Metals Used and Manner of Obtaining Them—Working of Gold and Silver—Wonderful Skill in Imitating—Gilding and Plating—Working in Stone—Lapidary Work—Wood Carving—Manufacture of Pottery—Various Kinds of Cloth—Manufacture of Paper and Leather—Preparation of Dyes and Paints—The Art of Painting—Feather Mosaic Work—Leaf-Mats—Manner of Kindling Fire—Torches—Soap—Council of Arts in Tezcuco—Oratory and Poetry—Nezahualcoyotl's Odes on the Mutability of Life and the Tyrant Tezozomoc—Aztec Arithmetical System.
Gold, silver, copper, tin, and lead were the metals known to and used by the Nahuas. The latter, however, is merely mentioned, and nothing is known about where it was obtained or for what purposes it was employed. We have only very slight information respecting the processes by which any of the metals were obtained. Gold came to the cities of Anáhuac chiefly from the southern Nahua provinces, through the agency of traders and tax-gatherers; silver and tin were taken from the mines of Taxco and Tzompanco; copper was obtained from the mountains of Zacatollan, the province of the Cohuixcas, and from Michoacan. Nuggets of gold and masses of native copper were found on the surface of the ground in certain regions; gold was chiefly obtained, however, from the sand in the bed of rivers by divers. It was kept, inthe form of dust, in small tubes or quills, or was melted in small pots, by the aid of hollow bamboo blow-pipes used instead of bellows, and cast in small bars. Prescott tells us that these metals were also mined from veins in the solid rock, extensive galleries being opened for the purpose. Quicksilver, sulphur, alum, ochre, and other minerals were collected to a certain extent and employed by the natives in the preparation of colors and for other purposes.[584]The use of iron, though that metal was abundant in the country, was unknown. Such metals as they had they were most skillful in working, chiefly by melting and casting, and by carving, but also to some extent by the use of the hammer. We have no details of the means employed to melt the harder metals, besides the rude blow-pipe and furnace mentioned in connection with gold.
For cutting implements copper was the only metal used, but it was hardened with an alloy of tin until it sufficed to cut the hardest substances nearly as well as steel.[585]The pure and softer metal was used to make kettles and other vessels. Copper tools were, however, rare compared with those of stone, and seem to have been used chiefly in working wood where a sharp and enduring edge was required. Such tools usually took the form of axes and chisels.Sticks for working the ground, the nearest Nahua approach to the plow, were also often tipped with copper, as we have seen. Metal was not much used in making weapons, not being found in swords or arrow-heads, but employed with obsidian in spearheads and on themaza, or club. Both copper and tin dishes and plates are mentioned but were not in common use. In the manufacture of implements of copper and tin these metals were wrought by means of stone hammers and not cast.[586]
GOLD AND SILVER SMITHS.
No branch of Nahua art was carried to a higher degree of perfection than the ornamental working of gold and silver. The conquerors were struck with admiration on beholding the work of the native goldsmiths; they even in some cases frankly acknowledge that they admired the work more than the material, and saved the most beautiful specimens from the melting furnace, the greatest compliment these gold-greedy adventurers could pay to native art. Many of the finer articles were sent as presents and curiosities to European princes, who added their testimony to that of the conquerors, pronouncing the jewelry in many instances superior to the work of old-world artists. Azcapuzalco was the headquarters of the workers in gold and silver.[587]The imitation of natural objects,particularly animals, birds, and fishes, was a favorite field for the display of this branch of Nahua talent. The conqueror Cortés tells us that Montezuma had in his collection a counterfeit in gold, silver, stones, or feathers, of every object under heaven in his dominions, so skillfully made, so far as the work in metal was concerned, that no smith in the world could excel them. This statement is repeated by every writer on the subject. Dr Hernandez, the naturalist, in preparing a treatise on Mexican zoology for Philip II., is said to have supplied his want of real specimens of certain rare species by a resort to these imitations.[588]The native artists are said to have fashioned animals and birds with movable heads, legs, wings, and tongues, an ape with a spindle in its hands in the act of spinning and in certain comic attitudes; and what particularly interested and surprised the Spaniards was the art—spoken of by them as a lost art—of casting the parts of an object of different metals each distinct from the rest but all forming a complete whole, and this, as the authorities say, without soldering. Thus a fish was molded with alternate scales of gold and silver, plates were cast in sections of the same metal, and loose handles were attached to different vessels.[589]
GILDING AND PLATING.
After the Spaniards came, the native artisans had a new and wide field for the display of their skill, in imitating the numerous products of European art. A slight examination, often obtained by stealthily looking into the shop windows, enabled them to reproduce and not unfrequently to improve upon the finest articles of jewelry and plate.[590]
Clavigero says that vessels of copper or other inferior metal were gilded, by employing an unknown process in which certain herbs were used, and which would have made the fortune of a goldsmith in Spain and Italy. Oviedo also tells us that various ornamental articles were covered with thin gold plate.[591]To enumerate the articles manufactured by the Nahua gold and silver smiths, and included in the long lists of presents made by Montezuma and other chieftains to their conquerors is impracticable; they included finely modeled goblets, pitchers, and other vessels for the tables of the kings and nobility; frames for stone mirrors and rich settings for various precious stones; personal ornaments for the wealthy, and especially for warriors, including rings, bracelets, eardrops, beads, helmets and various other portions of armor; small figures in human form worn as charms or venerated as idols; and finally the most gorgeous and complicated decorations for the larger idols, and their temples and altars.[592]
Little is known of the methods or implements by which the workers in gold accomplished such marvelous results. The authors tell us that they excelled particularly in working the precious metals by means of fire; and the furnaces already mentioned are pictured in several of the Aztec picture-writings as simple vessels, perhaps of earthen ware, various in form, heaped with lumps of metal, and possibly with wood and coal, from which the tongues of flame protrude, as the workman sits by his furnace with his bamboo blow-pipe. How they cast or molded the molten gold into numerous graceful and ornamental forms is absolutely unknown. The process by which these patient workers carved or engraved ornamental figures on gold and silver vessels by means of their implements of stone and hardened copper, although not explained, may in a general way be easily imagined. They worked also to some extent with the hammer, but as gold-beaters they were regarded as inferior workmen, using only stone implements. The art of working in the precious metals was derived traditionally from the Toltecs, and the gold and silversmiths formed in Mexico a kind of corporation under the divine guidance of the god Xipe.[593]
WORKING IN STONE.
