MEXICO, ANCIENT ARCHITECTURE oP, structural remains of the Aztec, Tol tec, and other races who peopled Mexico prior to and at the time of the Spanish invasion under Cortez. Although these remains have been from time to time explored and inves tigated, it has been chiefly with the desire to sustain some comprehensive theory of cbmparative architecture, and from a stand-point of supposed similarity in their case to the remains of ancient Egypt, India, Greece, and, as lord Kingsborough conceived, of Jerusalem. Humboldt's work on New Spain first excited the curiosity of the Europeans, and rescued the antiquities of Mexico from the oblivion to which they had so long been consigned; but it was not until a comparatively recent period that their value as works of art, and as indications of a considerable advance in civilization, was fully appre ciated. Pyramids having even a larger base, and being otherwise scarcely inferior in magnitude to those of Egypt, are found in many parts of Mexico; while the general con -dition of architecture at the period when these were erected has been found to be of a. character to surprise and charm even those familiar with the monuments of the east. Mexican architecture is that of two distinct peoples: the Toltecs, who occupied Mexico prior to the 7th c. of our era, and the Aztecs, with whom may he associated the Chiche macas, who inhabited the country at the Spanish conquest early in the 16th century. That which is believed to belong to the earlier race is also the most remarkable; the later would seem to have been derived from it. Architecture in its essential features similar to that of the Toltecs exists in various parts of Central America, and may be associated with it. As far as our present knowledge extends, the architecture of Mexico is to be regarded as, in the main, self-developed, rather titan borrowed from that of any 'other country. The buildings display vast labor, and often great skill, and are works of singular interest, promising to repay a far more thorough investigation than they have ever yet received. As in almost every other national architecture, the most important edifices are those devoted to the purposes of religion. These are known as teocallis, and appear, like the Egyptian temples, to have contained apartments for the priests; they also contained sepulchral chambers, and had descending galleries leading down into cavernous recesses or halls, which are variously conjectured to have been used for religious mysteries, or as places for the concealment of treasures, and may probably have been used for both purposes. In plan these buildings are square; in form pyram idal, generally rising in successive stories or stages, like a series of truncated pyramids placed one above another, each successive one being smaller than the one on which it immediately rests, so that it stands upon a platform or terrace; the holy place, or temple proper, being built on the summit, and subordinate in effect to the pyramid. The sides -of the pyramids face the cardinal points; their angle of inclination is seldom less than 70°, which differs little front that of the pyramids of Egypt. The largest, most sacred, and best-known of these teocallis is that of Cholula, for which a fancied prototype has been found in the temple of Belus, as described by Herodotus. This pyratnid-temple of Cholula is now in appearance little more than a vast mound of earth covered with vege tation, and crowned with a small church. But on near inspection its architectural fea tures are sufficiently distinguishable. The base of this huge structure measures 1440 ft. each way (some authorities say 1488 ft.); its height is 177 ft; the sides of the base of the great pyramid of Gizeli are only 763 ft., so that the area of the Mexican pyramid is nearly four tinaes that of the greatest of those of Egypt, but it is not a third of their 'height. The body of the pyramid of Cholula is formed of clay and sun-dried bricks. It consists of four terraces; and on the summit is a small church dedicated to the Virgin, which occupies a temple of the Toltec god of the air. From the perishable material of which it was constructed, the decorative features have almost entirely disappeared, though there are evidences remaining of what were once elaborate and interesting sculp tures. In its rresent condition but a very imperfect notion can be formed of its original appearance. It contains spacious sepulchral cavities; and a square chamber formed of stone and supported by beams of cypress wood was some years ago discovered in it, within which were two skeletons and several painted vases. The buildings outside the limits of the valley of Mexico, and especially those in Central America, are in far bet ter preservation. One of the most stupendous monuments of this style of architecture occurs