THE RUINED CITIES OF YUCATAN
The Mayas (pronounced My-yah) were an ancient people of whom little is
known. They dwelt on the broad plains of Yucatan and Central America,
and built many cities, or governmental centres, for no ruins of private
dwellings have yet been found. The groups of buildings resemble in no
way our cities of the present day. They consist everywhere of temples
and palaces of the reigning princes or caciques, of public buildings
scattered about apparently at random, covering a vast area, with cemented
roads and gardens intervening. The centres of the towns were occupied
by the public squares and temples; around these were the palaces of the
priests and lords, and the outskirts were evidently allotted to the
lower classes. Religion and government seem to have gone hand in hand
among these primitive Mexicans. The Maya civilization had reached a
height unexcelled by any people of the western hemisphere prior to the
coming of the white man. They were skilled in architecture, in sculpture
and in writing. The priests had developed the science of astronomy to
a considerable extent. They had studied with some success the solar
system. They had developed a calendar system and created a chronology. So
far as these chronological accounts have been worked out they run back
three thousand years or more. They reckoned time much as we do, from a
fixed date, namely, the birth of Christ. The later dates of the Quirigua
inscriptions are generally believed to be somewhere about the beginning
of the Christian era.
The oldest of the ruins of the Maya race is said to be that of Copan,
which is situated in Honduras, just across the border from Guatemala. It
also seems to have been the southernmost point of their migration, as
Tula was the northerly terminus of their wanderings. Then comes Quirigua,
in Guatemala, which is one of the most remarkable and inexplicable of
all the ruins. Tradition sheds no light whatever on these ruins of Copan
or Quirigua. The mysterious silence that surrounds these forms a void in
the history of the human race. There are doubtless other ruins awaiting
the traveller and explorer in the wilderness around Lake Peten, in the
northern part of Guatemala. The founder of the race was Izamat-Ul. “To
him were brought,” says an old writer, “the sick, the halt and the dead,
and he healed and restored them all to life by the touch of his hand.”
Hence he was generally known as the Miraculous Hand, and in inscriptions
is frequently represented by a hand only.
[Illustration: CRUMBLING RUINS OF THE ANCIENT MEXICAN CIVILIZATION]
In the extreme southeastern part of Mexico, on a small peninsula known as
Yucatan, is a section which was at one time the abode of this progressive
and migrating race known generally among anthropologists as the Mayas.
This distant province deserves far more mention than it usually receives
from passing travellers. Though possessing few natural attractions
Yucatan is a never-ending source of interest for the anthropologist
and archeologist. The whole peninsula is a vast limestone formation,
with little or no surface water. Rain is infrequent in most parts, and
one might travel for miles without crossing a river or brook, or even
chancing upon a spring. In most sections of this peninsula the water is
at least seventy feet below the surface of the ground. At the present
time windmills aid the inhabitants of that section where the henequen,
from which binder twine is made, is raised, but centuries ago such
facilities were unknown. There were, however, in some places natural
wells which reached down to the depth of what seem to be underground
rivers, and it was near these that several ancient cities were located.
At least a score of these ancient cities have been explored, of which
the best known and most important are Palenque, Uxmal and Chichen Itza.
It is known that since the Spaniards first set foot on this peninsula
many monuments and practically entire cities have disappeared. At one
time, a contemporary writer asserts, there were destroyed in Yucatan
five thousand idols of various forms and dimensions, thirteen huge
stones which were used as altars, twenty-two smaller stones of various
shapes, one hundred and ninety-seven manuscripts of all kinds, including
twenty-seven written on deer skins.
Chichen Itza, which is generally interpreted to mean “the mouth of the
wells of the Itzas,” seems to have been the leading city, and it was
located near two of the largest natural wells, which are immense natural
pits with perpendicular sides. It is probable that these phenomena
attracted the Mayas in their northern migration. As the tribes quarrelled
different factions separated from the original body and established new
cities as capitals. Thus Chichen Itza came into being. On this desolate
soil,
“ ... buried ’mid trees,
Upspringing there for sunless centuries,
Behold a royal city, vast and lone,
Lost to each race, to all the world unknown,
Like famed Pompeii, ’neath her lava bed.
...
At every step some palace meets the eye,
Some figure frowns, some temple courts the sky.”
Before Cortez landed on Mexican soil the star of these ancient peoples
had already set. Their oldest cities had their birth so far back in the
twilight of time that not even tradition was able to tell the history
of the tribes, the causes that led to their decay or the time of their
disaster. Some traditions were told to the Spaniards, but they are of
such uncertain origin that very little credence can be placed in them.
