CHAPTER III. 
THE INSCRIPTIONS OF THE MIDDLE PERIOD. 
The Early Period at Copan doubtless merged into the Middle Period 
without any break in the sequence of the sculptured monuments. It must 
be admitted, however, that no sculptures have yet been found which may be 
assigned to the hotuns from 9.9.15.0.0 to 9.10.15.0.0' inclusive. Whether 
or not these particular hotuns were ever commemorated by the erection of 
stele and, if so, whether the stele marking them have been destroyed, or 
still lie buried somewhere in the valley, is unknown, although the latter 
contingency appears unlikely. It is possible, moreover, that after the erec- 
tion of Stele 7, E and P, there was a lull in this highly specialized work, a 
pause before the tremendous outburst of sculptural activity which occurred 
in the hotun ending in 9.11.0.0.0, on which latter date no less than four, and 
probably seven, different stele were erected. 
During this period the sculptors of the city may have been otherwise 
engaged, possibly in decorating some of the buildings then in course of con- 
struction. Whatever explanation is advanced to account for this break in 
the chronologic sequence of the monuments between the Early and Middle 
Periods, it is quite clear, from the monuments themselves, that there was no 
corresponding break in the art sequence. ‘The earliest sculptures of the 
Middle Period present no radical departures from previous types; and it is 
clear from them that the ancient sculptors plied their art without the 
intrusion of alien influences sufficiently strong to modify perceptibly the 
stylistic development. The technique is a little more finished, the proportions 
of the human figure somewhat more natural, the treatment a trifle freer; in 
a word, practice was making every monument more and more perfect; pro- 
gress was continuous and consistent; and stone-cutting had already become 
a fine art. 
The crowning architectural achievement of the period seems to have 
been the building of the Great Plaza at the Main Structure, the laying-out 
of which took place some time after 9.12.5.0.0, as we have already seen, and 
probably prior to 9.13.10.0.0._ This important construction may be said 
to mark the next great step forward in the history of the tribe or people 
who inhabited the Copan Valley. 
By the middle of the Middle Period, the chief center of population had 
probably shifted from Old Copan (Group g) to the Main Structure; and 
from this time onward the history of this branch of the Maya becomes the 
history of the Main Structure, and here in temple, palace, court, and plaza 
the record of its progress is magnificently set forth. The scattered occu- 

1There are some grounds for assigning Stele 12 and 2 to this hotun (see pp. 135, 140), but evenif this were 
true, it would reduce the above hiatus of 25 years by only about 5 years. 
129 