Stone was the material of most Nahua implements. For this purpose all the harder kinds found in the country were worked, flint, porphyry, basalt, but especially obsidian, the nativeiztli. Of this hard material, extensively quarried some distance north of Mexico, nearly all the sharp-edged tools were made. These tools, such as knives, razors, lancets, spear and arrow heads, were simply flakes from an obsidian block. The knives were double-edged and the best of them slightly curved at the point. The maker held a round block of iztli between his bare feet, pressed with his chest and hands on a long wooden instrument, one end of which was applied near the edge of the block, and thus split off knife after knife with great rapidity, which required only to be fitted to a wooden handle to be ready for use. The edge thus produced was at first as sharp as one of steel, but became blunted by slight use, when the instrument must be thrown away. Thus Las Casas tells us that ten or fifteen obsidian razors were required to shave one man's beard. Stone knives seem rarely if ever to have been sharpened by grinding.[594]Of obsidian were made the knives used in the sacrifice of human victims, and the lancets used in bleeding for medicinal purposes and in drawing blood in the service of the gods. For bleeding, similarknives are said to be still used in Mexico.[595]The use of stone in the manufacture of weapons has been mentioned in another chapter. Masks and even rings and cups were sometimes worked from obsidian and other kinds of stone. Axes were of flint, jade, or basalt, and were bound with cords to a handle of hard wood, the end of which was split to receive it.[596]Torquemada says that agricultural implements were made of stone.[597]Mirrors were of obsidian, or ofmargajita,—spoken of by some as a metal, by others as a stone,—often double-faced, and richly set in gold.[598]
The quarrying of stone for building and sculpture was done by means of wooden and stone implements, by methods unknown but adequate to the working of the hardest material. Stone implements alone seem to have been used for the sculpture of idols, statues, and architectural decorations. A better idea of the excellence of the Nahuas in the art of stone-carving may be formed from the consideration of antiquarian relics in another volume than from the remarks of the early chroniclers. Most of the sculptured designs were executed in soft material, in working which flint instruments would be almost as effective as those of steel; but some of the preserved specimens are carved in the hardest stone, and must have taxed the sculptor's patience to the utmost even with hard copper chisels. The idols and hieroglyphics on which the native art was chiefly exercised, present purposely distortedfigures and are a poor test of the artists' skill; according to traditional history portrait-statues of the kings were made, and although none of these are known to have survived, yet a few specimens in the various collections indicate that the human face and form in true proportions were not beyond the scope of American art; and the native sculptors were, moreover, extremely successful in the modeling of animals in stone.[599]
WORKING OF PRECIOUS STONES.
The Nahuas were no less skillful in working precious stones than gold and silver. Their Toltec ancestors possessed the same skill and used to search for the stones at sunrise, being directed to the hidden treasure by the vapor which rose from the place that concealed it. All the stones found in the country were used for ornamental purposes, but emeralds, amethysts, and turquoises were most abundant. The jewels were cut with copper tools with the aid of a silicious sand. Single stones were carved in various forms, often those of animals, and set in gold, or sometimes formed into small cups or boxes. Pearls, mother of pearl, and bright-colored shells were used with the precious stones in the formation of necklaces, bracelets, ear-rings, and other decorations for the nobles or for the idols. Various articles of dress or armor were completely studded with gems tastefullyarranged, and a kind of mosaic, with which wooden masks for the idols were often covered, attracted much attention among the Spaniards. Mirrors of rock crystal, obsidian, and other stones, brightly polished and encased in rich frames, were said to reflect the human face as clearly as the best of European manufacture.[600]
Trees were felled with copper hatchets, hewn with the same instruments into beams, and dragged by slaves over rollers to the place where they were needed for building. Some of the chief idols, as for instance that of Huitzilopochtli, according to Acosta, were of wood, but wood-carving was not apparently carried to a high degree of perfection. Some boxes, furnished with lids and hinges, also tables and chairs, were made of wood, which was the chief material of weapons and agricultural implements. The authorities devote but few words to the workers in wood, who, however, after the conquest seem to have become quite skillful under Spanish instruction, and with the aid of European tools. Fire-wood was soldin the markets; and Las Casas also tells us that charcoal was burned.[601]
MANUFACTURE OF POTTERY.
At Cholula the best pottery was made, but throughout the whole country nearly all the dishes used were of clay. Pots, kettles, vases, plates for domestic use, as well as censers and other utensils for the temple service, also idols, beads, and various ornaments were modeled from this material. The early Spaniards were enthusiastic in praising the native potters' skill, but beyond the statement that vessels of earthen ware were glazed and often tastefully decorated, they give no definite information respecting this branch of manufactures. Many small earthen trumpets, or flageolets, capable of producing various sounds, and of imitating the cries of different birds, have been found in different parts of the Mexican Republic. Fortunately relics of pottery in every form are of frequent occurrence in the museums, and from the description of such relics in another volume the excellence of Aztec pottery may be estimated. Besides the earthen dishes, and vessels of metal and carved wood, some baskets were made, and drinking-cups or bowls of different sizes and shapes wereformed from the hollow shells of gourds. These were known asxicalli, later jicaras, andtecomatl.[602]Seashells were also used as dishes to some extent.[603]
The finer kinds of cloth were made of cotton, of rabbit-hair, of the two mixed, or of cotton mixed with feathers. The rabbit-hair fabrics were pronounced equal in finish and texture to silk, and cotton cloths were also fine and white. Fabrics of this better class were used for articles of dress by the rich, nobles, and priests; they were both woven and dyed in variegated colors. The cloths in the manufacture of which feathers were employed often served for carpets, tapestry, and bed-coverings. Maguey-fibre, and that of the palm-leavesicxotlandizhuatlwere woven into coarse cloths, the maguey-cloth being known asnequen. This nequen and the coarser kinds of cotton were the materials with which the poorer classes clothed themselves. The palm and maguey fibres were prepared for use in the same manner as flax in other countries, being soaked in water, pounded, and dried. The same material served also for cords, ropes, and mats. A coarser kind of matting was, however, made of different varieties of reeds. All the work of spinning and weaving was performed by the women,forming indeed their chief employment. The spindle used in spinning, shown in many of the Aztec manuscripts, was like a top, which was set whirling in a shallow dish, the fibre being applied to its pointed upper extremity until the impetus was exhausted. All we know of the native process of weaving is derived from the native paintings, a sample of which from the Mendoza Collection, showing a woman engaged in weaving, may be seen inchapter xvii.of this volume.[604]
MAKING OF CLOTH AND PAPER.
