The History of Ancient America, Anterior to the Time of Columbus / Proving the Identity of the Aborigines with the Tyrians and Israelites; and the Introduction of Christianity into the Western Hemisphere By The Apostle St. Thomas

by George Jones

SECTION III.

THE RUINS OF PALENQUE.

Palenque is situated in the Province of Tzendales, Mexican America. At the distance of about eight miles from the modern village of Palenque, the now celebrated Ruins are located. They are called the Ruins of Palenque from the name of the nearest village, and not from any history of their own:—like the field of Waterloo—it has given renown to an humble village adjacent. The name, therefore, of "Palenque," can be of no assistance in unfolding the history of these Ruins,—for the original name of the now desolate Temples and Palaces, has been for centuries lost and buried with its fate. Mr. Stephens writes—

"At half-past seven we left the village. For a short distance the road was open, but very soon we entered a forest, which continued unbroken to the Ruins, and probably many miles beyond. All the wreck of Empires,—nothing ever spoke so forcibly the world's mutations, as this immense forest shrouding what was once a great city. Once it had been a great highway, thronging with people who were stimulated by the same passions that give impulse to human action now; and they are all gone, their habitation buried, and no traces of them left. Fording this (river Otula) very soon we saw masses of stones, and then a round sculptured stone. We spurred up a sharp ascent of fragments, so steep that the mules could barely climb it, to a terrace, so covered, like the whole road, with trees, that it was impossible to make out the form. Continuing on this terrace, we stopped at the foot of the second, and through openings in the trees we saw the front of a large building, richly ornamented with stuccoed figures on the pilasters, curious and elegant; trees growing close against them, and their branches entering the doors; in style and effect unique, extraordinary and mournfully beautiful. We tied our mules to the trees, and ascended a flight of stone steps, forced apart, and thrown down by trees, and entered the Palace, ranged for a few moments along the corridor, and into the courtyard; and after the first gaze of eager curiosity was over, went back to the entrance, and standing in the doorway, fired a feu de joie of four rounds each, being the last charge of our fire-arms. But for this way of giving vent to our satisfaction, we should have made the roof of the old Palace ring with a hurrah! We had reached the end of our long and toilsome journey, and the first glance indemnified us for our toil. For the time, we were in a building erected by the Aboriginal inhabitants; standing before the Europeans knew of the existence of this Continent; and we prepared to take up our abode under its roof—the sole tenants of the Palace of unknown Kings."

The reader will excuse the preceding introduction—its graphic style will find its own apology; and though not descriptive of the Ruins, yet the approach to them seems to form a part of this historical Romance of the Wilderness.

"As at Copan, it was my business to prepare the different objects for Mr. Catherwood to draw. Many of the stones had to be scrubbed and cleansed; and as it was our object to have the utmost possible accuracy in the drawings, in many places scaffolds were to be erected, on which to set up the camera-lucida. That the reader may know the character of the objects we had to interest us, I proceed to give a description of the building in which we lived, called the Palace. It stands on an artificial elevation of an oblong form forty feet high, three hundred and ten in front and rear, and two hundred and sixty feet on each side."

Here, then, is distinctly stated—a pyramidal elevation having four sides, and detached from any other structure. Its measurement around the base is 1140 feet!

"This elevation was formerly faced with stone, which has been thrown down by the growth of trees, and its form is hardly distinguishable. The building [we say Temple—not Palace,] stands (on this pyramidal elevation) with its face to the East, and measures two hundred feet front, by one hundred and eighty feet deep. Its height is not more than twenty-five feet, and all around it had a broad projecting cornice of stone. The front contained fourteen doorways, about nine feet wide each, and the intervening piers [i. e. square columns] are between six and seven feet wide. On the left (in approaching the palace) eight piers have fallen down, and as also the corner on the right, and the terrace underneath is cumbered with ruins. But six piers remain entire, and the rest of the front is open. The building was constructed of stone, with a mortar of lime and sand, and the whole front was covered with stucco and painted."

We believe this last manner (stuccoing) to have been ages after the original structure was erected, and for the purpose of promulgating a new Religion. This important point will be investigated in a subsequent volume. It is only remarked here, that the reader may not be perplexed at stone being covered with stucco, since in building, ancient or modern, it was only usual to cover bricks with plaister or stucco.

