Some interesting facts in our own country in connexion with these Pyramids. Pyramids of Micocatl in Mexico, and of Quanhuahuac and Cholula. Their history. Notices of a deluge, and confusion of languages, in the picture writing of Mexico. Pyramids in the Polynesian islands. “High Places” of Scripture. Temple of Belus. Universality of this kind of structure explained. Our western mounds. View from the Pyramids of Ghizeh. The Sphinx. Visit to the plain of Memphis, and the Military and Naval School at Toura.

We are stretched on the sand in a tomb at Ghizeh, gazing on the solemn and dreamy figures every where painted on its walls. They carry our thoughts back to the ancient days, and a spirit of musing steals gently over us. What is the origin of the Pyramids? Nay, start not, kind reader, for I am not going to enter into a disquisition on this worn-out subject, or to rake up old theories, but to mention a few circumstances connecting it with our own country, which have always appeared to me to be extremely interesting, and which do not seem to have received the attention that they deserve. It would be somewhat strange if the obscurity which has hung over these monuments from the earliest times should be cleared away by discoveries in this new country of ours.

About twenty-four miles east of the city of Mexico, in a plain, called by the aborigines, Micocatl, or the Path of the Dead, are two Pyramids, one 180, the other 144 feet in height, the former being 676 feet on each side, at the base. They are constructed of clay mixed with small stones, which was encrusted on the outside with a thick coating of porous amygdaloid. They presented four stories or platforms, each considerably narrower than the one next below; and on the top were originally two colossal statues of stone, covered with plates of gold, designed to represent the sun and moon. They are surrounded by several borders of smaller pyramids, about thirty feet in height, forming streets, which run exactly in the direction of the four cardinal points.

Eastward from these, as we descend the Cordilleras, towards the gulf of Mexico, is the Pyramid of Papantla. It had seven stories, and was higher in proportion to its width than any other in the country, being 59 feet in elevation, and 82 feet on each side at the base. It was built entirely of hewn stones, of extraordinary size, regularly shaped and neatly fitted together. It had three staircases, each leading to the summit; and the stairs were ornamented with hieroglyphics, and small niches symmetrically arranged.

South-eastward from the ancient city of Quanhuahuac, on the western declivity of the Cordillera of Anahuac, rises an isolated mass of rock, 358 feet in height, shaped by human labor into a regular conic form. It has five stories or terraces, the sides of which incline inward as they ascend, each being covered above with masonry; the uppermost of these is 236 feet from north to south, and 315 from east to west; and is encircled by a wall of hewn stone six feet and a half in height. The base of the hill is also surrounded by a deep and very wide ditch, whose outer circumference measures nearly two miles and a half. In the centre of the upper natural platform was a Pyramid of five stories, of which only one now remains. It faces exactly the four cardinal points, and is on one side 67, and on the other 57 feet in extent. The stones of which it is composed are regular in shape, fitted neatly together, and are covered with hieroglyphics, each figure occupying several stones; among them we discovered heads of crocodiles spouting water, and men sitting cross legged, as is the custom in Eastern nations.

But the greatest, and perhaps the most ancient of the Pyramids of this country, is one on the plain of Cholula, which is separated from the valley of Mexico by a chain of volcanic mountains, extending from Popocatepetl towards Rio Frio and the peak of Telapor. This Pyramid was also so constructed as to face exactly the four cardinal points, and had a base of 1449 feet on each side; it rose by four terraces, and had an elevation of 164 feet. It was built of unbaked bricks, three inches thick by fifteen in length, alternating with layers of clay. In some places it has been penetrated, and chambers have been laid open, in one of which were found two skeletons, idols of basalt, and a great variety of vases, polished and varnished. On the summit of this Pyramid was an altar dedicated to Quatzee, the god of the air.

These Pyramids of Mexico were in existence when this region was conquered by the Aztecks, in the year 1190 of our era; and were attributed by the conquerors to their predecessors, the Toltecks, a powerful and highly civilized nation, who had obtained possession of the country about the year A.D. 648. But whether they were not built by another people long anterior to the Toltecks, it is now impossible to say, though it appears probable that they were.

