holmes] aboriginal AMERICAN ANTIQUITIES PART I 135 



The antiquities of the area inchide few features clearly indicating 

 decided superiority of the past over the historic status and suggest 

 relationships more or less intimate with the culture of Central 

 America on the north and the pre-Inca culture on the south. It is 

 noteworth3% however, that much diversity is shown, especially in the 

 more southern districts; a condition due partly, it would appear, to 

 intrusive elements of race and culture as well as to isolation of com- 

 munities b}" reason of the pronounced physical characteristics of the 

 country. Architectural remains are of rare occurrence in Colombian 

 territory. The most important traces consist of a grouj) of stone 

 columns, apparently the remains of an important structure in the 

 Magdalena Valley northwest of Tunja, of a remarkable series of 

 slab-built temples associated with colossal statues, which display cer- 

 tain sculptural features of nuich interest, in the valley of the Rio 

 de La Plata, an alHuent of the Magdalena, and far to the east in 

 the most rugged j^art of the eastern Cordillera there exist, accord- 

 ing to report, certain cyclopean edifices and subterranean temples in 

 which are colossal statues carved from the living rock. These re- 

 mains, if correctly reported, would seem to be related in some way 

 to the advanced stone building of the Inca region to the south. 



In highland Ecuador and along the coast in Esmeraldas and 

 Manabi numerous stone-built structures are encountered, but whether 

 of Inca or pre-Inca type is not fully determined. Some of the more 

 advanced tribes erected burial mounds of stone and earth over their 

 dead but rarely of any considerable architectural pretensions. Agri- 

 culture was practiced and the early historians refer to the use of irri- 

 gation works, but no trace of these has been observed in recent times. 

 The mining of gold, silver, copper, and emeralds was carried on with 

 much success. This consisted in washing the sands and gravels 

 of stream beds as Avell as the working of vein material. The processes 

 employed must have been exceedingly primitive, but apparently no 

 account of these has been recorded by the historians of the region. 

 Sculpture was in a backward state throughout the area. The exam- 

 ples preserved of images and kindred sculptures compare unfavorably 

 with those of Chiriqui and Costa Rica and also with those of south- 

 ern Ecuador. In minor lapidarian work considerable skill was 

 displayed. Implements and ornaments were tastefully shaped and 

 the carving of emeralds, a stone invested with sacred attributes by 

 some of the tribes, was carried on with remarkable skill. The stone 

 implements of the Ecuadorian highland are well made and display 

 remarkably diversified characteristics. 



The burial places of the people furnish most striking evidences 

 of culture advancement in pre-Columbian times. Pottery is abun- 



