1 • AMD • /A O D € R^N • . Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015 https://archive.org/details/crossancientmodeOOblak THE CROSS, ANCIENT AND MODERN. MURA]. TABLET IN THE TEMPLE OE THE CKO: C|k Crocs, ANCIENT ANI) MODERN. BY WILLSON W. BLAKE. NEW YORK ANSON D. F. RANDOLPH AND COMPANY. Copyright , 188S, By Anson D. F. Randolph and Company. ^nibersit? ?9rtss: John Wilson and Son, Cambridge. list of ’Illustrations Fic. Pace Mural Tablet in the Temple of the Cross . Frontispiece 1. Arani 11 2. Agni 12 3. Trojan Cross 1 2 4. s- Future Life i 2 6, 7, 8. Divine Life 13 9. Cross of Horus 13 10. Priest of Horus 13 11. Bacchus, with Cup and Branch . 14 ii£. Head of Bacchus 14 12. Cake offered to Bacchus ... 14 13. Heart of Bel 15 14. Scandinavian Cross 15 15. Good Omen 15 16. Labyrinth of Good Fortune 15 17. Cross of Hindostan .... 16 18. Buddhist Cross 16 19. Buddhist Cross 16 20. Siva and Sati 17 21. Jantra 17 22. Mercury 17 23. Caduceus 17 24 Egyptian Cross 17 25. Haman’s Gallows 18 26. Samsi-Vul 18 27. Greek Cross 18 28. Diana of the Ephesians ... 19 29. Oriental Standards 19 Fig. Pace 30. Roman Coin, with Cross of Saturn •9 31. Labarum of Constantine •9 32. Labarum of Constantine '9 33. Japanese Cross . . . 20 34. Latin Cross .... 20 35. Greek Cross .... 20 36. Cross of Saint Andrew 20 37. Patriarchal Cross . . 21 38. Triple Cross .... 21 39. Maltese Cross .... 21 40. Cross of Jerusalem 21 41. Latin Crosslet . . 22 42. Greek Crosslet . . . 22 43. Cross Cleche .... 22 44. Cross Corded .... 22 45. Cross Bottony . . . . 22 46. Cross Pattee .... 22 47. The Pall 22 48. Saltier 22 49 Cross Pommee . . . 22 50. Cross Fourchde . . . 22 51. Cross Raguled . . . 22 52. Caricature of a Christian 23 53. Singanfu Cross. (Actual size.) . 24 54 The Oransay Cross . 26 55. Manx Cross .... 2 7 56 The Speaking Cross 3 i 57. Nicaragua Cross . . 3 i 58. Cross of Serpents . . 3 i 8 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Kig Page Fig. Page 59- Cross of Teotihuacan . 32 81. General Mexican Period of 2 60 6o. The Sun of the Aztecs . 33 Years 43 61. The Four Aztec Ages . 33 82. Maya, Period of 8000 Years 44 62. Nahui-Ollin .... 35 83. Maya Purse 44 63- Earthquake .... 35 84. Nachan Monolith .... 45 64. Three Shocks . . . 35 85. Fain’s Island, Tenn. . . . 46 65. Teocuitlatla .... 36 86. Lick Creek, Tenn 46 66. Yucatan Pendant . . 36 87. Ohio Copper Disk .... 46 67. Yucatan Pendant . . 36 88. Union County, 111. . . . 46 68. TIaxcalan Cross . . . 37 89. Charleston, Mo 46 69. Quiche Crucifixion . . 38 90. Mississippi Cross and Sun . 46 70. Cross of Mayapan . . 40 91. Belleville, 111 46 7i- Tarascan Amulet 40 92. New Madrid, Mo 46 72. Zapotec Money . . . 4' 93. St. Clair County, Tenn. . . 46 73- Mexican Cross . . . 4' 94. Looped Figure 49 74- Mexican Cross . . . 41 95. Looped Figure and Greek Cross 49 75- The Year 4 1 96. Runtee 49 76. Tree of Life .... 42 97. Mound Pottery 49 77- First Mexican Period of 260 years 43 98. Mound Pottery 49 78. Second Mexican Period of 260 99. Mound Pottery 49 Years 43 too. Zufii Cross 49 79- Third Mexican Period of 260 toi. Zufii Emblem of Fertility 49 Years 43 102. Sacred Water-fly . . . . 49 80. Fourth Mexican Period of 260 103. Wolpi Cross 49 Years 43 104. The Cross of Cozumel . • 51 I. £l)c Cross tn tl)c Orient. T H E C ROSS. i. Jn tl)c Orient. HRIST, crucified on the tree, died to save sinners. For nearly nineteen centuries the sacred symbol has indi- cated redemption to fallen humanity. But centuries pre- vious to his self-sacrifice the cross had been known to all peoples and in all lands. Let us briefly trace its development as it appears shining through the mists of former ages. Going back to what may be appropriately called semi-historic times, we find the mystical figure among the hieroglyphs of antiquity. Among the early Aryan nations the cross was an object of adoration. With them it was represented as in Pier. r. and called arani. Its two arms were | o 1 l ■* named pramatha and swastika. They were merely f two pieces of wood with handles, and by rubbing Fig. i. Arani. together they kindled the