Of the origin of the last of these Pyramids there is preserved, in the Mexican picture writing,[3] a clear and distinct account, which appears to throw light, not only on the Pyramids of Mexico, but on those of Egypt, and on the Pyramidal form so common among the temples of Hindostan.[4] It is as follows: “Before the great inundation, which took place 4800 years after the creation of the world, the country of Anahuac[5] was inhabited by giants. All those who did not perish, were transformed into fishes, save seven,[6] who fled into caverns. When the waters had subsided, one of these giants, Xalhua, surnamed the builder, went to Chohollan, where, as a memorial of the mountain Haloc, which had served for an asylum for himself and his six brethren, he built an artificial hill in form of a Pyramid. He ordered bricks to be made in the provinces of Tlamanalco, at the foot of the mountain range of Cocotl; and to convey them to Cholula, he placed a file of men, who passed them from hand to hand. The gods beheld with wrath this edifice, the top of which was to reach the clouds. Irritated at the daring attempt of Xalhua, they hurled fire on the Pyramid. Numbers of the workmen perished; the work was discontinued, and the monument was afterwards dedicated to Quetzalcoatl, the god of the air.”[7]

To this Humboldt adds, “Of the different nations that inhabited Mexico, (at the time of the conquest,) paintings representing the deluge of Coxcox are found among the Aztecks, the Miztecks, the Zapotecks, the Tlascalans, and the Mechoacanese. The Noah, Xisuthrus or Menou of these nations is called Coxcox, Teo-Cipactli, or Tezpi. He saved himself conjointly with his wife Xochiquetzal in a bark; or, according to other traditions, on a raft of ahue huete (cupressus disticha.) The painting represents Coxcox in the midst of the water, lying in a bark. The mountain, the summit of which, crowned by a tree, rises above the waters, is the peak of Colhuacan,[8] the Ararat of the Mexicans. The horn which is represented on the left, is the phonetic hieroglyphic of Colhuacan. At the foot of the mountain appear the heads of Coxcox and his wife. The latter of these is known by the two tresses in the form of horns, which, as we have observed, denote the female sex. The men born after the deluge were dumb; a dove from the top of a tree distributes among them tongues, represented under the form of small commas. We must not confound this dove with the bird which brings Coxcox tidings that the waters were dried up. The people of Machoacan preserved a tradition, according to which, Coxcox, whom they call Tezpi, embarked in a spacious acalli with his wife, his children, several animals, and grain, the preservation of which was of importance to mankind. When the Great Spirit, Tetcatlipoca, ordered the waters to withdraw, Tezpi sent out from his bark a vulture, the Zohilote (vultur aura). This bird, which feeds on dead flesh, did not return on account of the great number of carcasses with which the earth, recently dried up, was strewed. Tezpi sent out other birds, one of which, the hummingbird, alone returned, holding in his beak a branch covered with leaves. Tezpi, seeing that fresh verdure began to clothe the soil, quitted his bark near the fountain of Colhuacan.... The tongues which the dove distributed to the nations of America, being infinitely varied, these nations disperse; and fifteen heads of families only, who spoke the same tongue, and from whom the Toltecks, the Aztecks, and the Acolhuans descended, unite, and arrive at Aztlan.” Ib. II. p. 63.

“The group, No. 2,[9] represents the celebrated Serpent Woman, Cihuacohuatl, called also Quiliztli or Tonacacihua, woman of our flesh; she is the companion of Tonacateuctli. The Mexicans considered her as the mother of the human race; and after the god of the Celestial Paradise, Ometeuctli, she held the first rank among the divinities of Anahuac. We see her always represented with a great serpent. Other paintings exhibit to us a feather-headed snake, cut in pieces by the great spirit Tercatlipoca, or by the sun personified, the god Tonatiuh....

“Behind the serpent, who appears to be speaking to the goddess Cihuacohuatl, are two naked figures; they are of a different color, and seem to be in the attitude of contending with each other. We might be led to suppose that the two vases, which we see at the bottom of the picture, one of which is overturned, is the cause of this contention. The Serpent woman was considered in Mexico as the mother of two twin children; these naked figures are perhaps the children of Cihuacohuatl; they remind us of the Cain and Abel of the Hebrew tradition.” Ib. I. p. 195.

