New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1855-11-21


In the center of this rses py ramid, the base OF
which IL about sixty feet 10 length and about iory
in bieht and which you ascend by means OF steps
On all of its sides, and 10 well preserved on
tie platform are the remaios oi ine "ah Vi
the taceIlum from which pla'e the veg OF
tie valley Of RsbDsl, - well rs tue villages
ard surrOuI ding mountains extends msJesuc
po,ition. which cor res ponds TO a great city. fo1
ioeh from here at city which, tO jldse from its
extent End by the coptidetab number o' ruined
.,1ifces. must have had q population triple that
sf the Civ Of Gustemaa. According 70 the tradl-
tiops preserved even at the present daS By the
Indians Of Rsbipal, Take Potoma must have
been TIE cspta of the Performances, until the
eoocb in which the tribes which speak the Qulc1e
and the Cskchiquel dialects land to which the
Rsbipaleros belopsed) arrived in this country,
which was in the eleventh century Of our era These
conquered Low er Vera PaZ AID OverthreR tbe So
komtnes, wb0 fed near COpsD and Cahaoo0 where
the II mains OF town can sill De seen ne Names
after having been conquered in the Gnate "a
II giCns, gave pl,ce 70 the Qulches, Caschiqueis,
ard the Tutujiles, who SOunded the diverse king
dous Of Guatemala and were conquered atterTard
bx Alvarsd, have not been able 70 lscer ain
whether this city continued 10 be inh ,bited after
the victory of the RabiDaler0s but the tru.h Is
nevertheless evident that It's ruins appear To be
quite ancient You can scarcely iRd any pieces
Of ,srthen pots and statues, nor remains OF soup
Ceep ravine Overshaded by pines is the only
feature which ssparstes to the northward Of me
Sierra de IbiIan the great edices Of the citadel
of which have spoken Others cover even the
hill of the citadel which is cut TO point all Of
its sides except the part by which you enter aud
exit On those nights you ipd no water, but 10 10
10 be found in the mOuDtsin str; ans, which How
profusely near By, and which are never dry.
IL went out from the city on the north side,
following o,psth Of dorsal form, placed by ma
ture hbe bridge between two precpices, and
having walked aoout one hundred PAGES arrived
at another esplansde, where ! say many more
palaces, and temple the base Of which could not
have been better preserved. 1t at the extremity
Of this lain that the above mentioned city appears
TO terminate, il being surrounded by fragments OF
the ancient WALL leaving merely narrow passage.
way similar to that Of a ruined door The ro1d
continues through the suburbs, which are also COW
cred with the remains Of temples and palaces, and
extend as far az the Sierra de Tikiram. We leave
these on the left and descend to the south east the
scraQgy TANKS Cf the mountain on the side OF Rs-
blnaL / cannot exsggerate my admire ton at see
ing so many ruins united in one place, so many
palaces and temples yet standing, ahd Of which
nothing bss yet been said by any traveller; aud i,
surprised me the more on account OF my having
been assured BY all that in the vicinity Of Rabi-
nal there existed no Indian ruios.
The other ruined city is in front of Rabinsl !;
from the porch Of the church. and even from the
yaId of my house can see the walls which pro-
tected the principal palace on the solth side; l
slsO see tie steps of double escslade and the re-
II aims of two temples Of pyramidal FORM covered
at present by moss, and which Use az the two ex-
tIemes like two advanced sentines
&" 1t was on the 2sth May last that visited the
nights of Cskyu, accompanied by an intelligent
neighboriDg places
II had more labor in reaching this summit
than had 10 going to TAX Pokoma on account
of the foliage OverbaHging the path more than
on the former route was consequently Obliged
10 leave my mule under the shade Of some sarse-
buthes. We then pursued our course on ser
pentne footpath which followed along the decliy-
i,y, and which had probably been the road of the
ancient warriors OF Cskyu, for 1t is cut IN rock.
We coon passed the wall and found ourselves In
the yard OF double palace with many escalades,
and the base Of which measured more than five
hundred feet front. had then arrived at the cit
ade the residence Of the ancient princes of Rabi
nal The principal part of the hsbi atoms great
er than that of TAX PokOma, but in still more
ruined state. Ii was here that the RabinalerOs
centered their power after having inhabited tue
regions Of the Pokamames undOub edly because,
from this point they had the entire control of the
road of Upper Vera Paz, and by which their en-
tmies had fed. According to g manuscript which
/ have just translated from the Cakchiquel
Guatemala the summit Of Cakyu had, In the time
of the Performances, the name OF Zamanele. This
overlct ks perpendcularly the little town of Rab-
iual on the south, and on the north the city
which served as a fortress to the Royal residence.
This city has at its base series OF small espan-
sdes where ruins Of temples can be seen, as in
TAX Pokoms, many Of them situated 10 the most
delightful of spots. Having said sufficient about
the Deighboripg city, l shall not extend the de-
scriptien Of Cakyu, aud shall only say that it
was much more extensive and its edihces generally
better preserved
Further from Cakyu the hills are elevated in
terrace form, or On top Of the other, like an am
phitbeater, Until they reach the summit of an ele
waited bill Of pyramidal shape which 0yerlOoks all
the rect il is situated about half league from
the citadel, and is named Mumuz, which in the
Qaiche and Mexican dialects means altar. IL was
here, without coubt that victims we're former
y offered 10 the baIbarous disinites of the country
few dsys after l went also 10 this place, and
found on the summit pyramdal altar construct
ed OF rock of two ards hight, and in the interior
part an opening nearly three yards across. Tue
Inoisns say there is a circular staircase which de-
sceIds into species OF hole which opens in toe
midst OF dense forest This can be true. but
have not yet been convinced of il. They add that
there is subterranean city which Possesses great
riches if this be true which l doubt the interior
Of the Mum w would be simply necropolis-an
ancient Iepulchre of the princes OF the Pokomames,
which wee buried, according 10 custom, with
their slaves ard riches. With regard to the two
cities which have visited will add that if their
ruins do not offer that aspect of civilization and
msepifcence which hs, been observed in those of
Palepque and Uxmal, they nevertheless give,
on account of their position, the solidity, force
ard extent Of their constructions, high idea OF
the culture of these who made them, and can be
compared in 4 certain degree to the po yer and
resources Of those Of the graf vassai barons Of