"The piers were ornamented with spirited figures [in stucco] in bas-relief. On the top of one are three hieroglyphics sunk in the stucco. It is enclosed by a richly ornamented border, about ten feet high and six wide, of which only a part remains. The stucco is of admirable consistency, and hard as stone. It was painted, [stained?] and in different places about, we discovered the remains of red, blue, yellow, black, and white."

We have already called this edifice the Temple, believing it not to have been originally a palace. This distinction is nearly defined from the fact that hieroglyphics are found upon the edifice: for hieroglyphics (i. e., sacred and symbolical writing) constitute the Religious language of nearly all the ancient nations,—but of Egypt especially. The language of Religion and the Hieratic (that of the priests) were placed upon the sacred edifices, and being so placed, proved them to be Temples. Those languages were, also, painted upon mummy-cloths and coffins, or sculptured upon the outward granite Sarcophagii,—the Egyptians holding the rights of Sepulture in the most sacred estimation; for those rights were only granted upon a public investigation of the character of the deceased, and a general verdict in his favour. This post-mortem examination of character even the king was not exempt from, and the poorest subject of Egypt could bring his accusation against the deceased monarch; with the privilege of sustaining his charges by facts and argument,—for by the laws of Egypt every Egyptian was considered equal and noble with his countrymen,—Character and Talent being the only distinctions to entitle the deceased to sepulture, and the hieroglyphical inscriptions to perpetuate a name. The King of Egypt might (and it was a custom) build his own monument and Sarcophagus, inscribe them with his victories and virtues; but his body (after death) would not be placed within, unless at the public ordeal upon his life and character the People should grant permission.

If such a custom obtained at the present day, how many lying tomb-stones and monumental effigies would escape the charge of falsehood; and how many unrecorded possessors of talent and character, would breathe in marble for the imitation of their posterity!

The Enchorial language (i. e. the common or spoken) was not placed (alone) on sacred edifices: therefore its absence on a building almost demonstrates that building to have been erected and adorned for sacred purposes. Upon this consideration we shall view the great edifice of Palenque,—as the Temple, and not the Palace. And, it might naturally be asked if this is a Palace, where is the Temple?—for in all ancient nations the Temple of worship was always the grandest edifice of a metropolis: the same custom is still continued in more modern times,—Rome has its St. Peter's, and London its St. Paul's.

The hieroglyphics on the Altar and Idols of Copan (vide last Section) in a similar manner demonstrate those sculptures to be of a Religious character, but that fact does not preclude the association of Historical events,—they were so introduced and incorporated by the Egyptians and the ancients, in order to deify those events;—and by thus rendering a sacristy of character to the hero, or the glory, to give them both (in their belief) an earthly, or rather a celestial immortality!

Herodotus states (ii. § 36) that the hieratic (priests) and the demotic (common) were the two written languages of Egypt,—these two were apart from the hieroglyphical or symbolical language. Diodorus Siculus (iii., § 3) supports his predecessor, and says that the former (hieratic) was used only by the priests,—while the latter (i. e. the Enchorial or demotic) was used in common by all the Egyptians,—i. e., that it was the spoken language of the country, and, as already shewn, not used upon sacred edifices. From these facts, derived from ancient custom, may be gathered why the ciphers of the common language of the Mexican Aborigines are not found upon their Temples; and as a consequence, the absence of the spoken language upon those Temples proves them (from the ancient custom) to have been erected at a period when that peculiar custom was practised; and therefore, (apart from other considerations) the time of their erection must be viewed at a remote antiquity.

"It (the stucco) was painted, and in different places about we discovered the remains of red, blue, yellow, black, and white."

In the language of the Fine Arts "black and white" are not received as colours—they are merely accessories. Red, Blue, and Yellow, are the three; and the only primitive earth-colours, and by their amalgamation in certain proportions (aided by the subordinates, black and white) all secondary colours—or tints strictly speaking—are produced. The Rainbow possesses but three primitive colours; but by their juxtaposition and refractions, the purple, orange, green, and violet are produced.

Titian painted a picture in which he used only the three primitives; but taking the Rainbow for his mistress in colouring, he so arranged the juxtapositions of the original and "divine three," that the cloud-created Iris might well be jealous of the triple tints of Titian!