Paper, in Aztecamatl, used chiefly as a material on which to paint the hieroglyphic records to be described in a future chapter, was made for the most part of maguey-fibre, although the other fibres used in the manufacture of cloth were occasionally mixed with those of this plant. The material must have been pressed together when wet, and the product was generally very thick, more like a soft paste-board than our paper. The surface was smooth and well adapted to the painting which it was to bear. Certain gums are said to have been used for the more perfect coherence of the fibre, and the amatl was made in long narrow sheets suitable for rolling or folding. Humboldt describes certain bags of oval form, the work of a species of caterpillars, on the trees in Michoacan. They are white and may be separated into thin layers, which, as the author states, were used by the ancientinhabitants in the manufacture of a superior kind of paper.[605]
The skins of animals killed by the Nahua hunters were tanned both with and without the hair, by a process of which the authorities say nothing, although universally praising its results. The leather was used in some cases as a sort of parchment for hieroglyphic writings, but oftener for articles of dress, ornament, or armor.[606]
DYEING AND PAINTING.
In the preparation of dyes and paints, both mineral, animal, and vegetable colors were employed, the latter extracted from woods, barks, leaves, flowers, and fruits. In the art of dyeing they probably excelled the Europeans, and many of their dyes have since the conquest been introduced throughout the world. Chief among these was the cochineal,nochiztli, an insect fed by the Nahuas on the leaves of the nopal, from which they obtained beautiful and permanent red and purple colors for their cotton fabrics. The flower of thematlalxihuitlsupplied blue shades; indigo was the sediment of water in which branches of thexiuhquilipitzahuachad been soaked; seeds of theachiotlboiled in water yielded a red, the Frenchroucou; ochre, ortecozahuitl, furnished yellow, as did also the plantxochipalli, the latter being changed to orange by the use of nitre; other shades were produced by the use of alum; the stoneschimaltizatlandtizatlallibeing calcined, produced something like Spanish white; black was obtained from a stinking mineral,tlaliac, or from the soot of a pine calledocotl. In mixing paints they used chian-oil, or sometimes the glutinous juice of thetzauhtli. The numerous dye-woods of the tierra caliente, now the chief exports from that region, were all employed by the native dyers. It is probable that many of the secrets of this branch of Nahua art were never learned by the Spaniards.[607]
The Nahua paintings showed no great artistic merit, being chiefly noticeable for the excellence of the colors. Very few specimens have been preserved for modern examination, except the hieroglyphic paintings in which most of the figures are hideously and, as it is supposed, purposely distorted, and consequently no criterion of the artist's skill. It is not known that the Nahuas ever attempted to paint natural scenery, except that they prepared maps of sections of their territory on which they rudely represented the mountains, rivers, and forests, indicating the lands of different owners or lords by the use of different colors. They sometimes made portraits of the kings and nobles, but the Spanish chroniclers admit that they exhibited much less skill in picturing the human form and face than in drawing animals, birds, trees, and flowers. Some modern critics of lively imagination have, however, detected indications of great artistic genius in the awkward figures of thepicture-writings. Native painters, when Cortés arrived on the coast, painted his ships, men, horses, cannon, in fact everything new and strange in the white men's equipment, and hurried with the canvas to Montezuma at the capital. Very little is known of ornamental painting on the walls of private dwellings, but that on the temples naturally partook to a great extent of a hieroglyphic character. The durability of the paintings on cloth and paper, especially when rubbed occasionally with oil, was remarked by many observers, as was also the skill displayed by the natives later under Spanish instruction.[608]
FEATHER-MOSAIC.
The mixture of feathers with cotton and other fibres in the manufacture of clothing, tapestry, carpets, and bed-coverings has already been mentioned. For such fabrics plain colors from ducks and other aquatic birds were generally employed, brighter hues being occasionally introduced for ornamental purposes. Feathers also played an important part in the decoration of warriors' armor, the tail-feathers of the bright-hued quetzal being the favorites. These were formed into brilliant plumes, often tipped with gold and set in precious stones. Beautiful fans were made of the same material. But the art which of all those practiced by the Nahuas most delighted and astonished the Europeans, was the use of feathers in the making of what has been called feather-mosaic. The myriadsof tropical birds in which the forests of the tierra caliente abounded, chief among which were the quetzal, many varieties of the parrot kind, and thehuitzilin, or humming-bird, supplied feathers, fine and coarse, of every desired color and shade. It was for this use chiefly that the royal and other collections of birds, already described, were so carefully kept. These captive birds were plucked each year at the proper season, and their plumage sorted according to color and quality. Some shades only to be obtained from the rarest birds, were for ordinary feather-work artificially produced by dyeing the white plumage of more common birds.
To prepare for work theamanteca, or artist, arranged his colors in small earthen dishes within easy reach of his hand, stretched a piece of cloth on a board before him, and provided himself with a pot of glue—called by Clavigero tzauhtli,—and a pair of very delicate pincers. The design he wished to execute was first sketched roughly on the cloth, and then with the aid of the pincers feather after feather was taken from its dish and glued to the canvas. The Spanish writers marvel at the care with which this work was done; sometimes, they say, a whole day was consumed in properly choosing and adjusting one delicate feather, the artist patiently experimenting until the hue and position of the feather, viewed from different points and under different lights, became satisfactory to his eye. When a large piece was to be done, many workmen assembled, a part of the work was given to each, and so skillfully was the task performed that the parts rarely failed at the end to blend into an harmonious whole; but if the effect of any part was unsatisfactory it must be commenced anew. By this method a great variety of graceful patterns were wrought, either fanciful, or taken from natural objects, flowers, animals, and even the human face, which latter the native artists are said to have successfully portrayed. Las Casas tells us they made these feather-fabrics soskillfully that they appeared of different colors according to the direction from which they were viewed. The Spaniards declare that the feather-pictures were fully equal to the best works of European painters, and are at a loss for words to express their admiration of this wonderful Nahua invention; specimens of great beauty have also been preserved and are to be seen in the museums. Besides mantles and other garments, tapestry, bed-coverings, and other ornamental fabrics for the use of the noble and wealthy classes, to which this art was applied, the feather-mosaic was a favorite covering for the shields and armor of noted warriors. By the same process masks were made representing in a manner true to nature the faces of fierce animals; and even the whole bodies of such animals were sometimes counterfeited, as Zuazo says, so faithfully as to deceive the ignorant observer. The Tarascos of Michoacan were reputed to be the most skillful in feather-work.[609]
The feather-workers were called amantecas from Amantla, the name of the ward of Mexico in whichthey chiefly lived. This ward adjoined that of Pochtlan, where lived the chief merchants called pochtecas, and the shrine of the amantecas' god Ciotliahuatl, was also joined to that of the merchants' god Iyacatecutli. The feather-workers and merchants were closely united, there was great similarity in all their idolatrous rites, and they often sat together at the same banquet.[610]
Another art, similar in its nature to that of the feather-mosaics, was that of pasting leaves and flowers upon mats so as to form attractive designs for temporary use on the occasion of special festivals. The natives made great use of these flower-pictures after the conquest in the decoration of the churches for Catholic holidays.[611]
The Nahuas kindled a fire like their more savage brethren by friction between two pieces of wood, achiotl being the kind of wood preferred for this purpose. Boturini, followed by later writers, states that the use of the flint was also known. Once kindled, the flames were fanned by the use of a blow-pipe. For lights, torches of resinous wood were employed, especially theocotl, which emitted a pleasing odor. The use of wicks with oil or wax was apparently unknown until after the coming of Europeans. Substitutes for soap were found in the fruit of thecopalxocotland root of theamolli.