Upon the walls are sculptures which speak to us in an unknown language;
hieroglyphics, and the chiselled types of a people long since departed.
The hieroglyphics would probably explain all, but no interpreting key
has yet been discovered to give an explanation to the writings. Some
authorities assert, however, that Chichen Itza was inhabited at the
time of the Conquest. A Spaniard by the name of Aquilar was wrecked on
this coast and lived with a powerful cacique for several years, but he
left behind him no written memoirs. At any rate, it is known that the
Spanish forces occupied this place for at least two years. At first the
submission of the natives was complete, but after a time they rallied
from their stupor, tiring of ministering to the insatiable wants of their
conquerors, and much severe fighting followed.
Of the two great wells at Chichen Itza one was used for the general water
supply, the _cenote grande_, and the other was reserved for religious
use exclusively, the _cenote sacra_. Picturesque indeed must have been
the throngs of white-robed women who peopled the steps of the _cenote
grande_ at all hours of the day to fetch water for household purposes.
They probably carried double-handled urns on their hips or shoulders
just as their descendants do at this present day. From far and near all
over Yucatan pilgrimages were made to the sacred well, which was on
the outskirts of the city, just as pilgrimages are made to-day to holy
shrines by Catholics and Mohammedans. It was this that gave the city its
holy character. Offerings of many kinds were made to the deities. It
is said that in time of drouth offerings of precious stones and other
valuables were thrown into it, and in specially protracted cases human
beings were thrown into it as sacrifices. Even after the time of the
Spanish conquest there are recorded instances of pilgrimages to the
sacred well for the purpose of sacrificing slaves to relieve a drouth.
These victims were supposed to live even after they had disappeared
beneath the sacred waters. A Spanish writer of the time asserts that this
was done as late as 1560.
The Chichen Itza of the olden times, filled with pilgrims from far and
near, would scarcely be recognized in the place of to-day. The jungle
has gradually crept its way into the very holy of holies. Columns have
been overthrown, and some of the structures have been almost lost in
a tangle of thorns and creepers. Even in the last half century the
destruction and disintegration has been very noticeable. To reach the
place it is necessary to ride about fifteen miles over a rough and
wearisome road. All around lie buried in thick jungle ruins of palaces
and other buildings. Pyramid-like structures seem to have been one of
the favourite forms of building. The most imposing of these on this site
rises sixty-eight feet above the plain, and each side is almost one
hundred and seventy-five feet in length, the whole covering about an acre
of ground. This structure is called the Castillo, although it was really
a temple. It is made up of nine terraces of faced masonry, narrowing
toward the top, each one elaborately panelled to relieve the monotony. On
each side there is a broad stairway, with a flight of ninety steps, with
stone balustrades, which are generally carved to represent reptiles. A
stone building almost forty feet square crowns the summit. The northern
façade must have been very striking before time and the destroying hand
of man wrought their work. There were no doors on any of the buildings,
and no traces of hinges have been found. At the western base of the
pyramid is the walk that leads to the sacred well. It is believed that on
the top of this pyramid the sacred rites of the priests of their faith
were performed, and it is said that the sacrificial victims were led
down these stairways, then along the causeway and finally cast into the
sacred well. It is easy for the imagination to picture the scene in all
its splendour of white-robed priests, smoking censors, and—saddest of
all—the victims bedecked with garlands of flowers.
There are ruins of colonnades, courts, buildings and other structures
of which many columns are standing at Chichen Itza, and it has been
called “the city of a thousand columns” by some writers. One of the most
important monuments is the Nun’s Palace, as it is called. It is not so
large as others, but contains a greater number of apartments. It is
said to have been the custom of these people to educate girls of noble
birth to the service of the gods, on their attaining the age of twelve
or thirteen. Their service was similar to that of the Vestal Virgins,
although the vows were not always perpetual. It was their duty to keep
the altar supplied with fresh flowers and to sweep the temples. One group
of structures is called the Ball Court, as it is believed to have been
used for a game similar to the modern basket ball. It consists of two
perpendicular parallel walls from north to south thirty-two feet high,
three hundred and twenty-five feet long and one hundred and thirteen feet
apart. The ends of this quadrangle are each occupied by a small temple.
