THE COFFEK OF PEllOTE. 301 



From tlie v^olcanoes of Iztacciliuatl and Popocatepetl, 

 the travellers proceeded to Xalapa, travelling for the most 

 part over loftj mountains, and through dense forests of 

 oaks and fir-trees. Tbuj lodged while at Xalapa in the 

 convent of Saint Francis, the view from which was mag- 

 nificent. On one hand they could see the plains and the 

 ocean ; on the other the declivities of the Cordilleras of 

 Anahuac, and the colossal summits of Orizaba and the 

 Coffer of Perote. The Coffer of Perote was a rock of 

 singular shape on the eastern side of the summit of the 

 porphyritic mountain of that name. It resembled a 

 square tower, and served as a signal to the sailors who 

 put in at Yera Cruz. The harbour of Vera Cruz, and 

 the castle of San Juan de Ulua, were visible from this 

 great watch-tower. Kothing at the summit announced a 

 crater, yet the mountain was enveloped in a thick bed of 

 pumice-stone. Its height was thirteen thousand five 

 hundred feet. The peak of Orizaba, which Humboldt 

 ascended, and which he always regarded as the most 

 magnificent mountain in the world, was two or three 

 hundred feet higher than the crater of Popocatepetl. 



The intcndancy of Yera Cruz like that of Puebla was 

 celebrated for its ruins. The most remarkable of these 

 was the pyramid of Papantla. It was situated in the 

 midst of a thick forest, at the distance of two leagues 

 from a great Indian village. It was unknown to the 

 Spaniards, for centuries ; for as it was an object of vene- 

 ration among the Indians, they concealed its existence 

 from the conquerors of their country ; and it was only 

 discovered accidentally by some hunters, about thirty 

 years before the time of Humboldt's visit. It was not 

 constructed of bricks, or clay mixed with stones, and 