THE COUNCIL OF ARTS IN TEZCUCO.
All the branches of art among the Nahuas were placed under the control of a council or academy which was instituted to favor the development of poetry, oratory, history, painting, and also to some extent of sculpture and work in gold, precious stones, and feathers. Tezcuco was the centre of all high art and refinement during the palmy days of the Chichimec empire, and retained its preëminence to a great extent down to the coming of the Spaniards; consequentlyits school of arts is better known than others that probably existed in other cities. It was called the Council of Music, although taking cognizance of other arts and sciences, chiefly by controlling the education of the young, since no teacher of arts could exercise his profession without a certificate of his qualifications from the council. Before the same body all pupils must be brought for examination. The greatest care was taken that no defective work of lapidary, goldsmith, or worker in feathers should be exposed for sale in the markets, and that no imperfectly instructed artists should be allowed to vitiate the public taste. But it was above all with literary arts, poetry, oratory, and historical paintings, that this tribunal, composed of the best talent and culture of the kingdom, had to do, and every literary work was subject to its revision. The members, nominated by the emperor of Tezcuco, held daily meetings, and seats of honor were reserved for the kings of the three allied kingdoms, although a presiding officer was elected from the nobility with reference to his literary acquirements. At certain sessions of the council, poems and historical essays were read by their authors, and new inventions were exhibited for inspection, rich prizes being awarded for excellence in any branch of learning.[612]
ORATORY AND POESY.
Speech-making is a prominent feature in the life of most aboriginal tribes, and in their fondness for oratory the Nahuas were no exceptions to the rule. Many and long addresses accompanied the installation of kings and all public officers; all diplomatic correspondence between different nations was carried on by orators; prayers to the gods were in aboriginal as in modern times elaborate elocutionary efforts; the departing and returning traveler was dismissed and welcomed with a speech; condolence for misfortune and congratulation for success were expressed in publicand private by the friends most skillful in the art of speaking; social intercourse in feasts and banquets was but a succession of speeches; and parents even employed long discourses to impart to their children instruction and advice. Consequently children were instructed at an early age in the art of public speaking; some were even specially educated as orators. They were obliged to commit to memory, and taught to repeat as declamations, the speeches of their most famous ancestors, handed down from father to son for many generations. Specimens of the orations delivered by Nahua speakers on different occasions are so numerous in this and the following volume, that the reader may judge for himself respecting their merit. It is impossible, however, to decide how far these compositions have been modified in passing through Spanish hands, although it is probable, according to the judgment of the best critics, that they retain much of the original spirit of their reputed authors.[613]
Poets, if somewhat less numerous, were no less honored than orators. Their compositions were also recited, or sung, before the Council of Music in Tezcuco, and the most talented bards were honored with prizes. The heroic deeds of warlike ancestors, national annals and traditions, praise of the gods, moral lessons drawn from actual events, allegorical productions with illustrations drawn from the beauties of nature, and even love and the charms of woman were the common themes. The emperor Nezahualcoyotl, the protector and promoter of all the arts and sciences, was himself a poet of great renown. Severalof his compositions, or fragments of such, have been preserved; that is, the poems were written from memory in Aztec with Roman letters after the conquest, and translated into Spanish by Ixtlilxochitl, a lineal descendant of the royal poet. They have also been translated into other languages by various authors. The following will serve as specimens.[614]
NEZAHUALCOYOTL'S ODES.
SONG OF NEZAHUALCOYOTL, KING OF TEZCUCO; ON THE MUTABILITY OF LIFE.
Now will I sing for a moment,Since time and occasion offer,And I trust to be heard with favorIf my effort proveth deserving;Wherefore thus I begin my singing,Or rather my lamentation.O thou, my friend, and beloved,Enjoy the sweet flowers I bring thee;Let us be joyful togetherAnd banish each care and each sorrow;For although life's pleasures are fleeting,Life's bitterness also must leave us.I will strike, to help me in singing,The instrument deep and sonorous;Dance thou, while enjoying these flowers,Before the great Lord who is mighty;Let us grasp the sweet things of the present,For the life of a man is soon over.Fair Acolhuacán thou hast chosenAs thy dwelling-place and thy palace;Thou hast set up thy royal throne there,With thine own hand hast thou enriched it;Wherefore it seems to be certainThat thy kingdom shall prosper and flourish.And thou, O wise Prince Oyoyotzin,Mighty monarch, and King without equal,Rejoice in the beauty of spring-time,Be happy while spring abides with thee,For the day creepeth nearer and nearerWhen thou shalt seek joy and not find it.A day when dark Fate, the destroyer,Shall tear from thine hand the proud sceptre,When the moon of thy glory shall lessen,Thy pride and thy strength be diminished,The spoil from thy servants be taken,Thy kingdom and honor go from thee.Ah, then in this day of great sorrowThe lords of thy line will be mournful,The princes of might will be downcast,The pride of high birth will avail not;When thou, their great Head, hast been smittenThe pains of grim Want will assail them.Then with bitterness will they rememberThe glory and fame of thy greatness,Thy triumphs so worthy of envy,Until, while comparing the presentWith years that are gone now forever,Their tears shall be more than the ocean.The vassals that cluster about theeAnd are as a crown to thy kingdom,When thine arm doth no longer uphold them,Will suffer the fate of the exile;In strange lands their pride will be humbled,Their rank and their name be forgotten.The fame of the race that is mighty,And worthy a thousand fair kingdoms,Will not in the future be heeded;The nations will only rememberThe justice with which they were governedIn the years when the kingdom was threefold.In Mexico, proudest of cities,Reigned the mighty and brave Montezuma,Nezahualcoyotl, the just oneOf blest Culhuacán was the monarch,To strong Totoquíl fell the portionOf Acatlapán, the third kingdom.But yet thou shalt not be forgotten,Nor the good thou hast ever accomplished;For, is not the throne that thou fillestThe gift of the god without equal,The mighty Creator of all things,The maker of Kings and of Princes!Nezahualcoyotl, be happyWith the pleasant things that thou knowest,Rejoice in the beautiful garden,Wreathe thy front with a garland of flowers,Give heed to my song and my music,For I care but to pleasure thy fancy.The sweet things of life are but shadows;The triumphs, the honors, what are theyBut dreams that are idle and last notThough clothed in a semblance of being?And so great is the truth that I utter,I pray thee to answer this question.Cihuapán, the valiant, where is he,And Quauhtzintecomtzin, the mighty,The great Cohuahuatzin, where are they?They are dead, and have left us no token,Save their names, and the fame of their valor;They are gone from this world to another.I would that those living in friendship,Whom the thread of strong love doth encircle,Could see the sharp sword of the Death-god.For, verily, pleasure is fleeting,All sweetness must change in the future,The good things of life are inconstant.
