough stone troughs are found in the mounds, precisely similar to those manufactured and used by the modern Maya Indians for watering their fowls, while eggs, with turkeys and other birds, have been found, held in the hands of figurines upon the incense burners, as offerings to the gods. They seem to have made periodical expeditions to the cays and islands off the coast to fish and collect shellfish, as quantities of net-sinkers, flint chips, potsherds, and broken javelin heads are found on many of the cays. But few mounds, however, which give evidence of permanent human occupancy have been discovered in this situation.
SPINNING AND WEAVING
Judging by the great number of spindle-whorls found in the mounds and on village sites, cotton spinning must have been practically universal among the women. Oval perforated stones of a size suitable for loom weights have been found, and it is probable that they were used as such, as they do not seem to be adapted to any other purpose. With this exception we learn nothing of the art of weaving from the contents of the mounds. Henequen fiber was doubtless used for the manufacture of rope, mats, hammocks, and other objects, as grooved flat stones for beating the pulp from the fiber are common.
GAMES
The appliances for at least two distinct games have been found.[18] The first consists of a large spherical block of limestone, nicely polished, and about 1 foot in diameter, found associated with 6 to 12 smaller spherical stones, each about 3 inches in diameter, of very light material somewhat resembling pumice stone. The second consists of a number of small disks of shell, about three-fourths of an inch in diameter. Collections of these have been found together on several occasions; they might have been used as beads or ornaments but for the fact that they are neither perforated nor decorated with incised figures as shell beads usually are.
RELIGION
Of the 15 gods of the codices classified by Schellhas five may be recognized in this area with a fair degree of certainty. God A, the god of death, in the form of a human skull, decorates the outside of not a few small pottery vessels, and is depicted upon the painted stucco wall at Santa Rita. God B, the long-nosed god, is usually identified with Cuculcan. Representations of this god are found throughout the whole area in great abundance, painted upon pottery and stucco, incised on bone and stone, and modeled in clay. This god is associated with the cities of Chichen Itza and Mayapan, and is supposed to have entered Yucatan from the west; indeed it is possible that he may originally have been the leader of one of the Maya immigrations from that direction. He appears to have been by far the most popular and generally worshiped deity in this area, and it is his image which is found on nearly half of all the incense burners discovered. God D, probably Itzamna, appears in the codices as an old man with a Roman nose, shrunken cheeks, toothless jaws, and a peculiar scroll-like ornament beneath the eye, to the lower border of which are attached two or three small circles. In some representations a single tooth projects from the upper jaw, and in a few the face is bearded. This god is not infrequently found associated with the serpent. A typical representation of him is seen upon the Santa Rita temple wall;[19] here he is depicted standing upon intertwined serpents, holding in his right hand a feather-plumed serpent. This god is represented upon some incense burners, and is found not infrequently associated with Cuculcan.
God K, the god with an elaborate foliated nose, often closely associated with God B, his face in some cases forming the headdress ornament of the latter god, is unmistakably depicted upon the Santa Rita temple wall.[20] God P, the Frog god, is found on some small pottery vases, and on a few incense burners. Nothing found in the mounds proves definitely the practice of human sacrifice in this area, but that it existed is almost certain, as Villagutierre refers to it as prevalent among the Itza of Peten at the time of their conquest,[21] at the end of the seventeenth century, and Landa mentions it as occurring among the Maya at the time of the coming of the Spaniards.[22] Near the headwaters of the Rio Hondo a mound was opened, which contained, in a stone-walled chamber, a number of human skulls unaccompanied by other bones. It is possible that these may have been the remains of sacrificial victims, as it was customary to remove the head of the victim after death, which became the perquisite of the priests.
Human sacrifice among the Maya was probably a somewhat rare event, taking place only on extraordinary special occasions, as in times of public calamity—for example, during the prevalence of famine, war, or pestilence—when it was felt that a special propitiatory offering to the god was called for. This practice was confined to one, or at most to a very small number of victims, never reaching the proportions which it did among the Aztec, by whom it was probably introduced into Yucatan. The main offering of the Maya to their gods seems to have consisted of an incense composed of copal gum and aromatic substances. Landa mentions this as largely employed at the time of the conquest; Villagutierre encountered it among the Itza at the end of the seventeenth century; and Tozzer found it in use among the Lacandon Indians at the present day. The incense itself has been found all over this area, as well as great numbers of incense burners.
In addition to incense, the blood of fish, birds, and animals was smeared over the images of the gods, as an offering, together with human blood obtained by cutting the ears, tongue, genitals, and other parts of the body. The hearts of various animals, together with live and dead animals (some cooked and some raw) and all kinds of foods and drinks in use among the people,[23] were also employed as offerings to the gods. In the hands of figurines upon the incense burners are found, modeled in clay, fruit, flowers, eggs, cakes, birds, small animals, and other objects, all evidently intended for the same purpose.
