OBJECTS FROM CEMPOALAN AND XICO 



259 



THEORIES OF THE USE OF STONE YOKES 



These problematical objects have been variously interpreted by dif- 

 ferent writers, but the theories thus far presented, like those sug- 

 gested for the Porto Rican collars, are not conclusive. They ai'e com- 

 monly called sacrificial stones, and in an early catalogue of the Museo 

 Nacional of Mexico are referred to as ' ' yokes or collars that served in 

 human sacrifice by placing them under the back of the victim to make 

 the chest protrude, and thus facilitate the extraction of the heart, or 

 b}- applying them upon the necks of victims to product^ asphyxia, or 

 at least to obtain immobility. These yokes are 

 found in Mexico, Tlaxcala, Orizaba, and Chia- 

 pas." A large array of authors might l)e 

 quoted as interpreting the Mexican yokes in 

 this way. Mr Francis Parry abandons the 

 name "Stone Yoke," substituting that of 

 "Sacred Maya Stone,"" and considers them 

 as connected with germination or phallic 

 ceremonies. 



At a meeting of the Sociedad de Geografia 

 y E.stadistica of Mexico, held in February, 

 1891, there was an animated discussion of the 

 use of these yokes, revealing a difference of 

 opinion regarding their function. A commit- 

 tee was appointed to investigate the subject, 

 but as yet no report has been published by it. 



Regarding the use of the sculptured yokes, 

 Professor Holmes writes: * 



Considering the number of these objects and their 

 importance as works of art, it is certainly remarkable 

 that nothing is known of their use, and that they do 

 not appeiir to be represented in any of the ancient man- 

 uscripts or in any of the thousands of subjects engraved 

 or sculptured on stone or painted on or modeled in clay. 

 That they were sacred and symbolic and had some im- 

 portant office to fill in gaming or divination, in rites or 

 ceremonies, requires no proof beyond that furnished by 

 our knowledge of the culture of the people to whom they belonged. Numerous definite 

 uses have been assigned to them, but I can see no sufficient reason for adopting any 

 one of these rather than another, and it is quite probable that the real use has not 

 yet been guessed, save perhaps in the most general way. 



Attempts that have been made to decipher the meaning of the stone 

 yokes by comparing them with figures in Mexican and Maya codices have 

 not been wholly successful, although shedding some lighten the subject. 



Fig. 54. Concave side of curved 

 stone. (MuseoNacional, Mex- 

 ico. ) 



a The Sacred Maya Stone of Mexico and its Symbolism, London, 1893. 



6 Archeological Studies among the Ancient Cities of Mexico. Field Columbian Museum, Anthropo- 

 logical Series, v, no. 1, p. 319. 



