Page:Nicaraguan Antiquities (1886).djvu/51

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43


earlier connection between Ceiba and Zapatera. This connection has been dissolved by the gradual sinking of the volcano.

The western portion of the island is plain, partly cultivated, partly covered by bush, the eastern is very rugged. Cerro de Pantheon, its highest point, is about 60 meters above the surface of the lake. This mountain ridge is 80 to 100 meters in length by 10 to 15 in breadth, and offers an extraordinarily well-fit place for rock-arvings. And, indeed, the ancient inhabitants of the island have made such an eager use of this opportunity that the whole crown of the ridge is densely covered with sculptures. This crown, as has been mentioned before, forms a perfectly level surface; indeed, it is not quite impossible that human hands may have helped nature to level it. On the part of the mountain chiefly occupied by the rock-carvings, the vegetation was very scanty, Consisting of low shrubs and stiff grass. I could not detect any carvings on the different sides of the mountain, nor on the large loose blocks of stone north of Cerro de Pantheon. But on large flat or round blocks, detached long ago from the side of the mountain, and lying all the way down to the southern shore at Punta de Pantheon, numerous carvings were found. Such were also to be seen there in the solid rock as well on land as on that part of the rock that stretches into the lake. I can here give illustrations only of the lesser part of the Carvings. The wreaths were generally even, boldly cut, 4—6 cm. broad, 2—3 cm. deep.


a

Pl. 37.

It represented the upper part of a human figure. The face was broad, with round eyes, broad nose, and square mouth. The head was surmounted by four plumes, meant, according to the conception of my Indians, to represent a crown of feathers. On this account, they honoured the figure with the name of «La Reyna». The chest was short and broad, the arms very long, the hands circular, the left one much larger than the right one, both provided with eight radiating fingers. The length of the figure from the crown of the head to the lower edge of the breast was 64 cm.; the breadth between the elbows 127 cm.