Now will I sing for a moment,Since time and occasion offer,And I trust to be heard with favorIf my effort proveth deserving;Wherefore thus I begin my singing,Or rather my lamentation.O thou, my friend, and beloved,Enjoy the sweet flowers I bring thee;Let us be joyful togetherAnd banish each care and each sorrow;For although life's pleasures are fleeting,Life's bitterness also must leave us.I will strike, to help me in singing,The instrument deep and sonorous;Dance thou, while enjoying these flowers,Before the great Lord who is mighty;Let us grasp the sweet things of the present,For the life of a man is soon over.Fair Acolhuacán thou hast chosenAs thy dwelling-place and thy palace;Thou hast set up thy royal throne there,With thine own hand hast thou enriched it;Wherefore it seems to be certainThat thy kingdom shall prosper and flourish.And thou, O wise Prince Oyoyotzin,Mighty monarch, and King without equal,Rejoice in the beauty of spring-time,Be happy while spring abides with thee,For the day creepeth nearer and nearerWhen thou shalt seek joy and not find it.A day when dark Fate, the destroyer,Shall tear from thine hand the proud sceptre,When the moon of thy glory shall lessen,Thy pride and thy strength be diminished,The spoil from thy servants be taken,Thy kingdom and honor go from thee.Ah, then in this day of great sorrowThe lords of thy line will be mournful,The princes of might will be downcast,The pride of high birth will avail not;When thou, their great Head, hast been smittenThe pains of grim Want will assail them.Then with bitterness will they rememberThe glory and fame of thy greatness,Thy triumphs so worthy of envy,Until, while comparing the presentWith years that are gone now forever,Their tears shall be more than the ocean.The vassals that cluster about theeAnd are as a crown to thy kingdom,When thine arm doth no longer uphold them,Will suffer the fate of the exile;In strange lands their pride will be humbled,Their rank and their name be forgotten.The fame of the race that is mighty,And worthy a thousand fair kingdoms,Will not in the future be heeded;The nations will only rememberThe justice with which they were governedIn the years when the kingdom was threefold.In Mexico, proudest of cities,Reigned the mighty and brave Montezuma,Nezahualcoyotl, the just oneOf blest Culhuacán was the monarch,To strong Totoquíl fell the portionOf Acatlapán, the third kingdom.But yet thou shalt not be forgotten,Nor the good thou hast ever accomplished;For, is not the throne that thou fillestThe gift of the god without equal,The mighty Creator of all things,The maker of Kings and of Princes!Nezahualcoyotl, be happyWith the pleasant things that thou knowest,Rejoice in the beautiful garden,Wreathe thy front with a garland of flowers,Give heed to my song and my music,For I care but to pleasure thy fancy.The sweet things of life are but shadows;The triumphs, the honors, what are theyBut dreams that are idle and last notThough clothed in a semblance of being?And so great is the truth that I utter,I pray thee to answer this question.Cihuapán, the valiant, where is he,And Quauhtzintecomtzin, the mighty,The great Cohuahuatzin, where are they?They are dead, and have left us no token,Save their names, and the fame of their valor;They are gone from this world to another.I would that those living in friendship,Whom the thread of strong love doth encircle,Could see the sharp sword of the Death-god.For, verily, pleasure is fleeting,All sweetness must change in the future,The good things of life are inconstant.
Now will I sing for a moment,Since time and occasion offer,And I trust to be heard with favorIf my effort proveth deserving;Wherefore thus I begin my singing,Or rather my lamentation.
Now will I sing for a moment,
Since time and occasion offer,
And I trust to be heard with favor
If my effort proveth deserving;
Wherefore thus I begin my singing,
Or rather my lamentation.
O thou, my friend, and beloved,Enjoy the sweet flowers I bring thee;Let us be joyful togetherAnd banish each care and each sorrow;For although life's pleasures are fleeting,Life's bitterness also must leave us.
O thou, my friend, and beloved,
Enjoy the sweet flowers I bring thee;
Let us be joyful together
And banish each care and each sorrow;
For although life's pleasures are fleeting,
Life's bitterness also must leave us.
I will strike, to help me in singing,The instrument deep and sonorous;Dance thou, while enjoying these flowers,Before the great Lord who is mighty;Let us grasp the sweet things of the present,For the life of a man is soon over.
I will strike, to help me in singing,
The instrument deep and sonorous;
Dance thou, while enjoying these flowers,
Before the great Lord who is mighty;
Let us grasp the sweet things of the present,
For the life of a man is soon over.
Fair Acolhuacán thou hast chosenAs thy dwelling-place and thy palace;Thou hast set up thy royal throne there,With thine own hand hast thou enriched it;Wherefore it seems to be certainThat thy kingdom shall prosper and flourish.
Fair Acolhuacán thou hast chosen
As thy dwelling-place and thy palace;
Thou hast set up thy royal throne there,
With thine own hand hast thou enriched it;
Wherefore it seems to be certain
That thy kingdom shall prosper and flourish.
And thou, O wise Prince Oyoyotzin,Mighty monarch, and King without equal,Rejoice in the beauty of spring-time,Be happy while spring abides with thee,For the day creepeth nearer and nearerWhen thou shalt seek joy and not find it.
And thou, O wise Prince Oyoyotzin,
Mighty monarch, and King without equal,
Rejoice in the beauty of spring-time,
Be happy while spring abides with thee,
For the day creepeth nearer and nearer
When thou shalt seek joy and not find it.
A day when dark Fate, the destroyer,Shall tear from thine hand the proud sceptre,When the moon of thy glory shall lessen,Thy pride and thy strength be diminished,The spoil from thy servants be taken,Thy kingdom and honor go from thee.
A day when dark Fate, the destroyer,
Shall tear from thine hand the proud sceptre,
When the moon of thy glory shall lessen,
Thy pride and thy strength be diminished,
The spoil from thy servants be taken,
Thy kingdom and honor go from thee.
Ah, then in this day of great sorrowThe lords of thy line will be mournful,The princes of might will be downcast,The pride of high birth will avail not;When thou, their great Head, hast been smittenThe pains of grim Want will assail them.
Ah, then in this day of great sorrow
The lords of thy line will be mournful,
The princes of might will be downcast,
The pride of high birth will avail not;
When thou, their great Head, hast been smitten
The pains of grim Want will assail them.
