LORS aah at Department of Anthropology | University of Illinois Urbana, Illinois SMITHSCNIAN INSTITUTION BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY, J. W. POWELL, DIRECTOR THE USE OF GOLD AND OTHER METALS AMONG THE ANCIENT INTABITANTS OF CHIRIQUT, ISTHMUS OF DARIEN BY Wii AM th HOLMES WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1887 SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY, J. W. POWELL, DIRECTOR THE USE OF GOLD AND OTHER METALS AMONG THE ANCIENT INHABEPANTS OF CHERIQUT, ISTHMUS OF DARIEN BY Wither AM . HOUMES WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1887 Department of Anthropology University, of Illinois Urbana, Illinois GONE NETS: IO MPUUN eee tere loa seein atte Scion eevee fee icleicle oie wick in stares sisteemel sae iat aesrslelare/atalate (CROWES WWSTRO Ss Aa 5 SARs cones Bea co Passe heee CAE Heo HSA BAOBiqab moo sae MINI S espa =F ee er cim~ pete) aha tol > clatanee Yepeerc eteieie ccc ache a'wiegs ce melee snste eteeceawe ee INNS (RRO C5580 Bens 3ee oe SQ OO eae ege eaecse macnecbecs Scbo Ge soseessacseee serail aor eres seruccie tote ieares seats a/ciomee Ste Rises shoes aor eee peat MNO KCLA VAI SH C2) wert ters ne eekeins cit ie a a Sere ter ee state ore iais elon Soe eyaniclenn ners “ascii Miscellan COUSH sever = ep< cee hares dicts c/tricinral =e Slataicinclemslec asiaclecinmenicioe saiets ste Résumé . i ee ee ee ee ey PA Sa ee LO NS: HiGe Ua Sechioniomansordinaryeeravie) = -esqij-tieta2 lacie 6 -\a/cicintelete/al='« Nelee/s eheeieecs 2. Human houre, tormed.of copper-cold alloy = 2 -eisa. scien ose 2-10 3. Grotesque human figure, in gold, from Bollaert '.....-....---.. ---. 4, Kudelysshaped andstinished human figure. .---2-- 2c. see ce s+ >= 5. Grotesque human figure, in nearly pure copper, partially coated with Hel Lowa wold eee eee to ete oa aete re einets eeterets felcrsane'ay a ejseheictcie ie estate 6; Grotesque human figure; in nearly pure gold. -- 2. 2-2 3-2- s25-<- s-<2 <6 (.hudelygexecuted imagervOtiasDind ejaceccissae f2 se) c/o ete cet ai=s Omimaceroteagbire. -tromyb Ollaertan mess eeactaeeie ce iserctoeaciecee seen 9. Puma shaped figure. ..._..:..--- eater yc oer Sete eia es ce ie nas tiene LOM Hicureom apumra mune ase Mm ecallerectecten tele oete1 sale elec cslve eee ee eae) are or 11. Quadruped with grotesque face, in base metal -........---...-.---- iio ure of a. tishs byte Mn Otis kere see a ete eatin seis se eierseeis 13. Large figure of a frog, in base meta] plated with gold ...........-.- 14, Small figure of a frog, in base metal plated with gold ..........---- 15 -ekioore otanalligaton by Hes Vit Olise mee]. s A a — a a fd ad 7 - 7 7 9 - 7 : : as aa ee > Ss : i. _ i oe 7 _ 4 7 i , a -_ n : : - 7 oa 2 ni oe = : a 7 = tao a) 1% i RS : 7 ye i © oe yu! 7 ; . 7 ae, ‘ an Ds L 7 5 cr in ‘ - aa ’ ‘i ~~ -_ “ a a7) a : - > - > i - : 7 i 7 _ ae rive. 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Until comparatively recent times the province of Chiriqui has re- mained almost unknown to the world at large. The Isthmus was trav- ersed a number of times by the conquerors, who published accounts of their discoveries, but it was reserved for the period of railroad and canal explorations to give trustworthy accounts of its character and inhabitants. The situation of Chiriqui is unique. Forming, politically, a part of South America, it belongs in reality to the North American continent. It oceupies a part of the great southern flexure of the Isthmus at a point where the shore lines begin finally to turn toward the north. Costa Rica lies to the west and the province of Veragua bounds it upon the east. The antiquarian literature of the province is extremely limited, being confined to brief sketches, based for the most part upon the testimony of transient visitors, gold hunters, and Government explorers, who took but little note of the unpretentious relics of past ages. As there are few striking monuments, the attention of archeologists was not called to the primeval history of man in this region, and until recently the Isthmus was supposed to have remained practically unoccupied by that group of cultured nations whose works in Peru and Mexico excite the wonder of the world. But, little by little, it has come out that at some period of the past the province was thickly populated and by races possessed of no mean culture. One of the most important additions to our knowledge of the province and its archeologic treasures is furnished in the manuscript notes of Mr. J. A. MceNiel, who made the greater part of the collection now deposited in the National Museum. ‘This ex- plorer has personally supervised the examination of many thousands of graves and has forwarded the bulk of his collections to the United States. His explorations have occupied a number of years, during which time he has undergone much privation and has displayed much enthusiasm in pursuing the rather thorny pathway of scientific research. At the present time this district is inhabited chiefly by Indians and natives of mixed blood, who carry on grazing and agriculture