In the centre of each wall, about fifteen feet from the ground, there are
two stone discs with holes through the centre, which seem to have had
a part in this or some other game. The vast proportions of this court,
or tlachtle, would seem to indicate that this game was very popular
with the Yucatecos. Some of the well preserved ruins present beautiful
sculptured façades, to which names have been given because of the fancied
resemblance to something. For instance, one has been called the ruins of
the “House of the Tigers,” because of a frieze of stalking tigers divided
by richly fringed shells; another round building, known as El Caracol,
“The Snail,” is the best preserved building at Chichen; “The Red House,”
and the “House of the Dark Writing,” are still other structures. In all
directions for several miles the bush is strewn with ruins. Crumbling
walls and courts overgrown with jungle growth are encountered on every
side, but because of the disintegration these once splendid palaces and
temples are now little more than shapeless masses of crumbled masonry.
The human figures seen on these monuments have the usual types of the
Toltec carvings on the plateaus of Mexico. The total area covered by
these ruins has been estimated by some investigators as high as ten
square miles.
The next largest and most interesting city of ruins is known as Uxmal,
which was the capital of the Tutal Xiu branch of the Mayas. This city
is located between low ranges of hills, perhaps one hundred miles from
Chichen Itza. When seen from an eminence a dozen or more imposing
structures of white limestone are presented to view. This city, no
doubt, supplied a very important part in the early history of Yucatan—at
least if one is to judge from its size. It is believed that this was the
original city of the Toltecs. A dozen or more imposing structures of
considerable size still stand here that can be identified, in addition
to the large numbers of ruins which can scarcely be outlined. The most
notable sanctuary of Uxmal, which is now known as the “House of the
Dwarf,” is over fifty feet high, and also surmounts a steep-sloped
pyramid one hundred feet in height. Two stairways on opposite sides lead
to this building. It is so named because the natives say it was built by
a savage dwarf in a single night. Long after the city was abandoned this
temple was held in especial veneration. The Spanish priests used to find
offerings of cocoa and copal on it, and they attributed this to devil
worship. Two lines of parallel walls, parts of which are still standing,
enclose a court or quadrangle, which is similar to the Ball Court at
Chichen. The group of buildings around it encloses more than one hundred
rooms. All of the buildings seem to have been built on low platforms
or terraces. There is also at this place a high terrace, or platform,
that covers over three acres of ground, and on which is a second and a
third terrace, upon the latter of which is the ruin of a building known
as the Governor’s Palace. This building is one of the finest samples
of early American architecture still extant. It stands at an elevation
of forty-four feet above the plains, and commands a splendid view of
the city. Its exterior walls are decorated with sculptured masonry, in
the making of which it is estimated there are upward of twenty thousand
sculptured pieces of stone. The building is three hundred and twenty-two
feet long, and is divided into three parts by two arcades which pass
clear through. It is built entirely of stone without ornament to a
height of ten feet, then comes a cornice, above which is a wall that
is a bewildering maze of beautiful sculpture. This frieze has a row
of colossal heads, and is divided into panels which are alternately
filled with grecques in high relief, and diamond or lattice work. All
the lintels of the building here are of wood in an excellent state of
preservation.
[Illustration: AN OLD CHURCH]
At Uxmal there is a building called the “House of Turtles,” because
of a row of turtles used as ornaments in the upper cornice. It is the
freest from ornamentation of any of the structures. The turtles are
found sculptured at various places along the cornice. The “House of
the Pigeons” is the name of another building, because of the fancied
resemblance to a dove-cote. The crest of the roof is perforated with
many rectangular openings—but the resemblance for which the name is
given is very fanciful. At this site there were none of the natural
wells described at the other city, but these people constructed some
natural reservoirs a short distance from the town in which the rainfall
was collected, and which gave the necessary water supply for the people.
Furthermore, some of the buildings seem to have had subterranean cisterns
of large size under them. Heavy rainfall occurs here for about one-half
the year, but during the other half there is practically no rainfall,
and water becomes very scarce and valuable. The so-called “House of the
Nuns” is the largest building and bears the richest and most intricate
carving at Uxmal. It is composed of four buildings, the largest of
which is two hundred and seventy-nine feet in length. The four buildings
enclose a great court, with sides two hundred and fourteen and two
hundred and fifty-eight feet in length, the entrance to which is through
a high triangular-arched gateway. This building originally contained no
less than eighty-eight apartments of various sizes. A number of writers
believe that many of these buildings at Uxmal are comparatively recent,
because of the appearance of the stone and the well-preserved character
of the wood used in the construction.
