318 ARCHEOLOGY OF MICHOACHAN. 



We notice tliat Beaumont, a diligent investigator of the Miclioacan 

 antiquities, notwithstanding that he was well acquainted with the chron- 

 icle of Padre La Eea, makes no reference to this painting. 



Having the second part of the original manuscript of the chronicle 

 of Miclioacan in our possession, we have compared what he calls maps 

 with the original of the Jucutacato drawing, and have always found 

 the latter superior in execution. To give any value to such comparison 

 it would have been necessary to have the originals from which Beau- 

 mont copied, for he confesses that those in his original manuscript are 

 transcribed, and i>erhaps not very faithfully, according to our view. 



Our friend the learned Senor Chavero, referring to this painting in 

 the appendix to the work of Padre Duran (vol. n, p, 101), and before 

 he knew of our photograph of it, says: "Larrea, in his Chronicle of 

 Michoapan, an extremely rare book, says that the Tarascans i^reserved 

 in tiie town of Cucutacato a hieroglyphic drawing of their journey." 

 Sefior Arozco y Berra, judging Beaumont's geographical drawings, 

 assures us that " they are material representations of the deeds, draw- 

 ings and not writing, probably the exclusive work of painters after the 

 conquest. (Vol. ii, page 590, of his Ancient History and History of the 

 Conquest of Mexico.) Sefior Eiva Palacio, in the second volume of 

 " Mexico across the Centuries," (p. 31, note), concludes that " these pic- 

 tures were made some years, though very few, after the arrival of Cris- 

 tobal de Olid," etc. We wished to anticipate the earlier opinions, in 

 order to judge if this is properly a hieroglyphic. Seiior Orozco y Berra 

 and liiva Palacio neither know nor refer to this linen. Seiior Chavero 

 was actually acquainted with it, and already calls it hieroglyphic in an- 

 ticipation. Does it then merit this name ? We believe that it does. Sup. 

 posing that it does, how shall we distinguish it from the others ? With 

 the name Kirioloyic or figurative.* With regard to the oi)inions of 

 Seiiors Riva Palacio and Orozco y P>eria, lea\ii!g out the houses and 

 inscrii)tions, we <;onsider them inajjplicable to this linen drawing. 



* According to Bescherelle Kiriologic is a painting of ideas solely by the images of 

 visible objects. 