sacred fire, agni. From pramatha comes the Grecian myth of Prometheus, THE CROSS I 2 • # r • Fig. 2. Ac.ni. who stole the tire of heaven from Zeus in a hollow staff and kindled the divine spark of life in man formed of clay. Hence in worshipping the cross, the Aryans were but worshipping the element fire. This element — as sparks issuing from the cross — is still more fully expressed in Fig. 2. The Vedic story is that the father of the sacred fire was called Twastri; that is to say, “ Divine Carpenter.” He was the creator of the swastika and the pramatha , whose recip- rocal friction produced the divine son, Agni. In his interest- ing work upon the Origin of Fire, Adelbert Kuhn designated both Figs. 1 and 2 under the title of Arani, and beheld them as religious symbols of our ancestors, the Aryans. In the disks of baked clay met with in such abundance by Dr. Schliemann in the excavations of ancient Ilium, are frequently figured the two forms of the cross above shown, — whence has been deduced the conclusion, very natural, that the Trojans were of Aryan filiation. On these same disks is also often found the peculiar cross of Fig. 3, which is apparently analogous to the others. Justus Lipsius, in a quaint old treatise upon the Cross, published in Paris in 159S, speaks of it as found in the in- scriptions of Egypt, and as meaning “ Future Life ” (Figs. 4 and 5). The most common name among the Egyptians for the cross was canob , from the god Canopus. 4 D Fig- 3- Trojan Cross. T T Figs. 4 and 5. — Future Life. IN THE ORIENT. Champollion, the great French archeologist, — who dis- covered the true key to the Egyptian hieroglyphs by means of the trilingual inscription on the Rosetta Stone, — gives, in one of his works published in Paris in 1828, three additional T A ^=4 Figs. 6, 7, 8. — Divine Life variations of the handled cross (Pigs. 6, 7, and 8), with the general interpretation of “ Divine Life.” A similar cross (Fig. 9) is often seen engraved on the ancient sepulchres of Egypt. It is the symbol of life, and represented as borne in the hands of the god Horus. It has been called the sacred tan , or Crux ansata. Fig. 10 is a priest of Horus wearing the cross on his vestments. Antiqua- rians give the figure a date of fifteen centuries before the Christian era. In Greece Horus was called Bacchus. In Figs. 11 and i \]/ 2 the bacchanalian god is shown with his head-dress decked with crosses. He was adored, under the symbol of a cake of flour (Fig. 12), as early as the year 1225 b.c. in the city of Thebes, Greece, where his cult was established by Cadmus, whose son was the chief of the Seven Heroes of Greece. Two of these cakes were found in the Fig. 9. C ROSS OF Horus. Fig. 10. — Priest of Horus. THE CROSS 14 ruins of Herculaneum, which was destroyed in the year 79 a. d. In Egypt these cakes bore the symbols of Seb, the father-god, Fig. 11. — Bacchus, with Cup and Branch. Fig. 1 1 J4 . — Head of Bacchus. Fig 12 . — Cake offered to Bacchus. Isis, the mother-god, and Horus, the son-god, and were made of flour, salt, honey, oil, and wine. Reference is made to this worship in the Bible (Jeremiah vii. 18). The Bel, Baal, or Beelzebub of the Bible, in his character of sovereign or king, is the god Tammuz of Babylon. He is called the “hammer" in prophecy (Jeremiah 1 . 23). The Tyrians worshipped him by the sign of the cross, or hammer, of Figs. 14 and 40. Singular to note, Fig. 14 is also in Scandinavian mythology the mark of Thor, the son of Odin and Freya, and the god of thunder, from whose name Thursday (Thor’s IN THE ORIENT. 