166 



INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL. 



ascertained by means of the scale at the foot of the 

 plate. 



The first ruin which I shall present is that in 

 which we lived, called the Casa del Gobernador, 

 The engraving which forms the frontispiece of this 

 volume represents its front, with the three great ter- 

 races on which it stands. This front is three hun- 

 dred and twenty- two feet long. Large as the en- 

 graving is, it can serve only to give some idea of the 

 general effect; the detail of ornament cannot be 

 shown. 



The edifice is represented as it exists now, with- 

 out any attempt at restoration, and the reader will 

 perceive that over two of the doorways the facade 

 has fallen. Don Simon Peon told us that in the 

 year 1825 this fallen part was still in its place, and 

 the whole front almost entire. The fragments now 

 lie as they fell, forming, as appears in the engraving, 

 a great mass of mortar, rude and sculptured stones, 

 all imbedded together, which had never been dis- 

 turbed until we dug into it for the purpose of disin- 

 terring and bringing to light some of the fallen or- 

 naments. 



This building was constructed entirely of stone. 

 Up to the cornice, which runs round it the whole 

 length and on all four of its sides, the facade presents 

 a smooth surface ; above is one solid mass of rich, 

 complicated, and elaborately sculptured ornaments, 

 forming a sort of arabesque. 



The grandest ornament, which imparts a richness 



