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Discoveries In Central America

Discoveries In Central America image
Parent Issue
Day
28
Month
November
Year
1842
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

Mr. Norman has lately made some discoveries of antique ruine, near Campeachy, which are of a siupendous charaelcr. An exchango pner has he following notice of Mr. Norman'b travcls. After travelling from one Jndinn hut to anolher, necotnpanied only by an Iridian boy, at laston he third dáy, andabout forty miles fröm Valladuid, he carne in sigla oí' the beau ti ful and stupendous ruins oí Chi-Chen. lleie he found íhe renainsof a city probably the Iargest the world has et'er seen. For a circuit of niany miles in diameter, nolhing could be discovered but the walis ofpalaccs, and temples, and pyramids, moro or ess dilapida ed; and the earth, as far ns the eyc could reach, was strewed with beautiful columns, sonie nearly perfect. One temple was 450 feet ong, and built of earefully hcwn stone. Within t was one room, fouiteen feet long and six uide. iud those parts oí the room not in ruins werc furíiahed with seulptured blocks of stono, a foot square, representing lndian figures, with íeathered íead dresses, armed with bows and arrows, their loses ornamented with rings, canying in one íand bows md arrows, nnd in the other a musical instrument.-an(] theso iigures were interspered vith animáis, representing lie Egyptian crueodile. A few rods to the south of the temple of Chi'hcn stands a pyramid measuring 530 feet nt its )asej gmdunlly drawing in towards tlie sunimit, v''icli presents a large platform, upon whicli is erected a square building, about twenty íeet high. iiofcing the whole stracture 120 feet high, and olí W ved and ornamentad with rare archiiectual devices. approaching tho Egyptian and ílindoo styio But the most extruorduiary part oi thcruins is the "Houae of the Caciques." íi is wonderful edilicc of the Egypiian style of archi tecture, and well calculated to impress the be holcier with the immense wealth and sklll of th unknown architects. Bui we shall have more t say about these ruins hereaftur. Mr. Norman, af ter leaving Chi-Chen, wen towards the mountnins, on his road to Campea chy. He visiied the ruins of Ichmul, Zahbah Zayi, Hohcaeul and Uxmal. The ruins of Zny are very beautiful,'situated in the midst of liills those of Chi-Chen are on a vast level plain. Mr. Norman has also brought homo with hin n great variety ot curious iduls, nnd other relies o( the strange people who onco inhnbited these oities; and his depositcd them with the New York Histoiical Society. Ho also brought home a Iarge stone, from the front of the "House of Caciques." On examining it, wc found it to be a very compact liincstone with an admixtnre of sclix. The wood used in these buildings is very hard, and of beautiful texture; but he found no metallic instruments.

Article

Subjects
Signal of Liberty
Old News