No greater proof could be given of antiquity, than the discovery that the Mexican Aborigines were ignorant of the art of mixing colours—for the three primitives only, and not the secondary colours—are found upon the Temples. The "Tyrian dye" or purple, was not extracted from the earth, but from the Sea, from a shell-fish, since called the purple murex.

For ages it was believed that the Rainbow possessed seven colours. Science has proved that it contains but three. Nature has no more: and without even alluding to other religious opinions—the Trinity is even figured in the Rainbow: and the Divine Arch viewed in this figurative manner, has indeed the Eye of the Almighty upon it—the Three in One—it is not only the "Covenant," but the Type of Salvation from the Father to his children!

The reader will pardon this slight digression, and the writer makes the following assertion for the investigation of the curious, without any fear of a negative being produced. The conclusion is from many years of observation; viz., That every thing in Nature of the Animal or the Vegetable kingdom; the Rainbow and the Elements; that all the works of Art embraced in the comprehensive term, Architecture (Edificial or Naval): in the Arch itself, and even in Mechanics; that in all these productions of Nature or Art there are ONLY THREE GRAND PARTS! And many of those parts contain within themselves three subdivisions. Those subdivisions are only accessories, holding the same relation to the whole, that the secondary colours do to the primitives of the Rainbow. We will give a few illustrations from Nature and Art. For instance,—the Fruit-tree,—the three primitive parts are the roots, trunk, and branches, these are composed of fibrum, sap, and bark; the accessories are the leaves and fruit; the leaf consists of the stalk, fibres, and the web; the fruit, of the rind, the apple, and the core. The Human form will bear the same test; viz., head, trunk, and limbs—nay, the very principles of life, brain—lungs, and heart; and also the great combinations in Chemistry! The sublime science of Astronomy also supports the conclusion. For the illustration from Art—a Temple. The three grand divisions are the foundation, body, and roof; the front of the edifice is in three parts—viz., columns, entablature, and pediment; these being subdivided, and three parts again appear: 1st, a Column,—the shaft, capital, and abacus; 2d, the Entablature,—the architrave, frieze, and cornice; 3d, the Pediment,—the apex, and the two corners, forming a triangle. The triangle is, also, the facial characteristic of a square Pyramid, and its square base contains two triangles; but the true Pyramid contains only three sides, each, with the base, present triangles. If man's efforts in Art have produced by accident the

TRIA JUNCTA IN UNO,—

we must feel that nothing in Nature can be accidental, and investigation will prove that the Divine "three" pervade all! We are not aware that the above assertion has ever been made by any author, but we are convinced from years of observation, that although original and startling, it is no less the truth—for being founded in Nature it could not be otherwise. In the third volume this subject will be enlarged upon; for the present we claim the discovery of this great philosophical principle—the true active one of Nature and of Art, with the possession of which a man has the key to the arcana of both.

The Mexican Aborigines then had, apparently, no knowledge of the art of mixing colours, from which fact a strong proof is gained of their great antiquity.

"The piers (i. e. the square columns of the Temple) which are still standing, contained other figures of the same general character, but which unfortunately are more mutilated, and from the declivity of the terrace it was difficult to set up the camera lucida in such a position as to draw them. The piers which are fallen were no doubt enriched with the same ornaments. Each one had a specific meaning, and the whole probably presented some allegory or history, and when entire and painted, the effect in ascending the terrace must have been imposing and beautiful."

This "allegory or history" we have endeavoured to decipher in the Analogies. The sculpture of this Temple, like the metopes of the Parthenon, should not be viewed in separate parts, but as a whole; for the parts, like single letters, are useless in themselves, but when placed together in proper and consecutive localities, they instantly express a word, or sentences, and thence convey to the mind the full intelligence of the subject.

"The tops of the doorways are all broken. They had evidently been square, and over one were large niches in the wall on each side, in which the lintels had been laid. The lintels had been all fallen, and the stones above formed broken natural arches [angles?]. Underneath were heaps of rubbish, but there were no remains of lintels. If they had been single slabs of stone, some of them must have been visible and prominent, and we made up our minds that the lintels had been of wood, and perhaps we should not have ventured the conclusion, but for the wooden lintel which we had seen over the doorway at Ocosingo, and by what we saw afterwards in Yucatan (Uxmal), we were confirmed beyond all doubt in our opinion. I do not conceive, however, that this gives any conclusive data in regard to the age of the buildings. The wood (lintels) if such as we saw in the other places (i. e. Ocosingo and Uxmal) would be very lasting, its decay must have been extremely slow, and centuries may have elapsed since it perished altogether."

