A picture of the relics found by Dr. Le Plongeon with the statue which
he exhumed at Chichen-Itza. They were intended for exhibition at
Philadelphia, together with the photographs which have been mentioned,
but failed in reaching their destination. It is not supposed that the
above were the only or the most valuable of the curiosities found in
connection with the statue.
The three pieces of pottery bear the original labels, "_From the
Mausoleum of the chieftain Chaac-mol (tiger,) Chichen-Itza. At least
5000 years old. Augustus Le Plongeon, M. D._" They were found near the
head of the statue. The dish on the left stands on three short legs,
perforated so that an object might be suspended from it, and the larger
dish has similar legs, without perforation. The bowl at the right is
decorated with tracings and other embellishments.
Below are axes and flint spears from the Island of Cozumel. Next follow
fossil shells, collected by Mrs. Alice Le Plongeon from an excavation at
Chichen-Itza, which may be useful in a scientific point of view.
The Jade Points are beautiful specimens, and may have been used for
ceremonial purposes. The arrow-heads are of flint, very carefully
finished, and have minute grooves at the base. These also apparently
were not intended for practical uses. A portion, or all of the above
articles, except the Cozumel flints, were enclosed in the stone urn
spoken of by Dr. Le Plongeon in his _Mexican Memorial_.]
Mérida, the capital of the State of Yucatan, has an institution
called _El Museo Yucateco_, founded in 1871, under the direction of Sr.
Dn. Crecencio Carillo Ancona, and it is now managed by Sr. Dn. Juan Peon
Contreras. In its collections are pieces of antique sculpture in stone,
plaster casts and pottery taken from ancient graves, manuscripts in the
Maya language and in the Spanish, rare imprints and works relating to
the peninsula. These, together with objects of natural history and
samples of the various woods of the country, and a cabinet of
curiosities, form a museum that promises to create and encourage a love
of antiquarian research among the people, a labor which has been the
province of the Museo Nacional in the city of Mexico. But it does not
appear that explorations have as yet been attempted. The connection
which this institution has with the statue discovered by Dr. Le Plongeon
arises from the fact that in February, 1877, a commission was despatched
to the neighborhood of the town of Pisté by the Governor of Yucatan,
under the orders of Sr. Dn. Juan Peon Contreras, Director of the Museo
Yucateco, and after an absence of a month, returned, bringing the statue
concealed there by Dr. Le Plongeon, in triumph to Mérida. The commission
was accompanied by a military force for protection, and the progress of
the returning expedition was the occasion of a grand reception in the
town of Izamal, where poems and addresses were made, which are preserved
in a pamphlet of 27 pages. An account of its arrival at Mérida, on March
1, is given in the _Periödico Oficial_ of the day following. The
entrance of the statue was greeted by a procession composed of
officials, societies, and children of the public schools. The streets
were filled with spectators, and addresses were made and poems were
recited. The following is a quotation from this article:--
"The Statue of Chac-Mool measures a little more than 9 feet in
length. Its beautiful head is turned to one side in a menacing
attitude, and it has a face of ferocious appearance. It is cut from
a stone almost as hard as granite. Seated upon a pedestal, with its
arms crossed upon the abdomen, it appears as if about to raise
itself in order to execute a cruel and bloody threat. This precious
object of antiquity is worthy of the study of thoughtful men.
History and archæology in their grave and profound investigations
will certainly discover some day the secret which surrounds all the
precious monuments which occupy the expanse of our rich soil, an
evident proof of the ancient civilization of the Mayas, now
attracting the attention of the Old World. The entrance of the
Statue of Chac-Mool into the Capital will form an epoch in the
annals of Yucatan history, and its remembrance will be accompanied
by that of the worthy Governor under whose administration our
Museum has been enriched with so invaluable a gift."
The reception, judging from the article in the journal above quoted,
must have been imposing. It was the intention of the authorities to
place the statue in the Yucatan Museum, but this purpose was defeated by
its removal to Mexico, by a government steamer, in the month of April,
to enrich the National Museum of that city.
All the above proceedings took place without the consent, and contrary
to the wishes, of Dr. Le Plongeon, who at that time was absent from
Mérida, in the Island of Cozumel, and was therefore unable to offer
opposition.
In order to furnish further testimony to the high estimation in which
the statue of Chac-Mool is held in Yucatan, the following notice,
offered to the writer for publication, by Sr. Dn. Juan Peon Contreras,
director of the museum referred to above, and which afterward appeared
in _El Pensamiento_, of Mérida, of date Aug. 12, is inserted entire:--