CHICHEN ITZA. 43 



If, for instance, the colonnade No. 28 were roofed with stone (judging from the 

 construction of buildings still standing) a section at Y-Z would have presented the 

 appearance of the following figure, and it is hardly possible that over a large space 

 the columns alone could have supported such a superstructure. 



However, at No. 28 the columns are buried almost up to their capitals in debris, 

 and this by itself would suggest that the usual system of roofing had been followed. 

 In hope of finding some explanation I made a careful examination of the surface of 

 the ground, and dug into it here and there to see if traces of any other supports could 

 be found, and was successful in making out part of the remains of three narrow walls, 

 r, r ; and such walls have already been mentioned as occurring in the colonnades 

 Nos. 16 and 20. I am therefore inclined to believe that such added walls were found 

 to be a necessity, and were freely used wherever the weight was found to be too great 

 for the column to uphold it. 



However, even with this additional support, such roofs must have been very 

 unstable; and this may account for the complete ruin of all the buildings where 

 columns have been freely used, whilst so many of those whose roofs were supported 

 by walls are still standing. 



I could find no traces of buildings inside the irregular square formed by the 

 colonnades and temples shown on the plan ; but at the south-west corner there are 

 two mounds, No. 31, with the ruins of houses on them, and the remains of a small 

 building (No. 32) enclosing two columns. 



To the east of No. 20 are a number of ruined buildings of no particular interest, 

 some of which are indicated on the plan, and I was told that similar remains were 

 to be found for a considerable distance in that direction, but I did not personally 

 examine them. 



biol. CENTK.-AMEK., Archseol., Vol. III., April 1902. 



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