See chapter vii.
Landa “Relacion de las Cosas de Yucatan.” p. 164.
See chapter xi.
The facing stones placed upon the walls of the ruins of Mitla, in the Mexican province of Oaxaca, are fitted, or bedded, into the mortar and rubble in the same manner as at Uxmal.
At one of the evening conversaziones given by the Royal Society at Burlington House, in the spring of 1892, I happened to discuss the subject of Palenque and Uxmal with Mr. Woolner, the sculptor. Some experiments had previously been carried out in France which had proved that with stone chisels it was possible to carve granite, limestones, and hard sandstones.
The investigations did not, however, make it clear how it could have happened that the Indian sculptors were able to work with such facility that they covered their buildings with deeply chiselled ornamentation. Mr. Woolner said that he thought it probable that the Indians may have been acquainted with some strong acids, and that they may have used these to soften the stone and make it more workable.