CHRONOLOGY
Three distinct periods of Mayan civilization seem to be represented in this area. The center of the earliest of these was along the Rio Grande, in southern British Honduras, within 20 miles of the Guatemala frontier, where the Leyden Plate was discovered, upon which is inscribed the earliest but one known Maya date—namely, Cycle 8, Katun 14, Tun 3, Uinal 1, Kin 12. If the massive stone-faced pyramids and terraces of these ruins are contemporaneous with the Leyden Plate, as seems possible, they must be reckoned among the earliest monuments of the first, or southern Maya, civilization. The Benque Viejo temple, in the extreme western part of British Honduras, comes next in point of time. This was almost certainly contemporaneous with its near neighbor, Naranjo, where the earliest Initial Series found is 9.10.10.0.0, and the latest 9.19.10.0.0, giving the city an age of at least 9 katuns, or 180 years. It will be seen that the difference between the Leyden tablet date and the earliest recorded date at Naranjo is rather more than 16 katuns, or 320 years.
The latest of all the sites is undoubtedly Santa Rita, which shows strong Mexican influence; this belongs to the second era of Maya civilization, which reached its highest development in Yucatan and the northern cities. Excluding the Tuluum Stela, the date upon which, 9.6.10.0.0, is almost certainly not contemporaneous,[24] the only Initial Series deciphered with certainty in Yucatan up to the present time is that at Chichen Itza, 10.2.9.1.9, nearly 3 katuns, or 60 years, later than the latest at Naranjo; but probably the Santa Rita site is much later in date than this, and if we may judge by the objects found in the mounds in the vicinity, some of which show strong Spanish influence, it was occupied up to and beyond the conquest.
DESCRIPTION OF MOUNDS
Mound No. 1
Mound No. 1 (No. 24 on the plan of Santa Rita (fig. 14), situated midway between Nos. 6 and 22) was conical in shape, nearly circular at the base, 18 feet high, and 90 feet in circumference. It was built throughout of large irregular blocks of limestone, the interstices being filled with limestone dust and earth, forming together a sort of friable mortar, which rendered the whole structure nearly as compact as a solid block of masonry.
Excavation near the center of the mound, at a depth of 2 feet below the surface, brought to light a large circular disk of roughly hewn limestone, 3 feet in diameter by 8 inches thick. On lifting this it was found to cover the mouth of a bell-like cist, nearly 3 feet in diameter and about 5 feet in depth. On opening the cist, which was slightly narrower at the bottom than at the top, it was found to be nearly half filled with very fine brown dust, at the bottom of which lay a roughly made circular urn 18 inches in diameter, covered by a mushroom-shaped lid.
The urn was filled to the top with small crudely executed pottery figurines of men and animals. There were 49 of these in all, consisting of 4 warriors, with shield and spear, 3 seated human figures, 4 standing figures (eating and fanning themselves), 4 lizards, 4 alligators, 4 snakes, 4 birds, 4 dragon-like creatures, 4 tigers, and 14 quashes or picotes. The warriors (pl. 8) are represented in a crouching position, with the right knee and left foot upon the ground; each holds in the right hand a small spear and on the left forearm a circular shield.[25] Two of them exhibit tusk-like objects projecting from their mouths. The figures are 41/2 inches high; they are painted in red and white throughout. The headdress consists of a boat-shaped cap worn with the bow and stern projecting over the ears. The seated figures (pl. 9; fig. 15) are each 6 inches in height; these are painted throughout in red, white, and green. Each is seated upon a low four-legged stool, and grasps in one hand by its greatly enlarged spatulate glans the projecting penis, on which he is seemingly performing some sort of surgical operation with a long knife held in the other hand.
The headdress consists of a mitre-like erection in front, with a long queue hanging down to the waist behind. Button-like labrets are worn on each side of the mouth in two of the figures, and all wear large circular ear plugs. The standing figures (fig. 16) are each 51/2 inches high, and had been painted throughout in red and white, though not much of the original color now remains. The headdress consists of a broad flat cap decorated in front with a row of circular beads, and on each side with a large tassel, which hangs down over the ear plugs. Each figure wears a small narrow maxtli and button-like labrets at each angle of the mouth. In one of the figures the right hand is extended, while the left holds a circular fan. In the other the forearms are flexed at right angles, with hands held open in front of the waist, as if about to receive something. The lizard effigies, though crudely made, are most lifelike representations about 6 inches in length. The alligators resemble very closely those taken from another mound at Santa Rita.[26]