ANNOTATIONS AND ADDITIONS. 175 



with the magnificent volume of Catherwood, "Yiews of 

 ancient Monuments in Central America, Chiapas, and 

 Yucatan," 1844 ; and lastly, with Prescott's " Conquest of 

 Mexico," vol. iii. App. p. 360.) 



The architectural remains in the peninsula of Yucatan 

 shew, still more than those of Palenque, a degree of civilisa- 

 tion and art which excites our astonishment. They are 

 situated between Valladolid, Merida, and Campeachy, chiefly 

 in the western part of the country. But the monuments in 

 the island of Cozumel (more properly Cuzamil), east of 

 Yucatan, were the first which were seen by the Spaniards 

 in the expedition of Juan de Grijalva, 1518, and that of 

 Cortes in 1519, and the report of them did much to spread 

 over Europe a high idea of ancient Mexican civilisation. 

 The most important ruins of the peninsula of Yucatan, 

 which unfortunately have not yet been thoroughly measured 

 and drawn by architects, are the Casa del Gobernador of 

 Uxmal, the Teocallis and vaulted constructions at Kabah, the 

 ruins of Labnah with domed columns, those of Zayi wilh 

 columns very nearly of the Doric order, and those of Chiche 

 with large ornamented pilasters. An old manuscript written 

 in the Maya language by a Christian Indian, and which is 

 still in the hands of the Gefe politico of Peto, Don Juan 

 Pio Perez, gives the different epochs ("Katunes" of 52 

 years) in which the Toltecs settled in different parts of the 

 peninsula. From these data Perez infers that the monu- 

 ments or buildings of Chiche go back to the close of the 

 fourth century of our era, while those of Uxmal belong to 

 the middle of the tenth century. But the accuracy of these 