Then with bitterness will they rememberThe glory and fame of thy greatness,Thy triumphs so worthy of envy,Until, while comparing the presentWith years that are gone now forever,Their tears shall be more than the ocean.
Then with bitterness will they remember
The glory and fame of thy greatness,
Thy triumphs so worthy of envy,
Until, while comparing the present
With years that are gone now forever,
Their tears shall be more than the ocean.
The vassals that cluster about theeAnd are as a crown to thy kingdom,When thine arm doth no longer uphold them,Will suffer the fate of the exile;In strange lands their pride will be humbled,Their rank and their name be forgotten.
The vassals that cluster about thee
And are as a crown to thy kingdom,
When thine arm doth no longer uphold them,
Will suffer the fate of the exile;
In strange lands their pride will be humbled,
Their rank and their name be forgotten.
The fame of the race that is mighty,And worthy a thousand fair kingdoms,Will not in the future be heeded;The nations will only rememberThe justice with which they were governedIn the years when the kingdom was threefold.
The fame of the race that is mighty,
And worthy a thousand fair kingdoms,
Will not in the future be heeded;
The nations will only remember
The justice with which they were governed
In the years when the kingdom was threefold.
In Mexico, proudest of cities,Reigned the mighty and brave Montezuma,Nezahualcoyotl, the just oneOf blest Culhuacán was the monarch,To strong Totoquíl fell the portionOf Acatlapán, the third kingdom.
In Mexico, proudest of cities,
Reigned the mighty and brave Montezuma,
Nezahualcoyotl, the just one
Of blest Culhuacán was the monarch,
To strong Totoquíl fell the portion
Of Acatlapán, the third kingdom.
But yet thou shalt not be forgotten,Nor the good thou hast ever accomplished;For, is not the throne that thou fillestThe gift of the god without equal,The mighty Creator of all things,The maker of Kings and of Princes!
But yet thou shalt not be forgotten,
Nor the good thou hast ever accomplished;
For, is not the throne that thou fillest
The gift of the god without equal,
The mighty Creator of all things,
The maker of Kings and of Princes!
Nezahualcoyotl, be happyWith the pleasant things that thou knowest,Rejoice in the beautiful garden,Wreathe thy front with a garland of flowers,Give heed to my song and my music,For I care but to pleasure thy fancy.
Nezahualcoyotl, be happy
With the pleasant things that thou knowest,
Rejoice in the beautiful garden,
Wreathe thy front with a garland of flowers,
Give heed to my song and my music,
For I care but to pleasure thy fancy.
The sweet things of life are but shadows;The triumphs, the honors, what are theyBut dreams that are idle and last notThough clothed in a semblance of being?And so great is the truth that I utter,I pray thee to answer this question.
The sweet things of life are but shadows;
The triumphs, the honors, what are they
But dreams that are idle and last not
Though clothed in a semblance of being?
And so great is the truth that I utter,
I pray thee to answer this question.
Cihuapán, the valiant, where is he,And Quauhtzintecomtzin, the mighty,The great Cohuahuatzin, where are they?They are dead, and have left us no token,Save their names, and the fame of their valor;They are gone from this world to another.
Cihuapán, the valiant, where is he,
And Quauhtzintecomtzin, the mighty,
The great Cohuahuatzin, where are they?
They are dead, and have left us no token,
Save their names, and the fame of their valor;
They are gone from this world to another.
I would that those living in friendship,Whom the thread of strong love doth encircle,Could see the sharp sword of the Death-god.For, verily, pleasure is fleeting,All sweetness must change in the future,The good things of life are inconstant.
I would that those living in friendship,
Whom the thread of strong love doth encircle,
Could see the sharp sword of the Death-god.
For, verily, pleasure is fleeting,
All sweetness must change in the future,
The good things of life are inconstant.
ODE ON THE TYRANT TEZOZOMOC BY NEZAHUALCOYOTL THE KING.
Give ear unto the lamentation which I, Nezahualcoyotl the King, make within myself for the fate of the Empire, and set forth for an example unto others.O King, unstable and restless, when thou art dead then shall thy people be overthrown and confounded; thy place shall be no more; the Creator, the All-powerful shall reign.Who could have thought, having seen the palaces and the court, the glory and the power of the old King Tezozomoc, that these things could have an end? Yet have they withered and perished. Verily, life giveth naught but disappointment and vexation; all that is, weareth out and passeth away.Who will not be sorrowful at the remembrance of the ancient splendor of this tyrant, this withered old man; who, like a thirsty willow, nourished by the moisture of his ambition and avarice, lorded it over the lowly meadows and flowery fields while spring-time lasted, but at length, dried up and decayed, the storms of winter tore him up by the roots and scattered him in pieces upon the ground.But now, with this mournful song, I bring to mind the things that flourish for an hour, and present, in the fate of Tezozomoc, an example of the brevity of human greatness. Who, that listens to me, can refrain from weeping? Verily, the enjoyments and pleasures of life are as a bouquet of flowers, that is passed from hand to hand until it fades, withers, and is dead.Hearken unto me, ye sons of kings and of princes, take good heed and ponder the theme of my mournful song, the things that flourish for an hour, and the end of the King Tezozomoc. Who is he, I say again, that can hear me and not weep? Verily, the enjoyments and pleasures of life are as a handful of flowers, blooming for a space, but soon withered and dead.Let the joyous birds sing on and rejoice in the beauty of spring, and the butterflies enjoy the honey and perfume of the flowers, for life is as a tender plant that is plucked and withereth away.
Give ear unto the lamentation which I, Nezahualcoyotl the King, make within myself for the fate of the Empire, and set forth for an example unto others.
O King, unstable and restless, when thou art dead then shall thy people be overthrown and confounded; thy place shall be no more; the Creator, the All-powerful shall reign.
Who could have thought, having seen the palaces and the court, the glory and the power of the old King Tezozomoc, that these things could have an end? Yet have they withered and perished. Verily, life giveth naught but disappointment and vexation; all that is, weareth out and passeth away.
Who will not be sorrowful at the remembrance of the ancient splendor of this tyrant, this withered old man; who, like a thirsty willow, nourished by the moisture of his ambition and avarice, lorded it over the lowly meadows and flowery fields while spring-time lasted, but at length, dried up and decayed, the storms of winter tore him up by the roots and scattered him in pieces upon the ground.
But now, with this mournful song, I bring to mind the things that flourish for an hour, and present, in the fate of Tezozomoc, an example of the brevity of human greatness. Who, that listens to me, can refrain from weeping? Verily, the enjoyments and pleasures of life are as a bouquet of flowers, that is passed from hand to hand until it fades, withers, and is dead.