Pyramidal structures are also found scattered over the islands of the Pacific. “The natural temples (in the Polynesian islands) consisted of a number of distinct Maraes, altars, and sacred dormitories, appropriated to the chief pagan divinities, and included in one large stone enclosure of considerable extent. Several of the distinct temples contained smaller inner-courts, within which the gods were kept. The form of the interior or area of the temples was frequently that of a square or a parallelogram, the sides of which extended forty or fifty feet. Two sides of this were enclosed by a high stone wall; the front was protected by a low fence; and opposite, a solid Pyramidal structure was raised, in front of which the images were kept, and the altars fixed. These piles were often immense. That which formed one side of the square of the large temple in Atehura, according to Mr. Wilson, by whom it was visited when in a state of preservation, was 270 feet long, 94 feet wide at the base, and 50 feet high; being at the summit 180 feet long and 6 wide. A flight of steps led to its summit; the bottom step was six feet high. The outer stories of the Pyramid, composed of coral and basalt, were laid with great care, and hewn or squared with immense labor, especially the trava, or corner stones.” Ellis’s Polynesian Researches, vol. I. p. 339, 340.

“The most remarkable objects in Easter Island, are its monuments of stone-work and sculpture, which, though rude and imperfect, are superior to any found among the more numerous and civilized tribes of the South Sea islands. These monuments consist of a number of terraces or platforms, built with stairs, cut and fixed with great exactness and skill, forming, though destitute of cement, a strong durable pile. On these terraces are fixed colossal statues or busts.”[10] Ib. vol. III. p. 325.

Last among the Pyramids that I will notice here, though the first in date, is the celebrated tower of Babel, or, as it was afterwards called, the temple of Belus. This temple was square, measuring at its base 660 feet on each side; and consisted of eight successive layers or towers, formed of huge unburnt bricks, each layer 75 feet high, and each smaller than the next below. It was thus altogether 600 in height, and had on the summit a chapel for the golden statue of their god. According to Diodorus Siculus, the gold of this statue, and the decorations of the temple, were equal in value to ten millions of dollars; while the worth of the utensils employed, and the treasure deposited here, amounted to an equal sum.

We have thus, throughout Hindoostan, on the banks of the Euphrates, through Egypt, in the remote region of Mexico, and among the Pacific islands, structures in shape exactly alike, and often of stupendous magnitude. For an effect so general we must find a cause as extensive, and it must be one operating with powerful effect. It appears to me that we are supplied with this in the hints given by the picture writing of Mexico.

After the confusion of languages at the tower of Babel, the stricken and confounded families of the plain of Shinar, as they were gradually scattered over different, and often far distant regions, carried with them, each, not only a deep impression of the event, but also a feeling of awe connected with the edifice where had been such a wonderful display of supernatural power. And they afterwards adopted this structure, as the model for temples for the worship of the mysterious divinities that their superstitious fears gradually wrought out for them, the god of fire, the god of the sun, or the god of the palpable but invisible air.

We have here a case sufficiently extensive in its operation, and also sufficiently powerful. When looking at the huge structures in Egypt, I can hardly imagine any other cause than that of religion to be able to produce such a stupendous effect.

Only one of the Pyramids of Ghizeh is truncated, or adapted for a chapel on its summit; that of Cephrenes might have had its altar in the huge stone enclosure already noticed as directly adjoining it on the east; but it is probable that in this land of mystery, the solemnities, whatever they were, were performed chiefly in the hidden chambers of the Pyramids, to which the priests had access by subterranean passages.

The idea that they were places for worship, is perhaps strengthened by the presence of the colossal Sphinx, which lies about two hundred yards east from them, and on the side of the eminence on which they stand. Avenues of sphinxes leading to their temples were common in the ancient Egyptian cities; and in Memphis, if my memory is correct, was one of great extent, formed by colossal sphinxes, which have all disappeared. May we not suppose that this, which now stands alone, was, or was intended to be,[11] one of a great number, forming a most imposing avenue, leading upward from the plain to these stupendous temples? Its face is towards the east, and it adjoins what was evidently the ancient way of ascent to the Pyramids.

The dimensions of this Sphinx, as given by Pococke, are, height of the head and neck, twenty-seven feet; breast, thirty-three feet wide; whole length of the figure, one hundred and thirty feet. Pliny states its height to be equal to sixty-three English feet. It is now covered with sand, except the head and shoulders. Some years since the whole figure was laid bare by the persevering efforts of Mr. Caviglia; but the light sands of the desert speedily resumed their place, and have left no traces of his labors.