15 Fig. 13. — Heart ok Hel. CL rJ day) is derived. Bel is a Chaldeean word, meaning “ heart.” Further to identify Bel with Tammuz, we see in Babylonish inscriptions the latter signified by a heart, from which springs a single or double cross (Fig. 13). To make the connection more evident, the heart is frequently found painted red. Holmboe, in his work, published thirty years ago, on the Traces of Buddhism in Norway, says that the cross of singular form (Fig. 14) seen on rare Hindoo coins is likewise encountered on many ornaments of gold found in Scandinavian excavations. Very notable is this cross, not only because its use was general, but for the salutary effect attributed to it, especially by the Buddhists. Patterson, who wrote in 1 798, says that this is the cumbh of the Hindoos. The mystical “ Good Omen ” (Pig. 15) familiar to many Hindoo sects differs from P'ig. 1, since its arms turn from left to right, instead of from right to left. It appears on the oldest medallions of the Buddhists, and the greater part of the inscriptions seen engraved L Fig. 14. Scandinavian Cross. Fig. 15. Good Omen. X -/ -i_( [3- pj Fig. 16. — Labyrinth of Good Fortune. upon the walls of their ancient caverns are preceded or followed by this sacred mark. It is also found in China, with a significance similar to that assigned to it in India. The labyrinthine design of P'ig. 16 also is a symbol of good fortune. It was the ground-plan of a certain class of sacred edifices of the Brahmas, who called it vandavartaya. THE CROSS 16 The only difference between the cross of Fig. i and that of Fig. 1 7, the ouan, is that the arms of the latter are shorter. The ouan is considered by the Buddhists as one of their most important figures among the sixty-five which they imagine they see in the footprint of Buddha. The biography of Hiouen-Thsang mentions a rock with these prints, r — ‘ J and states that at the extremities of the ten toes are seen flowers terminating with the mystical sign of Fig. 17. Fig. 1 7. Father Hyacinthe says that the women of Hindustan. Thibet adorn their dresses with this cross. According to M. Pallas, the Mongolians draw it on pieces of paper, which they place on the breast of the dead. In Hindostan, says Taylor in his Dictionary, this figure, under the name of scl/iia, was marked on the ground with flour during marriage-feasts and other ceremonies. The Vaishnavas, in their worship of Vishnu, make use of a sacred vase, marking it with the same figure. Figs. 18 and 19 are elaborate forms of Buddhist crosses found to-day throughout Thibet. The Saivas mark their sacred vases with a double triangle o (Fig. 20). The upright pyramid signifies Siva, who, with these three points, unites in himself the attributes of purity, truth, IN TH K ORIENT. 17 and justice. The inverted triangle is his consort, Sati, with the same characters and attributes. An exact copy of this double triangle is found in the temple of the Sun, among the ancient ruins of Uxmal, Yucatan, sculptured in stone. Fig. 20. — Siva and Sati. Fig. 21 . — Jantra. Fig. 22. — Mercury. The Hindoo worshippers of Sacti, the female principle in Nature, mark their vases with the arrow-like sign, jantra (Fig. 21). It is a hieroglyph encountered throughout India in great variety. With Fig. 22 the Egyptian astronomers denoted Mercury in the signs of the Zodiac. The circle represented the diffusion of the Divine Mind in the sidereal world, and the cross the diffusion of the elements. Fig. 23 is the caduceus, or Mercury’s rod, — a wand entwined by two serpents and surmounted by two wings. The ancient poets attributed won- derful powers to it. On medals the caduceus is a symbol of good conduct, peace, and prosperity. The rod represents power; the serpents ( 1 typify wisdom ; and the two wings, dili- gence and activity. The figure known in heraldry as the Egyptian cross is given in Fig. 24. Lar- rainzar says that this is but a variation of the canob (Figs. 4 to 8), which the Egyptians considered as an emblem of the F‘g- 2 3 Caduceus. Fig. 24. Egyptian C ROSS. 1 8 THE CROSS inundations of the Nile. The canob was an instrument for measuring the progress of the annual rise of the sacred river. The life and prosperity of the nation were entirely dependent upon this overflow. It is not surprising, therefore, that in time the sign of this measuring rod came to be considered as a deity to whom worship must be rendered. The cross as an instrument of capital punishment was used in the time of Abraham. Nimrod, the founder of Nin- eveh, suspended from it Tarno, or Tarin, king of Media, r i according to the testimony of Diodorus the