Hearken unto me, ye sons of kings and of princes, take good heed and ponder the theme of my mournful song, the things that flourish for an hour, and the end of the King Tezozomoc. Who is he, I say again, that can hear me and not weep? Verily, the enjoyments and pleasures of life are as a handful of flowers, blooming for a space, but soon withered and dead.
Let the joyous birds sing on and rejoice in the beauty of spring, and the butterflies enjoy the honey and perfume of the flowers, for life is as a tender plant that is plucked and withereth away.
Granados tells us that Nezahualcoyotl's poems were all in iambic verse, resembling in style the works of Manilius, Seneca, Pomponius, Euripides, and Lilius. In one of his songs he compared the shortness of life and of its pleasures with the fleeting bloom of a flower, so pathetically as to draw tears from the audience, as Clavigero relates. Ixtlilxochitl narrates that a prisoner condemned to death obtained pardon by reciting a poem before the king. There is not much evidence that verses were ever written in rhyme, but the authors say that due attention was paid to cadence and metre, and that some unmeaning syllables were added to certain lines to accommodate the measure. By their system of combination a single word often sufficed for a line in the longest measure. Many of their poetical compositions were intended for the dramatic representations which have been spoken of elsewhere.[615]
AZTEC ARITHMETICAL SYSTEM.
The Nahua system of numeration was very simple and comprehensive, there being no limit to the numbers that could be expressed by it. The following table will give a clear idea of the method as employed by the Aztecs:
One,ce, orcen.Two,ome.Three,yey, orei.Four,nahui.Five,macuilli,—signifying the 'clenched hand,' one finger having been originally doubled, as is supposed, for each unit in counting from one to five.Six,chico a ce.Seven,chic ome.Eight,chico ey.Nine,chico nahui,—These names from six to nine are simply those from one to four, with a prefix whose meaning is not altogether clear, but which is said to be composed ofchico, 'at one side,' andihuanorhuan, meaning 'near another,' 'with,' or simply 'and.' These names may consequently be interpreted perhaps, 'one side (or hand) with one,' 'one hand with two,' etc., or one two, etc., 'with the other side.'Ten,matlactli—that is the upper part of the body, or all the fingers of the hands.Eleven,matlactli oc ce, ten and one.Twelve,matlactli om ome, ten and two.Thirteen,matlactli om ey, ten and three.Fourteen,matlactli o nahui, ten and four. In these namesoc,om,o, oronas Molina gives it, seems to be used as a connective particle, equivalent to 'and,' but I am not acquainted with its derivation.Fifteen,caxtolli, a word to which the authorities give no derivative meaning.Sixteen,caxtolli oc ce, fifteen and one, etc.Twenty,cem pohualli, once twenty. The wordpohuallimeans 'a count,' the number twenty being in a sense the foundation of the whole numerical system.Twenty-one,cem pohualli oc ce, once twenty and one, etc.Thirty,cem pohualli, ihuan(oromas Molina has it)matlactli, once twenty and ten.Thirty-five,cem pohualli ihuan(oron)caxtolli, once twenty and fifteen, etc.Forty,ome pohualli, twice twenty, etc.One hundred,macuil pohualli, five times twenty.Two hundred,matlactli pohualli, ten times twenty.Four hundred,cen tzontli, once four hundred, 'the hair of the head.'Eight hundred,ome tzontli, twice four hundred.One thousand,ome tzontli ihuan matlactli pohualli, twice four hundred and ten times twenty.Eight thousand,xiquipilli, a purse or sack, already mentioned as containing eight thousand cacao-nibs.Sixteen thousand,ome xiquipilli, twice eight thousand.
One,ce, orcen.
Two,ome.
Three,yey, orei.
Four,nahui.
Five,macuilli,—signifying the 'clenched hand,' one finger having been originally doubled, as is supposed, for each unit in counting from one to five.
Six,chico a ce.
Seven,chic ome.
Eight,chico ey.
Nine,chico nahui,—These names from six to nine are simply those from one to four, with a prefix whose meaning is not altogether clear, but which is said to be composed ofchico, 'at one side,' andihuanorhuan, meaning 'near another,' 'with,' or simply 'and.' These names may consequently be interpreted perhaps, 'one side (or hand) with one,' 'one hand with two,' etc., or one two, etc., 'with the other side.'
Ten,matlactli—that is the upper part of the body, or all the fingers of the hands.
Eleven,matlactli oc ce, ten and one.
Twelve,matlactli om ome, ten and two.
Thirteen,matlactli om ey, ten and three.
Fourteen,matlactli o nahui, ten and four. In these namesoc,om,o, oronas Molina gives it, seems to be used as a connective particle, equivalent to 'and,' but I am not acquainted with its derivation.
Fifteen,caxtolli, a word to which the authorities give no derivative meaning.
Sixteen,caxtolli oc ce, fifteen and one, etc.
Twenty,cem pohualli, once twenty. The wordpohuallimeans 'a count,' the number twenty being in a sense the foundation of the whole numerical system.
Twenty-one,cem pohualli oc ce, once twenty and one, etc.
Thirty,cem pohualli, ihuan(oromas Molina has it)matlactli, once twenty and ten.
Thirty-five,cem pohualli ihuan(oron)caxtolli, once twenty and fifteen, etc.
Forty,ome pohualli, twice twenty, etc.
One hundred,macuil pohualli, five times twenty.
Two hundred,matlactli pohualli, ten times twenty.
Four hundred,cen tzontli, once four hundred, 'the hair of the head.'
Eight hundred,ome tzontli, twice four hundred.
One thousand,ome tzontli ihuan matlactli pohualli, twice four hundred and ten times twenty.
Eight thousand,xiquipilli, a purse or sack, already mentioned as containing eight thousand cacao-nibs.
Sixteen thousand,ome xiquipilli, twice eight thousand.
It will be seen from the table that the only numbers having simple names are one, two, three, four, five, ten, fifteen, twenty, four hundred, and eight thousand; all the rest are compounds of these constructed on the principle that when the smaller number follows the larger the sum of the two is expressed, but when the smaller precedes the larger, their product is indicated. Molina and Leon y Gama are the chief authorities on the Nahua arithmetical system. All the writers agree perfectly respecting its details, but differ considerably in orthography. Molina writeseach compound name together as a single word, while Gama often separates a word into its parts as I have done in every case, following his spelling.
SYSTEM OF NUMERATION.
The manner in which the numbers were written was as simple as the system itself. A point or small circle indicated a unit, and these points sufficed for the numbers from one to nineteen. Twenty was indicated by a flag, four hundred by a feather, and eight thousand by a purse. One character placed above another indicated that the product was to be taken; for instance, 160,000 might be expressed either by twenty purses, or by a flag over a purse. To avoid the excessive use of the unit points in writing large and fractional numbers, each flag, feather, and purse was divided into four quarters, and only those quarters which were colored were to be counted. Thus five might be expressed by five points or by a flag with but one quarter colored; three hundred and fifty-six would be indicated by a feather with three quarters colored, two complete flags, three quarters of another flag, and one point.
