und several
mounds and heaps of stones. The probabilities are that it was once
thickly covered with ruins. In the center of this sunken area are the
remains of the lower story of a pyramid, which the inhabitants in the
vicinity affirm to have been once five stories high.

To judge from the ruins still standing, this must have formed one of the
most magnificent works of aboriginal skill with which we are acquainted.
This cut gives a general idea of the ruins from the west. We presume
the broken appearance presented by this side is in consequence of the
removal of stones by planters in the vicinity for their own use. It
seems they have used this monument as a stone-quarry. This pyramid,
or the first story of it, was nearly square--its dimensions being
sixty-four feet by fifty-eight.

Illustration of Xochicalco.-----------

The next cut is an enlarged drawing of the north-west corner seen in the
first drawing. Notice the grotesque ornamentations on it. The ornaments
are not stucco-work, but are sculptured in bas-relief. As one figure
sometimes covers parts of two stones, it is plain they must have been
sculptured after being put in position. The height of this front is
nearly fifteen feet. In the left-hand corner of this sculpture will be
perceived the bead of a monstrous beast with open jaws and protruding
tongue. This figure is constantly repeated in various parts of the
facade. Some have supposed it to be a crocodile. The rabbit is another
figure that constantly reappears in portions of the wall.

Illustration of Enlarged View of Ruins at Xochicalco.----

We can scarcely realize the labor involved in the construction of this
pyramid and the terraced slope. Some idea may be formed of the immense
labor with which this building was constructed from measurements made of
several of the masses of porphyry that compose it. One stone was nearly
eight feet long by three broad. The one with the rabbit on is five feet
by two and a half. When it is recollected that these materials were not
found in the neighborhood, but were brought from a great distance, and
borne up a hill more than three hundred feet high, we can not fail to
be struck with the industry, toil, and ingenuity of the builders,
especially as the use of beasts of burden was, at the time, unknown in
Mexico. Nor was this edifice, on the summit, the only portion of the
architect's labor. Huge rocks were brought to form the walls supporting
the terraces that