The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1904-12-28

From the New York Herald.
IT HE stone lions of cochiti, the
Wy ancient specimens of aboriginal
American sculpture. and the
most remarkable relics left by the New
Mexican Pueblos, have recently been
fully described by Professor L. Brad
ford Prince, president of the Historical
society of New Mexico, who made the
journey to Gle to study the ancient ex-
amples of sculpture While he found
there many other examples of the high
state of civilization among the aborig-
ines. he gives 1t as his opinion that the
stone lions are the very best examples
of art left by the Pueblos.
The stone lions of Cochiti are about
twelve miles from the peublo of Coohiti,
the nearest Indian town. They are
among the ruins of the burned town
Chah- pah-she In Cile on the banks of
the Rio Grande. On the journey from
Cochiti to Chah-pah-she the traveller
passes. many ruins, evidences of a nu-
merous ancient population. Before reach
ing Chah-pah-she the journey takes one
to Pueblo Quermado. After telling the
story Of his arrival there Professor
Prince tells of his discovery of the loca-
ton of the stone lions
About a third of a mile west of the
pueblo he writes, "a tall pine was
pointed out as being the landmark by
which to find the ancient sculptures.
When almost there we found singular
relic OF the ancietn occupat ton, which H.
illustrates how wonderfully expert the in
habitants must have been In the use of
the few implements which they pos
sessed. This Is a perfectly rectangular
hole cut in the solid rock, twelve inches
by eight on the surface, and eight inches
deep the popularity being that the cor
ners are as sharply cut and the angles
as perfect as If done by the most APP
proved steel instruments and yet these
people never possessed metallic tools Of
any kind. The object OF this could not
we'll be determined. At first sight 1t APP
peared as If intended to hold water, but
its small size made 1t practically useless
for any purpose of that kind. The hole
had been extended by building up from
the surface of the rock with squared
stones around an opctl CeiiST VI eAdCliy
the size OF the hewn cavity below. Most
of the stones that were built up in this
manner have now fallen, but several re-
main in place to show the original form.
Scattered around were a number of
pieces of pure white quartz unlike any
in the immediate vicinity.
Passing this, and only a short dis
tance beyond, we came upon the object
of our search the first thing visible
being a circular stone wall. partly over
thrown but still of considerable height.
This wall. which constitutes a complete
circle with the exception Of a narrow en-
trance way, is built of great blocks of
stone hewn into parallelograms. some OF
which are as much as five feet in length,
and all of large size. Many of these have
fallen. but the wall is still from three TO
four feet in height and originally mist
have been at least six. The circle is
eighteen feet in diameter on the inside,
and the wall was about three feet IN
thickness. The entrance, which Is on
the southeast. is through a passageway
twenty feet in length between walls sim
liar to those of the circle. The internal
width of this long entrance way is but
three feet, so that single brave and de-
termined guard could easily have held