The remains at this site have already been contrasted with those at Monte Alban. There is one fairly large mound at Mitla but it has no surviving superstructure. The temples are placed on low platforms which usually contain cruciform tombs. The buildings are carefully oriented and are assembled in groups of four which almost enclose square paved courts. The heavy walls have surfaces of cut stone and a filling of concrete or rubble and are ornamented with longitudinal panels of geometric designs arranged according to a carefully worked out plan. The geometric patterns are based on textile art and the mosaics of separately carved stones which fit neatly together preserve for us the ancient designs on belts and mantles. The chambers are long and narrow and formerly had flat roofs which have completely vanished. The wide doorways usually have two piers which help to support the lintel blocks. These are carefully trimmed stones of great length and weight. All the outer surfaces of the Mitla temples were sized with plaster and painted red and the frescoes, traces of which can still be seen in several buildings, are in red and black upon a white base. Various gods and ceremonies are represented in these frescoes, but only the upper portion of the bands can be made out in detail.
Cruciform tombs are found under several of the temples at Mitla as well as at a number of neighboring sites such as Xaaga and Guiaroo. In these tombs the designs in panels appear on the inside and are carved directly on large blocks of stone. Pottery remains are rare in the cruciform tombs of the Mitla type but a few examples of gold work have been discovered in them.
Within a short distance of Mitla is a fortified hill with several heavy walls that still stand to the height of perhaps twenty feet. In the flat valley between this hill and the ruins a considerable number of potsherds are plowed up in the field.
Totonacan Culture.
In the central part of the state of Vera Cruz are found the remains commonly referred to the Totonacan Indians. These Indians are southern neighbors of the Huastecas who are an outlying Mayan tribe. The Totonacan language is according to some authorities thrown into the Mayan stock. If not truly Mayan it contains many loan words. This apparent connection in language is all the more interesting in view of the character of Totonacan art which also shows a strong strain of Mayan feeling and technique in certain products but an unmistakable likeness to the archaic art of the Mexican highlands in certain other products. The pottery faces in the archaic style are advanced beyond the average of such work and probably represent a late phase.
Fig. 56. The Eyes of Totonacan Figurines.
A series of eyes showing Totonacan modifications of the styles prevalent on the archaic pottery heads of the Highlands is given in [Fig. 56]. In some cases we find the simple single or double groove eyes and in other cases these eyes are made more conspicuous by the use of black bituminous paint. The eyeball is developed at the end of the series.
[Plate XXX.]