These structures are only a part of the ruins that still remain, for
the jungle on either side hides the remains of what were once imposing
buildings. Many of these have been literally torn asunder by trees, whose
roots have forced themselves between the stones and pried them apart. No
doubt this city once housed many thousands of people, but to-day it is
without inhabitants. The pomp and glory of former times have disappeared;
and all is silent save for the birds that nest in the trees and bushes.
The third city of ruins, Palenque, is situated at a considerable distance
south and west of the two just described, and not far from San Juan
Bautista. Palenque, according to Charney, was a holy city—a place for
pilgrimage. In the carvings neither sword, spear, shield nor arrow
appear. The representations are all of peaceful subjects, usually a
personage standing with a sceptre and with prostrated acolytes at his
feet. From the expression one would judge that they were worshippers, and
not slaves or captives. Their expression is always peaceful and serene
and that of worshippers and believers. The city is built in the form of
an amphitheatre, on the lowest slope of the lofty Cordilleras beyond.
Its high position affords a magnificent view over the forest-covered
plain below stretching as far as the sea. In all the structures the
builder levelled out the ground in narrow terraces, on which artificial
elevations of pyramidal forms were reared, and the hillside was faced
with hewed stones. At Palenque there are in all ten buildings in view,
each one crowning an elevation artificially made. As one enters the
grounds there are several buildings to the right and left, but directly
in front are the remains of the Palace. At one time this building has
been very large and imposing. Remains of a broad flight of steps that led
to the imposing entrance corridor are in plain evidence. Flights of steps
led down to the first patio, which was surrounded by lofty corridors
with roofs of pointed arches and which led into small apartments.
There were two of these patios in the Palace of irregular size. Double
galleries which made a sort of cloister surrounded them. Gloomy entrances
from these corridors lead to underground chambers, where there are tables
which are called altars, beds and dining tables by different writers. A
lack of system seems to prevail in the building of the Palace. On top of
one of the walls two immense forest trees are now growing. In the central
portion are the ruins of a tower, of which three stories are still
standing, with many windows. It is a square tower ornamented to the north
with pointed niches; otherwise it is almost devoid of ornamentation.
On the contrary the galleries are richly ornamented with medallions,
probably representing priests and priestesses. Many human figures are
sculptured in low relief representing priests with mitres on their heads
and in uncomfortable attitudes. The faces are oftentimes defaced in order
to give an appearance of ferocity. Some of the figures of the deities are
fantastic, monstrous and even terrible.
The Temple of Inscriptions stands on a hill about fifty feet high. A
magnificent view of the ruins is afforded by this elevation, as well as
the broad tablelands surrounding. There are three large mural tablets
covered with picture writing and hieroglyphs, supposed to be copies
of the laws of these ancient people, in the building. Across a little
valley over which an aqueduct leads the land rises in terraces, and is
surmounted with artificially made hills on which are the ruins of more
buildings—two Temples of the Cross and the Temple of the Sun. The Temple
of the Sun is almost perfectly preserved. The interior is one large room
with a sanctuary at one end. In each of these are mural tablets which
contain what is known as the Cross of Palenque. The cruciform shape,
such as the swastika and other forms, is not uncommon among aboriginal
people, but this is what is known as the Latin cross. Whether this arose
by chance through the invention of the artist, or the cross had some
religious significance among these people, still remains an absolute
mystery. Charney asserts that it is one of the symbols of Tlaloa, the god
of rain, but other writers differ with him. The body of the cross, which
rests on a hideous head, is sculptured in the centre, and at the upper
end are two human figures. On one there is an inscription of sixty-eight
characters, which doubtless explain the ceremony represented by the
sculpture. Again it is surmounted by the sacred bird of the Mayas, the
quetzal. In another this place is taken by a representation of the sun
with its spreading rays. Where did the Mayas get their idea of the cross
so sacred among Christian people? No one has yet been able to answer this
question satisfactorily.
Who built these structures? For what purpose were they reared? Various
are the theories, and many are the speculations covering them. But
authentic information is absolutely wanting, and the passing years shed
little light. The modern Yucatecos are an attractive people. No people
in the world are pleasanter or have more delightful manners than they.
The young women have a winning grace and charm that is peculiarly their
own. Their costume is not greatly unlike that of the Tehuanas—and it is
fully as unique and becoming. It is quite probable that their customs and
characteristics have not changed much since the Spanish occupation. They
have always been an independent people, and have caused much more trouble
than the majority of the aboriginal tribes of Mexico.