TOZZEK] EXCAVATION AT SANTIAGO AHUITZOTLA, MEXICO 19 



Tunn-els. — As excavations proojressed and the site bid fair to be 

 of some importance the Inspector of Ruins, Senor Manuel Gamio, 

 decided to have it preserved as a National Monument. Fortunately 

 no floors had been taken up and the site could be studied as it had 

 been uncovered, with nothing destroyed, with the exception, previ- 

 ously noted, of the pit dug in the center of the hill and the cutting 

 for the road. A complete examination of the lower-level floors 

 could be made only by removing those above them. As it was not 

 thought expedient to remove any of the floors, tunneling was exten- 

 sively employed (pi. 2). The lower floors, as shown in the tunnels, 

 proved to be on an amazing complex of levels, and it was possible 

 only in a few cases to trace the plan of complete rooms. 



It may be well to enumerate the tunnels and the purpose for which 

 they were excavated. No attempt will be made to keep to the order 

 in which they were opened. 



Tunnels a and h, under Floor B, were made in order to trace the 

 northern wall of Room XI, the floor in front of the Southern Ter- 

 race, and the construction under Floor B. 



Tunnels c-j (pi. 4, «), under Rooms I and II, were started by fol- 

 lowing Floor P in the open cut and continuing under the rooms to 

 the west in all directions. 



Tunnel k runs under Room V and is a continuation of the series of 

 tunnels under Floor A. It was dug in order to trace the extent of 

 Floor P. 



Tunnel I runs from Pit XXIII to Pit XXV and connects Avith 

 Tunnel m. 



Tunnel m, runs under Room VI and connects Pit XXV with Pit 

 XXVII. 



Tunnels ri^p run under the northern wall of Room VI and north- 

 ward under Floor B' in order to trace a stone wall and floor found 

 at the lower level, together with the construction under Floor B'. 



Tunnel // (pi. 4, a) was run from Pit XVII to Pit XXI under the 

 system of tunnels beneath Rooms I and II in order to exhaust the 

 possibility of floors under Floor P. 



Tunnel z connects with y running under the northern elongation 

 of Floor P and coming out in Pit XXIV. 



Pits, — In order to find out the stratification, together with the 

 various floor levels, and also to serve as entrances to the tunnels, 

 numerous square holes were dug throughout the site. These exca- 

 vations were never made where the floor was still in place. In most 

 cases these were filled up after the necessary data had been obtained. 



Pit XIV, outside the eastern wall of Room XI, was dug under 

 Floor L which was taken up in one piece and afterwards replaced. 

 This excavation showed no remains of any kind. 