his- ' torian. As a gibbet it was known to the Per- sians, Egyptians, Africans, Macedonians, Greeks, Fig 2 . and Romans. The gallows of Hainan, fifty cubits haman’s Gal- j n height, was but a cross (Fig. 25). Samsi-Vul, the king of Persia who ruled in the year 850 h. c., wore a cross pendent from his neck as an act of worship to his god ( Fig. 26). This cross is similar to that found in recent excavations at Athens (Pig. 27). The images of the goddess Diana of the Ephesians (Fig. 28) F| g -~- Greek Cross. show that in the time of Paul she bore a Christian cross on her head, a Moslem crescent on her left, and the Hindoo star on her right. The cross and crescent were combined in the Oriental standards (Fig. 29) centuries before the time of Christ. Roman coins of the period of 26911. c. show the cross of IN THE ORIENT. 19 Saturn (Fig. 30) with distinctness. Ac- cording to Gaume, the illustrious writer, all the Roman standards bore this cross, Fig. 28. — Diana ok the Ephesians. Fig. 29. — Oriental Standards. and Constantine, being unable to vary the banner of the Empire, added “ XP,” the Greek sign for Christ, to the imperial flag, 312 a. d (Fig. 31.) In dedicating anything to the service of Christ, the forms used were as Fie. Obverse. Reverse. Pig. jo. — Roman Coin, with Cross of Saturn. J Fig. 32. I.ABARUM OF CONSTANTINE. in Rig. 32. The Druids adored the tree as a symbol of their god. They gen- erally selected a state- ly oak in the forest ; and leaving two large branches on opposite sides, cut and trimmed it so as to form a giant cross. On its trunk the T was also repeatedly engraved. Fig- 3 1 Labarum ok Constantine In hoc S igno Vinces 20 THE CROSS X 7 On the 5th of February, 1537 a. d., the Japanese crucified a Franciscan missionary, Felipe de Jesus, a native of Mexico, on a cross similar to Fig. 33. He was fastened to the wood by means of iron rings placed around his neck, wrists, and ankles. This was the first Mexican saint, and the font in which the Indian Fig. 33. martyr was baptized is still preserved with honor ank.sk v j n j.j ie g rea |- cathedral of the city of Mexico. Thus the cross has been known by the different peoples of the Old World from the most remote antiquity. Used by the Romans as a method of ignominious punishment, and for the purpose of striking terror into the bands of thieves that infested the various provinces of the Empire, it was converted into the holy Tree of Salvation by the death of the Saviour. The principal forms of the Chris- tian cross are the Latin (Fig. 34), Crux Com - missa ; the Greek (Fig. 35), Crux Immissa ; and the cross of Saint Andrew and Saint Patrick (Fig. 36), Crux Dccussata. On this last cross the patron saint of Scotland suffered martyrdom. Let us look at some of the variations of these leading forms. In the Church of Rome the simple Latin Cross is carried before bishops ; the Double Cross, called in heraldry the Patriarchal (Fig. 37), is carried before cardinals and archbishops; and the Triple Cross (Pig. 38) is carried only before the Pope. The Maltese Fig- 35- Greek Cross. Fig. 36- Cross of Saint Andrew. IN THE ORIENT. 2 I Cross (Fig. 39) is but an eight-cornered variation of the Greek, and the Cross of Jerusalem (Fig. 40), or Cross Potent of heraldry, is still another style of the Greek. Fig- 37- Patriarchal Cross. cYi 4 wdL Fig- 39- Maltese Cross. Fig- 40 . Cross of Jerusalem. The cross in heraldry varies so much that Menestrier counts forty-two forms, Guillim thirty-nine, and La Colombiere sev- enty-two. Fig. 41, often seen on the escutcheons of ancient and noble families everywhere in Europe, is the Latin Crosslet, one of the most beautiful forms of architecture. Pig. 42 is the Greek form of the Crosslet. F'ig. 43 is the Cleche, a variety of the Greek cross charged with another cross of the same figure, but of the color of the field. Fig. 44 is the Cross Corded, of which there are some notable examples in heraldry. The Cross Bottony (Fig. 45) has each arm terminating in three buds, knots, or buttons, — according to Burke, — resembling in some measure the three-leaved grass. The Cross Pattee (Fig. 46) has arms very narrow at the inner, and very broad at the outer end. The Pall (Fig. 47) imitates the form of the con- secrated vestment worn by ecclesiastics, and has somewhat the appearance of the letter Y. The Saltier ( Fig. 48) is the Saint Andrew’s Cross in heraldrv, and one of the greater or honor- I'HE CROSS Fig. 44. — Cross Corded. Fig. 45. — Cross Bottony. Fig. 46. — Cross Pattee. Fig. 47. — The Pall. Fig. 48. — Saltier. Fig. 49. — Cross Pomm£e. Fig. 50. — Cross Fourch£e. Fig. 51. — Cross Raguled. IN THE ORIENT. 