THK MIDDLE CIVILIZATIONS L65 



remain. Two other large mounds exist a1 Cholula. One 

 of these has been partially destroyed and now stand- as 

 a vertical mass of adobe bricks while the other is over- 

 grown with brush and cactus. 



Unlike the other Toltecan cities Cholula was still in- 

 habited and a place of religious importance when ( 'ortez 

 arrived in Mexico. But the figurines and pottery ves- 

 sels that are found at this site belong for the most part 

 to an epoch earlier than that of the Aztecs. Quetzal- 

 coatl was the patron deity of Cholula and in the decor- 

 ative art the serpent is finely conventionalized. A pot- 

 tery shape frequently met with at Cholula is the flat 

 plate bearing polychrome designs. 



The Frontier Cities of the Northwest. An im- 

 portant culture area is located upon the northwestern 

 limits of the area of high culture in ancient Mexico. 

 The best known and most accessible ruin is La Quema- 

 da, "The Burned'' which is situated a day's ride from 

 the city of Zacatecas. This site was found in a de- 

 serted and ruinous condition by the Spaniards in 1535 

 and there is little doubt that it had been abandoned 

 several centuries previous. La Quemada has been 

 popularly associated with Chicomoztoc, "The Seven 

 Caves," a place famous in Aztecan mythology, but this 

 association rests upon no scientific basis. It is simply 

 an unauthoritative attempt to invest a forgotten city 

 with a legendary interest. Chicomoztoc, where the 

 Aztec- came out of the underworld might be compared 

 with our own (iarden of Eden and its exact location is 

 just as much an eternal riddle. La Quemada is a ter- 

 raced hill resembling Monte Alban and Xochicalco. 

 The retaining walls of terraces and pyramids as well 

 as the walls of buildings are still well preserved. These 

 walls consist of slabs of stone set in a mortar of red 