The decaying of the lintels at Ocosingo and Palenque, and their existence and preservation at Uxmal enables a data to be formed in reference to the order of their erection; for the non-appearance of any wooden lintels at Copan authorizes the placing of that city first in chronological order, followed by the cities of Ocosingo and Palenque, and from the argument, and the preservation of the wood, Uxmal was built after the foregone.

"The building has two parallel corridors running lengthwise on all four of its sides. In front these corridors are about nine feet wide, and extend the whole length of the building, upwards of two hundred feet. In the long wall that divides them there is but one door, which is opposite the principal door of entrance, and has a corresponding one on the other side, leading to a courtyard in the rear.

"The floors are of cement, as hard as the best seen in the remains of Roman baths and cisterns. The walls are about ten feet high,—plastered,—and on each side of the principal entrance ornamented with medallions, of which the borders only remain,—these perhaps contained the busts of the Royal family. The separating-wall had apertures of about a foot, probably intended for purposes of ventilation. The builders were evidently ignorant of the principle of the ARCH, and the support (ceiling) was made by stones (blocks) lapping over as they rose, as at Ocosingo, and as among the Cyclopean remains in Greece and Italy." * * * * "From the centre door of this corridor a range of stone steps, thirty feet long, leads to a rectangular courtyard, eighty feet long by seventy broad. On each side of the steps are grim and gigantic figures carved on stone in basso relievo, nine or ten feet high, and in a position slightly inclined backward, from the end of the steps to the floor of the corridor. They are adorned with head-dresses and necklaces, but their attitude is that of pain and trouble. The design and anatomical proportion of the figures are faulty, but there is a force of expression about them which shews the skill and conceptive power of the artist. On each side of the courtyard of the Palace (Temple) are divided apartments, probably for sleeping. (?) On the right, the piers have all fallen down. On the left they are still standing and ornamented with stucco figures. In the centre apartment, in one of the holes, are the remains of a wooden pole, about a foot long, which once stretched across, but the rest had decayed. It was the only piece of wood (worked) we found at Palenque, and we did not discover this until some time after we had made up our minds in regard to the wooden lintels over the doors. It was much worm-eaten, and probably in a few years not a vestige will be left. At the farther side of the courtyard was another flight of stone steps, corresponding with those in front, on each side of which are carved figures, and on the flat surface between are single cartouches of hieroglyphics." * * * * * * "In the further corridor the wall was in some places broken, and had SEVERAL separate coats of plaister and paint. [Proofs of different periods] In one place we counted six layers, each of which had the remains of colours. This corridor opened to a second courtyard, eighty feet long, and but thirty across. The floor of the corridor was ten feet above that of the courtyard, and on the wall underneath were square stones with hieroglyphics sculptured upon them. On the piers were stuccoed figures, but in a ruined condition. On the other side of the courtyard were two ranges of corridors, which terminated the building in this direction. The first of them is divided into three apartments, with doors opening from the extremities upon the western corridor. All the piers are standing excepting that on the north-west corner. All are covered with stucco ornaments, and one with hieroglyphics. The rest contain figures in bas relief." * * * "There are several distinct and independent buildings. [Within the confines of the Temple] The principal of these is the Tower, on the south side of the second court. This Tower is conspicuous by its height and proportions: the base is thirty feet square, and it has three stories. Entering over a heap of rubbish at the base, we found within another Tower, distinct from the outer one, and a stone staircase, so narrow that a large man could not ascend it. The staircase terminates against a dead stone ceiling, closing all further passage. The whole Tower was a substantial stone structure, and in its arrangements and purposes about as incomprehensible as the sculptured tablets. East of the Tower is another building, with two corridors, one richly decorated with pictures in stucco, and having in the centre an elliptical tablet. It is four feet long and three wide, of hard stone, set in the wall, and the SCULPTURE is in bas relief. Around it are the remains of a rich stucco border. The principal figure sits cross-legged (i. e. orientally) on a couch, ornamented with two leopards' heads: the attitude is easy, the physiognomy the same as that of the other personages, and the expression calm and benevolent. The figure wears around its neck a necklace of pearls [beads of gold?] to which is suspended a small medallion containing a face, perhaps for an image of the Sun."