In conclusion, I would throw out the query, (and it is only a query,) whether the mounds in our western country, which are often of prodigious size, had not the same origin and a similar purpose, the circular form being only a slight change in consequence of the material here employed. The Pyramid of Quanhuahuac, in Mexico, was built on a hill wrought into shape of a cone; and at Ruapua, in Hawaii, (or Owhyhee,) Mr. Ellis visited a heiau, or open temple, in which “the place where the altar had been erected could be distinctly traced; it was a mound of earth, paved with smooth stones, and surrounded by a firm curb of lava.” Polyne. Researches, v. iv., 116.

But up! up! and let us get out once more into the pure and open air. The fiery sun is throwing his rays slantingly, and the Pyramids are casting long shadows across the plain; and, though over yon sandy mountains and the panting deserts beyond, the sky is still in a glow, the fury of the heat is past. Turn here to the eastward. In this clear and pure atmosphere, how distinct are distant objects. From our elevated ground we trace the courses of the numerous canals, intersecting the wide plain beneath; yonder is Cairo, a white house here and there giving a mottled appearance to the reddish mass of edifices; there goes the silvery river, in gentle and graceful curves; and here, on our left, stretches off towards it a low ridge or causeway, supposed by some to have been made for transporting stone for the Pyramids from the river, but which was more probably formed when this region was robbed to supply Cairo with building materials.[12]

How calm now and quiet is all this scene; but over this plain only a few years ago swept the wild and destructive hurricane of war. There, a few miles from where we stand, advanced the legions of France, led by him who was himself a host; and there wheeled the squadrons of the fierce Mamelukes; and here both rushed on to the bloody encounter. What spot on earth is there that man has not marked with deeds of violence, or from which the voice of his brother’s blood, shed by him, hath not cried to heaven from the ground?

Looking southward from our present position, the Pyramids of Sakhara were striking objects in the plain of Memphis, distant seven or eight miles. They are on the level plain, and are, I think, six in number, but are small compared with those of Ghizeh. One of them was remarkable, even at this distance, for the ruggedness of its outline; the successive layers of stones in this receding very much, and making it resemble considerably the Pyramids of Mexico.

Towards evening the party, once more resuming their various means of conveyance, proceeded on by the Pyramids of Sakhara; and on the plains of Memphis found, through the foresight of Mr. Gliddon, a comfortable supper and commodious tents prepared for them. This plain is covered with ruins, often of great size, but too unsatisfactory at the present time to detain a traveller long; and the company embarked at an early hour on the following day on board Mr. Gliddon’s boat.

On the right bank of the Nile, about seven miles from Cairo, is the military and naval school of Toura, an admirably conducted institution, under the superintendence of a Spanish gentleman, General Seguira. He was a high officer in the constitutional government of Spain, and having been exiled in consequence, has been protected by Mohammed Ali, who had sense enough to see and appreciate his merit. He has his family with him at Cairo, holds the rank of Bey, and receives the liberal salary of $11,000 per annum. The college edifice consists of a quadrangle, inclosing a court planted with shade trees for the recreation of the pupils. Each lad has for himself an iron bedstead, mattress, &c., a bureau, secretary, and a chair. The sleeping rooms are large enough to accommodate thirty-seven of them in each, together with a teacher; in the school-room they have also every comfort, and a hospital is also provided for the sick.

The party landing here, were received with great politeness by Gen. Seguira, who, after conducting them through the buildings, and calling on the lads to exhibit their proficiency in geometry, trigonometry, and drawing, ordered those destined to be artillerists to bring their cannon on the ground for practice. The young cadets (about twelve or fourteen years of age) wheeled their guns to the spot, and went through a variety of evolutions with great rapidity, firing at the targets with admirable success. Their improvement in the school for drawing is also wonderful, if we consider the short time which they have been able to allot to this branch. The young naval heroes did not appear to be so well trained; there are two armed brigs anchored in the river opposite the school, on board of which they are examined in loosing and furling sails, lowering yards, splicing and knotting, unmooring and mooring, and in practising the guns; but the evolutions which they attempted on this occasion, were pronounced by our tars to be sufficiently awkward. We had, however, frequent opportunity of seeing the Pasha’s ships manoeuvring at sea, and saw no occasion for finding fault. The school at Toura contains about four hundred lads, and considering the short time which it has been in operation, reflects great credit, both on the Pasha, and its polite superintendent Gen. Seguira.