161 
papyri^ and the swathings of mummies, but also 
on the obelisks, that we find traces of this mixed 
kind, which joins painting with hieroglyphical 
writing. The lower part and the point of 
Egyptian obelisks present in general a group of 
two figures, which are in a state of action with 
respect to each other, and which ought not to be 
confounded with the isolated characters of sym- 
bolical writing. 
When we compare the Mexican paintings 
with the hieroglyphics, that decorated the tem- 
ples, the obelisks, and perhaps even the pyramids 
of Egypt ; and reflect on the progressive steps, 
which the human mind appears to have follow- 
ed in the invention of graphic means fitted to ex- 
press ideas ; we see, that the nations of America 
were very distant from that perfection which the 
Egyptians had obtained. The Aztecks were 
indeed but little acquainted with simple hiero- 
glyphics ; they could represent the elements, and 
the relations of time and of place ; but it is only 
by a great number of these characters, suscepti- 
ble of being employed separately, that the paint- 
ing of ideas becomes easy, and approximates to 
writing. We find among the Aztecks the germes 
of phonetic characters : they know how to write 
names, by uniting certain signs which are asso- 
ciated with sounds : this contrivance might have 
led them to the beautiful discovery of giving an 
alphabetic form to their simple hieroglyphics ; 
VOL. XIII. 
M 
