SELBR] EXPLANATION OF WALL PAINTINGS 317 



phort time in acquiring riches, and men said their god Quetzalcoatl 

 gave them these, and so it Avas said among them of one who became 

 rich rapidly that he was a son of Quetzalcoatl "." The same author- 

 ity '' makes a similar statement concerning the Olmecs, Uixtotins, and 

 Mixtecs — (under which name, as I stated above, are included different 

 tribes of the tierra caliente, and probably also the Zapotecs), to wit, 

 that likewise among these " there Avere many Avho spoke the Mexican 

 language " (iniquein miequintin in navatlatoa). Doubtless the form 

 of this god passed to the Zapotecs from the conquering and trad- 

 ing Nahua tribes, and perhaps the key to this frieze of Mitla, so 

 abounding in figures, might have been found among the Nahua tril)es, 

 neighbors of the Zapotecs, in Teotitlan or in Teouacan (Tehvuican), 

 full of idols and priests and productive of picture writings. 



The western part of the frieze on the north side in Palace I is 

 pretty thoroughly destroyed. In consequence, fragment 1 on plate 

 XXXVIII shows in general only disconnected remains. Two inter- 

 twined serpents, characterized by a row of points on the back, are 

 quite distinct and recall those of fragment 2 on plate xxxvii. Fur- 

 thermore there is a bird Avith a pointed beak, which appears again 

 below on fragment 4b, plate xxxviii. The numerals 1 and 2 are 

 coordinated in the Borgian codex, page 4-1, Avith tAvo bird forms 

 Avhich apparently correspond to this one of the pointed beak. Finally, 

 there is preserved at the right end of fragment 1 a deit}^ Avho wears 

 a bar in the nose that diminishes in steps, like those by which the 

 deities of the earth, Chantico and Xochiquetzal, are characterized in 

 the Borgian codex. The elaborate painting of the face recalls also 

 the Xochiquetzal of the Borgian codex, page 53. 



In fragment 3 of plate xxxviii are to be first noticed two pictures 

 of the sun god. They can be recognized by the headband, Avhich is 

 set with disks representing precious stones and has a bird's head in 

 front, and by tAVO lines Avhich border the outer corners of the eyes. 

 The sun god in the Borgian codex, page 49, is represented opposite 

 the moon god, as ruler of the sixth A\'eek, '^ 1 death ", in exactly the 

 same way (see beloAV, figure 82). The forward one of the tAvo figures 

 in fragment 3 appears to hold a cup in his hand, the other a disk or 

 ball. Opposite the latter a god is portrayed who also wears the step- 

 shaped, tapering nose bar of the earth goddess. To this god the day 

 date seems to belong, which consists of the head of the rain god 

 (quiauitl, " rain ") Avith a numeral which can no longer be identified. 

 Behind the second figure of the sun god is given the year date ''7 (?) 

 flint". After this folloAvs a representation difficult to interpret, in 

 AA^hich can be recognized a mountain, Avith a finely drawn head of a 

 turkey, and Avith a house (?) on its summit. 



Fragment 4-a begins with a serpent, Avhich has the head of Quetzal- 



" Saliagun, v. 10, chap. 29, sec. 1. "11)1(1., sec. 1(>. 