at Palenque, in the state of Chiapas, Mexico. The great teoealli at Palenque (built, according to the startling assumption of lord Kingsboroughoifter the model of ,the temple of Solomon) comprised within its extensive precincts various sanctuaries and :sepulchers, courts and cloisters, subterraneous galleries, and cells for the habitation of the priests. .The whole rests on a platform composed of three graduated terraces, and forms a spacious quadrangle inclosed by porticoes. On each side of the exterior is an ascent or flight of stairs, and on the east a second flight leading down, after the first is ascended, into the cloistered court. Beneath the cloisters are what are conjectured to have been initiatory galleries; and in the center of the quadrangle is what appears to be the ruins of an altar or " high place." The temple itself is oblong in plan, 76 ft. wide by 26 ft. deep, and is decorated with sculpture and hieroglyphics executed in stucco. The 7roof is formed by graduated courses of stone, which meet at the summit, and has six ornamental projections, placed above the openings formed by the supporting piers, which were probably intended to support small idols or ornamental figures. The city of Palenque itself exhibits a variety of buildings, temples, palaces, baths, and private houses, all manifesting excellence of workmanship combined with considerable skill in design. The palaces, or houses of the kings, appear to have resembled the temples in being based on pyramidal substructures; but these are generally oblong instead of square in plan, and much lower than the temple pyramids. Their substructure is usually of stone, and veiy massive, elaborately sculptured with figures of idols and masks of monstrous proportions, scrolls, mat-work, etc., often executed with great skill. The upper part appears to have been of wood, but has mostly perished. The ruins of Palenque extend for more than 20 m. along the summit of the ridge which separates the country- of the wild Maya Indians from the state of Chiapas, and must anciently have embraced a city and its suburbs. The principal buildings are erected on the most prominent heights, and several of them, if not all, have been provided with stone stairs. The principal edifice, which has been sometimes styled a palace, is built in several squares; but the main halls or galleries run in a direction from the n.n.e. to the s.s.w.; and this position has been observed in all the edifices examined, be their situation what it may-. The houses have all been substantially built of stone cemented with mortar; but symmetry has been but little studied in their construction, it is supposed less from ignorance than design. Other ruins of considerable magnitude, and distinguished by numerous sculptures, are found upon the neighboriug In the vicinity there is one building in particular, apparently a religious edifice, which deserves notice. Two gal leries constitute its foundation; the front one occupying its whole length, while the back one is divided into three compartments. Of these the eastern has the appearance of a dungeon; the western is a small room with a chapel ornamented with elegant relievos. These consist of representations of the human figure, in various attitudes, and adorned _generally with boughs and feathers. There are other very interesting ruins in this part of Mexico, but they have not as yet been sufficiently examined for description. One of the most characteristic of the palaces is that of Mids., the remains of which show that it must have been an edifice of great extent and grandeur. It appears to have originally 'comprised five distinct portions, which have been regarded as places of retirement for the kin,gs, or as tombs. Three of these still remain. The principal one is nearly 130 ft. loiig. A staircase leads to a subterranean apartment 88 ft. by 26, the walls of which, like the exterior, appear to have been sculptured or tooled in imitation of mat or basket-work— a species of decoration characteristic of Toltecan taste, and often found in sepulchral chambers. This same building has also a spacious hall supported by six plain cylindri cal columns of porphyry, without base or capital, and in some respects differing from any found elsewhere. The ceiling which they support is formed of beams and slabs of cypress or savin wood of large size. Over the principal entrance is a stone lintel 12 ft. long and 3 ft. deep. There is no appearance of windows. The interiors of the chambers have been elaborately painted with representations of sacrifices, trophies, weapons, etc.; and with ornaments resembling those found in Etruscan decorations. At Testihuacan, about 25 m. to the n.e. of the city of Mexico, are several hundred small pyramids ranged in tiles or lines, and two larger ones, which are believed to have been consecrated to the sun and inoon. Each of the latter is divided into four platforms, the slopes between which con
