157 



serve to be engraved entire, are in the hands of 

 the Marquis of Branciforte, one of the last 

 viceroys of New Spain. I had the pleasure of 

 making several geological excursions with Mr. 

 Martin in the environs of Mexico. He commu- 

 nicated to me the drawing given in the fiftieth 

 plate, which represents three fragments of the 

 walls ; and shows, that the ornaments succeeding 

 each other are never similar. These arabes- 

 ques * form a kind of mosaic composed of seve- 

 ral square stones, which are placed with much 

 address by the side of each other. The mosaic 

 is applied on a mass of clay, which appears to fill 

 up the inside of the walls, as is also observed in 

 some Peruvian edifices. The length of these 

 walls on the same line at Mitla is only about 

 forty metres ; their height probably never ex- 

 ceeded five or six metres. This edifice, though 

 small, might however produce some effect from 

 the arrangement of its parts, and the elegant 

 form of its ornaments. Several temples of 

 Egypt, near Syene, Philae, Elethyia, and La-, 

 topolis, or Esne-j~, have still less considerable 

 dimensions. 



* Compare plate 39, page 90. 



t Description of Egypt, ancient monuments, Vol. 1, 

 plate 38, fig. 5 and 6 ; plate 71, fig. 1 and 2 ; plate 73, and 

 plate 85. 