From the positive radii around the medallion (as presented by the artist) there can be no hesitation in distinctly stating that it was intended for an "image of the Sun." This is essential in identifying the analogy of Religious worship: it also gives further authority for the belief that this edifice was a Temple, and not a Palace. The Tower of Palenque also aids this belief, for from its locality it would seem to have been used as a modern oriental minaret, from which the priests summoned the people to prayer.

"Like every subject of sculpture we had seen in this country, the personage had earrings, bracelets on the wrists, and a girdle round the loins. The head-dress differs from most of the others at Palenque in that it wants the plume of feathers. Near the head are three hieroglyphics. The other figure, which seems that of a woman is sitting cross-legged [kneeling?] on the ground, richly dressed, and apparently in the act of making an offering. In this supposed offering is seen a plume of feathers, in which the head-dress of the principal personage is deficient. Over the head of the sitting personage are four hieroglyphics. This is the only piece of Sculptured Stone about the the Palace (Temple) except those in the courtyard. Under it formerly stood a table [altar?] of which the impression against the wall is still visible."

It will be observed that the above Sculpture is the only one in Stone in the interior of the Temple; and from the image of the Sun suspended from the neck of the principal figure, whose countenance is "calm and benevolent," and the richly-attired kneeling figure making an offering, the Sculpture seems to represent the Apollo of the Aborigines receiving a tributary gift. The "Table" underneath and in front, is in the very position of an Altar-table, upon which may have been placed the votive offerings of the living, in imitation of the Sculpture above the Altar. In a similar manner the more modern altar of the Christians is placed, for it is stationed beneath the artistical object of worship or the tables of the Decalogue. A painting over a Christian altar, of the Magii adoring the Infant Saviour, and thereby calling for similar worship from the living, will completely illustrate the sculptured altar-piece of Palenque. We think that this will be admitted, and being so it establishes that this great edifice was one of the chief Temples of the Aborigines, erected by them for the worship of their God of light and heat—viz., the Sun.

This may then have been the Mecca-shrine of the Kingdom, to which all the nation made their annual pilgrimage; and especially do we believe this to have been the case, from the fact of the stucco being placed upon the stone, and the former illustrating a later Religion than that proved by the stone-sculpture; and the Religion being partially changed (as will be shewn hereafter), still it was the chief Temple for the assemblage of the people, and from which, perhaps, from the Tower of the Temple, was promulgated not only any change in the form of Religious worship, but also in the Laws of the country. Every thing indicates that this edifice was the Aboriginal Temple of the Sun: if it was the Palace, again would we ask, where is the Temple? for in all ancient nations, the edifice in which was performed the Religion of the country, was of more importance than any earthly residence. Jerusalem, Athens, and Rome, possessed the Temple, the Parthenon, the Capitol, and the Pantheon; Tyrus, Carthage, and Palmyra, their gorgeous Temple to Apollo (i. e. the Sun); Italy, England, and France, justly boast of their Churches sacred to St. Peter, St. Paul, and the Mother of the Saviour!—and the great Mahommedan family point with religious joy to the Shrine at Mecca; and why then should the Aborigines of the Western Hemisphere be an exception?

The jewelled Temples of the Sun (i. e. of Apollo), that in Mexico and Peru tempted the blood-stained feet of Cortez and Pizarro, were but the types of the original at Palenque; for the latter was in ruins when the Spanish pirates landed, and none of their historians even allude to the desolation of past ages, so engrossed were they with that of their own!

Another description of a piece of Sculpture (in stucco) upon a building near the Temple of Palenque, will be reserved for illustrating a powerful similitude to a Tyrian branch of worship. This will receive a full investigation in the chapter devoted to the national Analogies.

On the map of the Ruins of Palenque, and in the descriptions (as furnished in Mr. Stephens's work), the Temple, and five other edifices, all rise from a pyramidal base, having four sides; this fact will again be brought forward in refutation of one of his architectural conclusions.