Mexican and Central American antiquities, calendar systems, and history; . the Mixtecs, Avhere the high priest had his abode andAvhere there Avas a far-famed oracle, Avhich indeed King Motecuhzomais said to have consulted Avhen he Avas disturbed by the ncAvs of thelanding of Cortes. The chief sanctuary was situated on the highestpeak of a mountain. Here, as Father Burgoa relates,« there Avasamong other altars one of an idol Avhich they called the heart ofthe place or of the country (Corazon del Pueblo), and Avhicli re-ceiAed gi\^at honor. The material aa as of marvelous value, for it Avasan em
Mexican and Central American antiquities, calendar systems, and history; . the Mixtecs, Avhere the high priest had his abode andAvhere there Avas a far-famed oracle, Avhich indeed King Motecuhzomais said to have consulted Avhen he Avas disturbed by the ncAvs of thelanding of Cortes. The chief sanctuary was situated on the highestpeak of a mountain. Here, as Father Burgoa relates,« there Avasamong other altars one of an idol Avhich they called the heart ofthe place or of the country (Corazon del Pueblo), and Avhicli re-ceiAed gi\^at honor. The material aa as of marvelous value, for it Avasan emerald of the size of a thick pepper pod (capsicum), upon Avhicha small bird Avas engraved Avith the greatest skill, and. Avith the sameskill, a small serpent coiled ready to strike. The stone was so trans-parent that it shone from its interior Avith the brightness of a can-dle flame. It was a very old jcAA^el, and there is no tradition extantconcerning the origin of its veneration and Avorship The firstmissionary of Achiotlan, Fray Benito, afterAvard visited this place. Fio. 66. Tepeyollotl, Mexican deity, from theBorgian codex. « Work cited, chap. 28. seler] DEITIES AND EELTGIOUS CONCEPTIONS 293 of worship and succeeded in persuading the Indians to surrender theidol to hini. He had the stone ground up, although a Spaniardoffered 3,000 ducats for it, stirred the powder in water, and pouredit upon the earth and trod upon it, in order at the same time todestroy the heathen abomination entirely, and to demonstrate inthe sight of all the impotence of the idol. It is worthy of noticethat there existed in the immediate neighborhood of this place ofworship, in the middle of the ])lain of Yancuitlan, a second sanctuary,Avhich also had a high ]:)riest, who, however, A^as subordinate to theone at Achiotlan. This sanctuar}^ consisted of a great cave, in therear of which the idol was set up. To a certain extent it seems tohave been considered equivalent to the aforesaid sanctuary situate
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjectmayas, bookyear1904
