THE MIDDLE CIVILIZATIONS 



L69 



31 ? 



then 4 are the remarkable copper bells in the form of 

 turtles made by coiling, that have been found in 

 nearby Michoacan. 



It is difficult to place 

 time limits for the ar- 

 tistic styles that once 

 existed in this north- 

 western region. The 

 archaic culture seems 

 to have lasted longer 

 here than farther south ; 

 next followed the north- 

 ern flow of Toltecan 

 culture which later re- 

 ceded and finally came 

 a rather thin layer of 

 Chichimecan or Az- 

 tecan culture. We may 

 tentatively conclude 

 that the forgotten cities 



of the Zacatecan subculture flourished after 1000 A. D. 

 The question should be settled because of its connection 

 with the dating of Pueblo ruins farther north. 



Santa Lucia Cozumalhualpa. The peculiar 

 stone sculptures of Santa Lucia Cozumalhualpa and a 

 number of adjacent sites in southern Guatemala and 

 western Salvador have been accredited to the Pipiles, a 

 southern Xahuan tribe. This local culture probably 

 flourished long after the Mayan cities of the south had 

 been abandoned and while the Toltecs in the north were 

 at the height of their power. The art shows many fea- 

 ture- similar to that of the Mexican highlands. Human 

 sacrifice is prominently figured in the sculptures. 

 There are also scrolls which issue from the mouths and 



Fig. 59. Jaguar Head on Disk- 

 Shaped Stone. Salvador. 



