109 



death, these electors, and their descendants, 

 should have the right of choosing the high priest 

 of Iraca. The pontiffs, or lamas, the successors 

 of Bochica, were considered as heirs of his vir- 

 tue and sanctity ; and such as Cholula, in the time 

 of Montezuma, was to the Aztecks, Iraca had 

 been to the Muyscas. The people thronged in 

 crowds to offer presents to the high priests, visit- 

 ing those places which were consecrated by the 

 miracles of Bochica ; and amidst the horrors of 

 the most sanguinary warfare, the pilgrims enjoy- 

 ed the protection of those princes, through whose 

 territories they passed to visit the sanctuary 

 (chunsua), and prostrate themselves at the feet of 

 the lama, who presided there. The temporal 

 chief, called zaque of Tunja, to whom the zippa, 

 or princes of Bogota paid an annual tribute, 

 and the pontiff of Iraca, were consequently two 

 distinct potentates, as the emperor and dairi are 

 in Japan. I have deemed it important, to cite 

 in this place those historical incidents, which are 

 almost unknown in Europe, in order to excite 

 some interest in favour of a nation, of whose ca- 

 lendar we propose to give an explanation. 



Bochica was not only considered as the founder 

 of a new worship, and lawgiver of the Muyscas ; 

 as emblem of the Sun he regulated the seasons, 

 and to him was attributed the invention of the 

 calendar. He had prescribed also the order of 

 the sacrifices, which were to be celebrated at the 



