162 



MEXICO AND CENTRAL AMERICA 



have not surely been identified. It is not improbable 

 that the God of Fire is personified as an old man with 

 wrinkled face, but somewhat less likel} T that Xipe is 

 represented in the faces that look out through the three 

 holes of a mask. The jaguar, the 

 monkey, the owl, and other animals 

 are also modeled with excellent fidel- 

 ity. The Mayan convention of the 

 human face in the open jaws of the 

 serpent is not unknown. 



A number of beautiful vases 

 painted in soft greens, pinks, and 

 yellows have been recovered at 

 Teotihuacan. These colors would 

 not stand the kiln and they were 

 applied after the vessel had been 

 burned. According to one method, 

 the outside of the vessel was 

 covered with a fine coating of 

 plaster upon which the design was 

 painted exactly as in fresco. Ac- 

 cording to a second method the 

 effect of cloisonne was cleverly 

 achieved. This technique is most 

 characteristic of the region northwest of the Valley 

 of Mexico and will be described later. Incised or en- 

 graved designs are commonly met with on pottery 

 vessels at Teotihuacan. 



Tula. The ancient city of Tula or Tollan, the 

 Place of the Reeds, is situated about fifty miles north of 

 Mexico City. Building stone of good quality was avail- 

 able at this site and in consequence sculptures are more 

 plentiful than at Teotihuacan. Particularly famous are 

 the great sculptured columns which represent feathered 

 serpents and gigantic human figures. The drums are 



Fig. 55. Jointed 

 Doll of Clay from San 

 Juan Teotihuacan. 