sisted of steps, and on the summit was a colossal stone statue covered with plates of gold, which were stripped off by the soldiers of Cortes, while the statues were destroyed. Besides monuments which are chiefly works of magnificence, others exist which attest the high degree of civilization attained by the Toltecans, such as roads and bridges. The former of these were constructed of huge blocks of stone, and frequently carried WI a continued level, so as to be viaducts across valleys. There are also rock-hewn halls and caverns which curiously resemble the Pelasgic remains. Doorways to subterraneousi galleries and apartments are found similar to the gate of Mycenw; and another similar ity exists in the peculiar triangular arch formed by courses of stone projecting over each other, of which specimens are found in the cloisters of the building at Palenque. There are also extensive works for defensive purposes, earthen sepulchral mounds, etc.. The mountain of Tezcoca is nearly covered with ruins of ancient buildings. There is also evident a remarkable skill and high degree of taste in sculpture. Many of the statues found at Otumba, Mitla, Jochichalo, and the magnificent flower-temple of Oajaca, are sculptured in a purely classical style; while vases rivaling those of Egypt and Etruria have been discovered in sepulchral excavations. The successors of the Toltecs, the Chichemacas, the Acolhuas, and other nations of Mexico, built houses and formed cities, seeming to be well skilled in architecture. The Mexicans (Aztecs) constructed their houses and public edifices with roofs of cedar, fir, cypress, or of a native wood called ojametl: the columns, of common stone, except in the palaces, were either cylindrical or square, and without base or capital. In the palaces these columns were of marble, and even alabaster. The pavements were of a common red stone, sometimes tesselated with marble and other ornamental substances. Cortes, in a letter to Charles V., said of Montezuma: " He had, besides those in the city of Mexico, other such admir able houses for his habitation, that I do not believe I shall ever be able to express their excellence and grandeur; therefore I shall only say that there are no equals to them in Spain." The Mexicans also constructed, for the convenience of their inhabited places, several excellent aqueducts. Those of the capital, for conducting the water from Cita pultepec, 2 tn. distant, " were two in number, made of stove and cement 5 ft. high, and 2 paces broad, upon a road raised for that purpose upon the lake, by which the water was brought to the entrance of the city, and from thence it branched out through smaller channels to supply several fountains, and particularly those of the royal palaces." The great temple in the city of Mexico, the sanctuary of _Alexia, whence " Mexico," was built by the emperor Almitzotl. It occupied the center of the city, and Cortes stated that on the space which it occupied a town of 500 houses could have been erected. It was inclosed by a square wall, 8 ft. high and very thick, crowned with battlements; built of stone and lime, and ornamented with many stone figures in the form of serpents. It had four gates to the four cardinal points, and over each gate was au arsenal filled with offensive and defensive weapons, from which the soldiers were supplied when it was necessary. In the center of the inclosure was an immense flat, solid building, built in five gradually narrowing platforms or terraces, with stairs to each terrace at the s.w. corner, so arranged that each terrace had to be traversed around the entire building before the next staircase could be reached. At the top of the structure, at one end, were two tall towers, sanctuaries; here also was an altar for sacrifice, and two stoves of stone, in which a fire was kept burning night and clay. In the space between the wall and the great temple were 40 lesser temples; a place for the native religious dances; colleges for the priests and seminaries for children; and many other buildings, including a great house of entertainment for strangers of distinction who visited the place front curiosity, or to join in the religious rites performed there. Out of the city of Mexico the most celebrated temples were those of Tezcuco, Cholula, and Teotihuacau. Cortes said that front the top of one temple in Cholula he had counted more than 400 towers of others. Torquemada estimates that there were upwards of 40,000 throughout the empire, and there were certainly hundreds in each principal city. The peculiar coincidences of form, position, and ornamentation to be found between these structures and those employed for shnilar uses among the ancient Egyptians, Lave given