23 able ordinaries. The Cross Pommee (Fig. 49) has the arms terminating in rounded protuberances resembling apples. The Cross Fourchee (Fig. 50) has the arms forked or branched, and the ends of the branches terminating abruptly, as if cut off. The Cross Raguled (Fig. 51) is jagged or notched in an irreg- ular manner. The above examples in heraldry are sufficient for purposes of illustration. One of the most interesting specimens of caricature which the ruins of classic cities have disclosed was found in 1857 upon the wall of a narrow Roman street, which was closed up and shut out from the light of day about a. d. ioo to facilitate an extension of the imperial palace. The wall when uncovered was found scratched all over with rude caricature drawings in the style of the specimen given (Fig. 52). This one imme- diately arrested attention, and that part of the wall on which it was drawn was carefully re- moved to the Collegio Romano, in the museum of which it may now be inspected. The Greek words scrawled upon the pic- ture may be translated thus : “ Alexamenos is worshipping his god.” This would indicate that the picture was aimed at some member, to us unknown, of the despised sect of Chris- pj tians. It is the Only ancient Caricature of a Christian. 24 THE CROSS allusion to Christianity to be found on the walls of old Italian cities. The famous Singanfu inscription is the most remarkable, if not the only, memorial of the Christian Church that once flourished so extensively throughout Central and Eastern Asia. It was discovered in 1625 in a suburb of Singanfu, which is a populous city of China, and situate on an affluent of the Hoang-ho. The slab upon which the inscription is engraved IN THE ORIENT. 2 5 in Chinese and Syriac characters bears the date of 781 a. d., and appears to have been intended to commemorate the intro- duction of Christianity into China in 635 a. d. by the Nes- torians. The cross accompanying the inscription is given under Fig. 53. In one of the isles of western Scotland is found the Oransay Cross (Fig. 54), which is said to have been erected by Saint Colomba in the sixth century. It is still perfect, having successfully resisted the beatings of the storms for ages. There are many mysterious traditions in the Scottish island of Lewis-with-Harris, one of the Outer Hebrides, which seem to point to an older serpent-worship among the Scandinavian descendants. In fact, the word righuin, which throughout the Highlands means a “princess,” is applied in the Island of Lewis also to a serpent, the modern explanation being that there prevails some legend of the serpent being a princess metamor- phosed. The so-called Druidical stones of Callemish, on this island, are inexplicable memorials, perhaps, of a race that passed away in silence before history began to speak. They are long rows of pillars of unwrought gneiss, which meet in a common centre, which is also a circle of pillars with a chief stone sixteen feet high. The natives call them Tuirsachan , which signifies the “ place of mourning,” or Firbhreige , “ false men,” — both of which names “ should be of some interest to antiquarians, as they will suit pretty nearly any theory.” There are in all forty-eight stones, the circle is forty-two feet in diameter, and the approaches to it form a cross. IN THE ORIENT. 