688 MOUNDS IN NORTHERN HONDURAS [ETH. ANN. 19 
portion of it which was left. It was composed of earth and blocks of 
limestone. Ata depth of about 2 feet below the surface were found 
(1) a large tiger’s head cut in stone; (2) a turtle cut in stone and 
colored; (8) the lower part of a human mask; (4) a small, smooth, 
globular piece of jade. Potsherds, both painted and plain, were found 
in large quantities at all depths throughout the mound. 
The tiger’s head, which measured 18 inches from the forehead to the 
tip of the protruded tongue, evidently at one time formed a gargoyle- 
like ornament on some building, as behind the head the stone from 
which it was cut had been squared for a distance of 14 inches, obyi- 
ously for the purpose of being built into masonry. The head is, as is 
well shown in plate xxxrx, much weathered, the soft limestone being 
eaten away to such an extent that at first sight it is dificult to determine 
what it is meant to represent. 
If this head be compared with the tiger, figure 4+, plate xxxm1, it 
will be seen that, in the shape of the head, contour of the face, protrud- 
ing, pendant tongue, prominent round eyes, and square upper incisor 
teeth, the resemblance is sufficiently strong to warrant the assumption 
that both are products of the same race, if not of the same artist. The 
turtle is 18 inches in length by 12 inches in breadth, and is nicely cut 
from a single block of limestone. It is an exact copy of the turtle 
shown in figure 6, plate xxx, excepting that the mouth, instead of 
containing a human head, is closed. The whole animal is painted red, 
and in the center of the back is a round hole. leading to a considerable 
cavity which has been hollowed out in the interior. The hole is covered 
by a circular disk of limestone 3 inches in diameter. The human mask 
is made of rough pottery. The upper part of the face is missing; it is 
34 inches from ear to ear; the mouth is puckered up into a small, round 
hole as if in the act of whistling. 
The mound marked 10 on the plan was 98 yards in circumference, 
and very flat, nowhere exceeding 34 feet in height. It was constructed 
throughout of small pieces of limestone mixed with clay, and con- 
tained an enormous quantity of potsherds. These were for the most 
part rough and ill-made, but a few were painted and glazed. Nothing 
further was found in the mound till the ground level was reached, 
when an equilateral triangle, built of stone, was disclosed. Each side 
of the triangle was 18 feet in length, and was composed of roughly 
cut slabs of stone stuck upright in the ground and in contact on either 
side with similar slabs. The sides of the triangle varied in height from 
8 to 18S inches. The upper edges were irregular, the lower sunk to a 
depth of 5 or 6 inches in the ground. The stones were remoyed and 
the earth dug up, both in the center and along the sides of the triangle, 
but nothing whatever was discovered. 
The mound marked 11 on the plan was situated 1,130 yards 
southwest of the large central mound. As, in all the former mounds 
which had been excavated, whatever of interest they had contained 