rise to a belief in some relation between them, which is not unfounded; but no certain theory- as to this relation has every-et been formulated. For many years the ruins and monuments of ancient Mexico had been suffered to lie uninvestigated, and their secrets remain unre vealed—further than had occurred in the works to which reference has been already made. and others like them, of a comparatively remote date. In the spring of 1880 an expedition under the direction of M.Desire Charnay undertook a careful exploration of the territory in question, and the result of this examination was communicated to the world by M. Charnay through the pages of the _North American Review, from which we gather the following information. The fint visit of the exploring party was made to the ruins of Teotiltuacan, a city which is said by M. Charnay to have been about 23 m. in circum ference. "At first view," he writes, " one can form no just idea of the grandeur of these ruins. As with ruins in general, especially when they are overturned and wrecked like those before us, one experiences a grievous disillusion when lie looks at them for the first time. It is only after you have made a thorough study of them in mass and in detail that they itnpress you with their amazing vastness. Nowhere else in America can you, in my opinion, find a more imposing mass of ancient ruins, nor do I know of any thing that can compare with this city of the gods." Here is the pyramid of the sun, whose base is 761 ft. square, and its height 216 ft. ; its four sides facing the four cardinal points. It is constructed of volcanic debris laid in vegetable mold. There is no sign of mortar, but the structure was coated with cement, of which large slabs remain in per fect condition. Torquemada said of this city: " All these temples and palaces, and all these houses round about, were wholly built of white polished lime, so that on beholding them from afar one experienced no end of pleasure at the sight. The alleys, the streets, and the plazas were of colored and polished cement, and so fair, were they, so cleanly and so shining, that it seemed impossible that human hands should have been able to construct them, or that human feet durst tread them. And so true is this that, all exag geration aside, my- report can be believed, for in addition to what others have certified to me I have myself seen certain ruins that gave proof of all I have said; and amid these temples were trees and flowers, magnificent gardens, and parterres breathing fragrance, all for the service and the ornamentation of the temples." It is stated that there were 27,000 buildings in Teotilmacan, not counting the temples. Charnay says that the term Toltec meant " builder," or " architect," and that it was applied to those who reared cities and _built edifices, and not to any particular race or nation. In upper Mexico the material uSed in building was adobe; iu some provinces a mixture of stones and mud.. at Ilochicalco and at Teotihuacan a mixture of volcanic stones and mud, covered with a layer of cement; at Mexico it was adobe covered with cement or lime, and polished; at Oaxaca it was stones and mortar overlaid with cement, and this cement modeled into bas-reliefs; at Palenque, too, there are sculptured stones bearing inscrip tions; in Yucatan there are pyramids and monuments of stone and mortar; the builders used the material nearest to them, but the general style of the architecture and the methods of building are in ail instances nearly identical. Tula, which was another site visited by Charuay, the ancient metropolis of the Toltecs, 65 m. n. of the city of Mexico, was founded in 667. Here he excavated Toltec dwellings, found specimens of their sun-burned bricks, and numerous vases and other articles of pottery. He also claimed to have discovered fragments, or a frasment of a glass vessel, now iridescent from Ions. burial under ground. A palace was taso unearthed having 43 apartments. Under the reign of 31itl, in 927, the race and empire of the Toltecs reached the climax of their fortunes. The population had increased to such au extent that the nation occupied a territory more than 3,000 m. in circumference. The population of Teotihuacan is believed to have been half a million. 31. Charnay's 'exploration is conducted with all the zeal and enthusiasm which characterized that of Dr. Schliemann in ancient Ilium, and promises to reveal much that has been unsuspected with regard to the ancient civiliza tion of Mexico, as this was displayed in the condition of the arts, and particularly of architecture, among its people. In the mean time it has not advanced sufficiently far at the present writing to have demonstrated either the justness or the inaccuracy of past theorists on the probable origin to which these may be attributed. See CuoLula and