27 In Ilkley, England, are three ancient “ Runic crosses,” so called, — for people insist upon calling such old monuments crosses, though they have none of the characteristics, except the main shaft or pedestal. There are more of these vertical shafts to be found at Kirk Brad- don, in the Isle of Man, and one of them is surmounted by the fragment of a cross (Fig. 55). Like those of Ilkley, this monument is covered with Runic letters, figures of birds and hares and of the human form, and various nondescript designs intertwined with coils of ser- pents or scrolls of ancient characters. In one of the Ilkley monuments there is a sculpture of a man contending with a two-footed dragon. Beginning with Indra’s contest with Vritra in ancient Sanskrit mythology, the widespread F, s- 55 -— Manx Cross - fable has passed on, to become Apollo and the Python in one country, Siegfried and Fafnir in another, Saint Patrick and the snakes in Ireland, to stamp finally on every English sovereign the legend of Saint George and the Dragon. Are not all but shadowy legends of that religion which was inscribed on the cradle-side of our infancy in the East, — the eternal conflict between Good and Evil, between Man and the Serpent ? The Manx cross bears on one side a Norse inscription which may be interpreted : “ Thorlef Neaki erected this cross to Fiack, his 28 THE CROSS son, the nephew of Jahr.” There are seven of these curious monuments, but this is the most thoroughly Scandinavian of all in the island. Marco Polo in his book mentions that on his voyage in 1270 a. d. to the kingdoms of Kublai Khan and Prester John, he passed through the province of Tonocain, “ where the people of the country tell you was fought the battle between Alexander and King Darius,” and “ where is found the Arbre sol which we Christians call Arbre sec." Polo doubtless con- founded the Arbre sol of Alexandrian romance with the Ai'bre sec of Christian legend. The former plays an important part in the cyclus of Alexandrian fable as the oracular Tree of the Sun that foretold Alexander’s death. The latter corresponds most probably with the legendary oak of Abraham at Hebron. The illustration in Polo’s book resembles strikingly the Toltec Tree of Life. (See Fig. 76.) II. £I)c Crofts m tl)c OcctDcnt. II. 3u tl)c £>cctDcnt. TDASSING now from the world called Old to the world called L New, over an ocean whose stormy billows were thought to present an impassable barrier to wandering mankind, we find the monuments and remains of prehistoric races in the western hemisphere plentifully sprinkled with the sacred symbol. The Spaniards who concpiered New Spain in the name of the Cross were astonished to find the holy emblem of their own faith already an object of worship in the temples of Anahuac. Of the crosses found in Mexico, that of Metztitlan offers the figure of the Greek tau ; those of Huatulco, Tepic, Cuaotochco, and other places, have the Latin form ; those shown in the sandals of the gods in the Tonalamatl, or priestly calendar, arc Grecian; and there are innumerable representatives of the Maltese. 32 THE CROSS The cross shown in Fig. 56 is found in many parts of Mexico. The parrot-like tongues on either side of the central figure signify “ speaking,” or “ discussion.” Fig. 57 represents the cross found by Squier in Central America. The Mexican enthusiast, Orozco y Berra, claims that at first glance it acknowledges its Buddhist origin. The famous cross of serpents (Fig. 58), now to be seen in the National Museum of Mexico, was called by the Aztecs Tonacacuahuitl, “ the Tree of the Sun.” With them the sign coatl, or serpent, was symbolical of the cyclical periods of time. This cross was carved from a basaltic rock. Twenty-five miles northeast of the city of Mexico are the celebrated 1 Sun and Moon ” pyramids of Teotihuacan, “ the city of the Gods.” Around these pyramids — which were a thousand years old when Cortez on his first retreat from Te- nochtitlan marched his hand- ful of Spanish adventurers at their bases — met and mingled the two most ancient civiliza- tions of America, the Nahoas of the North, and the Maya- Ouiches of the South. This cross (P'ig. 59) indicates three things, — the united worship of Tlaloc, the God of Rain ; an astronomical expression of the vernal equinox, summer sol- Fig. 59. — Cross of Teotihuacan. Stice, autumnal equinox, and IN THE OCCIDENT. 