QUIEIGUA. 5 



terraces were originally faced with cement, which has long since disappeared. The 

 eastern border of the Great Plaza, which contained all the tall stelae or idols, is 

 formed by an irregular line of low mounds, which show no signs of having supported 

 stone houses. 



To the south of the Plan is a complicated group of mounds, terraces, and slopes of 

 superior construction to those already mentioned. 



To the north of the court of the Great Turtle stands what I should take to be the 

 principal Temple mound, but its ruin is so complete that no trace of a temple can now 

 be seen on its summit. 



Partly Excavated Building on tub Noeth Side of the South Coukt. 



Scale, 10 ft. = 1 inch. 



During my visit to the ruins in the year 1883 I did not pay much attention to the 

 structure of the mounds, but some years later, after having been so successful with 

 excavations at Copan and elsewhere, I sent Gorgonio Lopez to Quirigua to see if he 

 could find any traces of temples or houses by digging into the tops of the mounds. 

 He reported that his excavations in what I have taken to be the principal temple 

 mound did not give satisfactory results, for no trace of walls or chambers could be 

 found. He was, however, more successful when digging into the mound on the 

 north side of the south court, for here he unearthed the chambers of a house or 

 temple still covered in some parts by a stone roof. The height of the walls to the 



