30 THE TEMPLE OF THE CROSS. 



turned both face downward, in order to prevent their detection by speculators in 

 the village of Santo Domingo.=^= The best-preserved of the statues, however, did 

 not escape the searching eye of Mr. Stephens, who represents it on the plate 

 facing page 349 of his often-quoted volume. His design is reproduced as Fig. 

 5, on the preceding page. It seems he had no knowledge of the existence of a 

 second statue. The one he saw is thus described : — 



" It lies in front of the building, about forty or fifty feet down the side of the 

 pyramidal structure. When we first passed it with our guide, it lay on its face, 

 with its head downward, and half buried by an accumulation of earth and stones. 

 The outer side was rough and unhewn, and our attention was attracted by its size ; 

 our guide said it was not sculptured ; but, after he had shown us everything that 

 he had knowledge of, and we had discharged him, in passing it again we stopped 

 and dug around it, and discovered that the under surface was carved. The 

 Indians cut down some saplings for levers, and rolled it over. It is the only 

 statue that ever has been found at Palenque. We were at once struck with its 

 expression of serene repose and its strong resemblance to Egyptian statues, 

 though in size it does not compare with the gigantic remains of Egypt. In 

 height it is ten feet six inches, of which two feet six inches were under ground. 

 The head-dress is lofty and spreading ; there are holes in the place of ears, which 

 were perhaps adorned with ear-rings of gold and pearls. Round the neck is a 

 necklace, and pressed against the breast by the right hand is an instrument, 

 apparently with teeth. The left hand rests on a hieroglyphic, fi-om which 

 descends some symbolic ornament. The lower part of the dress bears an unfor- 

 tunate resemblance to the modern pantaloons, but the figure stands on what we 

 have always considered a hieroglyphic, analogous again to the custom in Egypt 

 of recording the name and otfice of the hero or other person represented. The 

 sides are rounded, and the back is of rough stone. Probably it stood imbedded 

 in a wall."f 



Stephens doubtless inclined to this view, because he saw only one of the 

 statues ; Waldeck, it seems, is right in supposing that they served in lieu of 

 atl antes. 



* Waldeck: Description des Kuiaes etc., p. vii in: Monuments Anciens etc. 



■{•Stephens: Central America etc.; vol. ii, p. 348. — It should be mentioned that Stephens, notwithstanding 

 the above allusions, totally denies any connection between the Egyptians and tlie builders of the ruins he descrilics. 



1 . 