33 winter solstice; and a sign of the grand chronological period of the Toltecs. It is a monument from a single rock. Fig. 60, copied from the monument of Xochicalco, is the Sun of the Aztecs as most generally represented : it was the foundation of their chronology. In all Mexican monuments it Fig. 61. — The Four Aztf.c Ages. 3 34 THE CROSS is indicated with protruding tongue, expressing the light and heat pouring upon the earth. In common with their remote predecessors, the Toltecs, the Mexicans believed in four great Ages, or “ Deaths of the Sun.” In the second inner circle of the “Aztec Calendar” these four ages are clearly expressed. This calendar is found on the great rock discovered in 1790, and afterwards built against the base of the southwestern tower of the cathedral of the city of Mexico. 1 The four Ages appear as parallelograms around the central face of the Sun (Fig. 61). The Age of Air is shown in the upper left-hand square; that of Fire in the lower left-hand square ; Earth in the upper right-hand square ; and Water in the lower right-hand square. Using these same four squares to represent the seasons in their complex system, the Aztecs placed Winter in the upper right-hand square, and in- dicated its strength by the head of an ocelotl, or Mexican leop- ard ; Spring, which was the warmest season, in the lower left-hand square, its head indicated by the sign calli, or house, because in the house is the hearth where the fire is preserved ; Summer, their season of rains, in the lower right-hand square, its waters indicated by the sign acatl, or reed; and Autumn in the upper left-hand square, its harvest indicated by the sign tochtli , or rabbit. With the “deaths” of the first three “Suns” had concluded the grand catastrophes that placed the race in danger of perishing; and under this aspect the conclusion of the fourth Age was still some cycles distant. But the Mexi- 1 In the month of September, 1885, it was removed to the National Museum. Its weight is 53.790 lbs. avoirdupois. IN THE OCCIDENT. 35 cans in their pride made an innovation by inventing a fifth Sun, which should pertain to them alone. They, who wished to have a place designated by the gods as a heaven for them- selves alone, and to be a chosen and peculiar people, wished also a Sun of their own. Accordingly, on the day in which for the first time they trod the islet in the lake where now is the city of Mexico ; on the day in which they beheld, in the spot where now is the public fountain in the Plaza of Santo Domingo, the eagle posed upon the cactus with the serpent in its claws, with the blue sky above and the blue waters be- neath, — there upon the heads of that devoted group of pilgrims the Sun of the Fifth Age poured from the high heavens its flood of golden light ! The Nahui-Ollin of the Aztecs, as repre- sented in Fig. 62, is their conventionalized idea of the apparent motion of the sun, which caused the annually returning seasons of spring, summer, autumn, and winter. The Mexican pictograph, Fig. 63, is com- posed of the mimic sign tlalli , “ earth,” and the ideograph ollin , “ motion,” — the whole representing an earthquake. The varying sizes of the ollin gave indications of the force and duration of the shock, and the repetition of the sign, as in Fig. 64, told the times that the phenomenon was repeated on any occasion. Fig. 62. Nahui-Oli.in. Three Shocks 36 THE CROSS F'g- 65- Teocuitlatla. Fig. 65 is the hieroglyphic name of the ancient Mexican mining town of Teocuitlatla, “ where gold abounds." The connection between the hiero- glyphic and its interpretation is interesting. The small central figure of the cross recalled the idea of the sun ; the dots surrounding it were excretions of the same ; gold was an excrement of the sun, as silver was of the moon, — hence this highly conventionalized symbol of a place where gold was abundant. The necklaces of shell, with their pendant crosses, found sculptured on the monuments of Yucatan were first given to the light by Lord Kingsborough r r*i'