We have seen that twenties were used, much as dozens are by us, as the foundation of all numeration, but strangely enough these twenties took different names in counting different classes of articles. The regular name, as given in the table, ispohualli; in counting sheets of paper, tortillas, small skins, and other thin objects capable of being packed one above another in small parcels, each twenty was calledpilli; in counting cloths and other articles usually formed into large rolls,quimilliwas the name applied to twenty; and in counting persons, lines, walls, and other things ranged in order, the termtecpantliwas sometimes employed. In reckoning birds, eggs, fruits, seeds, and round or plump objects, generallytetl, 'a stone,' was affixed to each one of the numerals in the table;pantliwas in the same way added for objects arranged in regular order, and also for surface measurements;tlamantlilikewise was joined to the numeralsfor articles sold in pairs or sets, as shoes, dishes, etc.; while ears of corn, cacao in bunches, and other bulky articles required the terminationolotl.
Among all the Nahua nations, so far as known, the arithmetical system was practically the same, and was essentially decimal. Nearly all gave great prominence to the number twenty; the Huastec language had simple names for the numbers from one to ten, twenty, and one thousand; the Otomí approached still nearer our modern system by making one hundred also one of its fundamental numbers with an uncompounded name as well as a compounded one.[616]
Astrology, soothsaying, the interpretation of dreams, and of auguries such as the flight or song of birds, the sudden meeting of wild animals, or the occurrence of other unlooked-for events, were regarded by the Nahuas as of the greatest importance, and the practice of such arts was entrusted to thetonalpouhqui, 'those who count by the sun,' a class of men held in high esteem, to whom was attributed a perfect knowledge of future events. We have seen that no undertaking, public or private, of any importance, could be engaged in except under a suitable and propitious sign, and to determine this sign the tonalpouhqui was appealed to. The science of astrology was written down in books kept with great secrecy and mystery, altogether unintelligible to the common crowd, whose good or bad fortune was therein supposed to be painted. The details of the methods employed in the mysterious rites of divination are nowhere recorded, and the continual mention of the seer's services throughout the chapters of this and the following volume render this paragraph on the subject sufficient here.
AUTHORITIES ON NAHUA ARTS.
In addition to the miscellaneous arts described in the preceding pages, separate chapters will be devotedto the Nahua calendar, hieroglyphics, architecture, and medicine.[617]
Astronomical Knowledge of the Aztecs—Contradictions of Authors respecting the Calendar—Value of the Researches of Various Writers—The First Regular Calendar—The Mexican Cycle—The Civil Year—The Aztec Months—Names of the Days and their Signification—The Commencement of the Aztec Year—The Ritual Calendar—Gama's Arrangement of the Months—The Calendar-Stone—The Four Destructions of the World—The Calendar of Michoacan—Reckoning of the Zapotecs.
Perhaps the strongest proof of the advanced civilization of the Nahuas was their method of computing time, which, for ingenuity and correctness, equaled, if it did not surpass, the systems adopted by contemporaneous European and Asiatic nations.
The Nahuas were well acquainted with the movements of the sun and moon, and even of some of the planets, while celestial phenomena, such as eclipses, although attributed to unnatural causes, were nevertheless carefully observed and recorded. They had, moreover, an accurate system of dividing the day into fixed periods, corresponding somewhat to our hours; indeed, as the learned Sr Leon y Gama has shown, the Aztec calendar-stone which was found in the plaza of the city of Mexico, was used not only as a durable register, but also as a sun-dial.
THE AZTEC CALENDAR.
Although the system of the Aztec calendar as a whole is clear and easily understood, yet it is extremely difficult to describe with certainty many of its details, owing to the contradictory statements of nearly all the earlier writers, who visited Mexico and there in different localities picked up scraps of what they afterwards described as being the 'calendar of the Mexicans,' not taking into consideration that the many and distinct kingdoms surrounding the Aztec territory, although using essentially the same system, differed on many important points, such as the names of years, months, days, the season of beginning the year, etc. This difficulty increases when we attempt to make Mexican dates agree with our own. Even Boturini, who gathered his information in Mexico, makes many mistakes; and Veytia, although we must accord him the credit of having thoroughly studied the subject, and of having reduced it to a clear system, is at fault in many points. Of the older writers, such as Sahagun, Las Casas, Duran, Motolinia, and others, no one is explicit enough on all points to enable us to follow him; and such details as they unite in giving are mostly contradictory. Torquemada, who draws a great portion of his material from Motolinia, contradicts himself too frequently to be reliable. Leon y Gama, although he spent much labor in trying to clearly expound the system, has also fallen into some errors, attributable, perhaps, to his not having the valuable aid of Sahagun's writings, and to his having placed too much trust in the writings of Torquemada and the manuscript of the Indian Cristóbal del Castillo, as is shown in the review of Gama's work by Sr José Antonio Alzate in theGacetas de Literatura. Baron von Humboldt's description, valuable as it is on account of the extended comparisons which he draws between the Mexican, Asiatic and Egyptian calendars, is on that account too intricate to be easily understood. From all these descriptions Gallatin, McCulloh, and Müller,with perhaps a few others, have each given us a very good résumé, but without attempting to reconcile all the contradictions.
The first notice we have of any regular calendar is given by Ixtlilxochitl, who states that in the year 5097 from the creation of the world, an assembly of learned men met at the city of Huehuetlapallan, and determined the reckoning of the years, days, and months, leap years and intercalary days, in the order in which they were found at the time of the conquest.[618]Previous to this time it is said that the only reckoning kept was regulated by the yearly growth of the fresh grass and herbs from which the name of the Mexican yearxihuitl, 'new grass,' is derived. It is also said that a rough computation of time was made by the moon, from its appearance to its disappearance, and that this period calledmetztli, 'the moon,' was divided into two equal parts, named respectivelymextozolitzli, the time when the moon was awake or visible, andmecochiliztli, the sleep of the moon, or the time when it was invisible.[619]Of the larger divisions of time, accounts are very conflicting. Two, three, four, and five ages are said by various writers to have existed, at the end of each of which the world was said to have been destroyed, and recreated at the beginning of the age next following. The common aboriginal belief was, however, that at the time of the conquest, the world had passed through three ages, and was then in the fourth. The first age, or 'sun,' as it is also called, was the Sun of Water,atonatiuh; the second, the Sun of Earth,tlalchitonatiuh; the third, the Sun of Air,ehecatonatiuh.[620]This is about all we know of any division of time, before the assembly at Huehuetlapallan which is said to have introduced the regular calendar.