to a limited extent, but subsist largely upon the natural products of the country. These people are generally thought to have no knowledge or 5 6 USE OF GOLD AND OTHER METALS trustworthy tradition of the ancient inhabitants, and are said to care noching for the curious cemeteries among which they dwell, excepting as a source of revenue. Mr. A. L. Pinart states, however, that certain tribes on both sides of the continental divide have traditions pointing toward the ancient grave builders as their ancestors. There is probably no valid reason for assigning the remains of this region to a very high antiquity. The highest stage of culture here may have been either earlier or later than the period of highest civilization in Mexico and South America or contemporaneous with it. As to the affinities of the ancient middle Isthmian tribes with the peoples north and south of them we can learn nothing positive from the evidences of their art. So far as the art of pottery has come within my observation, it appears to indicate a somewhat closer relationship with the ancient Costa Rican peoples than with those of continental South America; yet in their burial customs, and especially in their use of gold, they were like the ancient peoples of Middle and Southern New Grenada. The ancient cemeteries, or huacas, as they are called throughout Spanish America, are scattered over the greater part of the Pacific slope of Chiriqui. It is said by some that they are rarely found in the immediate vicinity of the sea, but they occur elsewhere, in the river valleys, on the hills, the plateaus, the mountains, and in the deepest forests. They are very numerous, but generally of small extent. The largest described is said to cover an area of about twelve acres. They were probably located in the immediate vicinity of villages and towns, traces of which, however, are not described by explorers. There can be no doubt that diligent search will bring to light the sites of dwellings apd towns. One of the most circumstantial accounts of these burial places is given by Mr. Merritt, who was also the first to make them known to science. Mr. Merritt was director of a gold mine in Veragua, and in the summer of 1859 spent several weeks in exploring the graves of Chiriqui; he therefore speaks from personal knowledge. In the au- tumn of 1858 two native farmers of the parish of Bugaba, or Bugava, discovered a golden image that had been exposed by the uprooting of a plant. They proceeded secretly to explore the graves, the existence of which had been known for years. In the following spring their operations became known to the people, and within a month more than a thousand persons were engaged in working these extraordinary gold mines. The fortunate discoverers succeeded in collecting about a hun- dred and thirty pounds weight of gold figures, most of which were more or less alloyed with copper. It is estimated that fifty thousand dollars worth in all were collected from this cemetery, which embraced an area of twelve acres. Although there are rarely surface indications to mark the position of the graves, long experience has rendered it comparatively easy to dis. cover them. The grave hunter carries a light iron rod, which he runs ‘J, King Merritt, in a paper read before the American Ethnological Society, 1860. BY ANCIENT INHABITANTS OF CHIRIQUI. a into the ground, and thus, if any hard substance is present, discovers the existence of a burial. It is mentioned by one or two writers that the graves are in many cases marked by stones, either loose or set in the ground in rectangular and circular arrangements. The graves do not often seem to have had a uniform position in relation to one another or to the points of the compass. In some eases they are clustered about a central tomb, and then assume a somewhat radiate arrangement; again, according to Mr. MeNiel, they were placed end to end, occupy- ing long trenches. He describes the pits as being oval and quadran- gular and as having a depth ranging from a few feet to eighteen feet. Teer Me - : : Vl. Fria. 1. Section of an ordinary grave, showing the surface pack of river stones and the positions of the slabs and objects of art. The paving or pack consists of earth and water-worn stones; the latter are pitched in without order and form but a small percentage of the filling. He has never seen such stones used for facing up the walls of the pit or in the construction of pillars. The flat stones which cover the cyst are often ten or fifteen feet below the surface, and are in some eases very heavy, weighing three hundred pounds or more. A single stone is in some cases large enough to cover the entire space, but more frequently two or more flat stones are laid side by side across the cavity. These are supported by river stones a foot or more in length, set around the margin of the cyst. He is of the opinion that both slabs and bowl- ders were in many cases carried long distances. None of the pits ex- amined were of the extraordinary forms described in detail by A. de Zeltner and others. The implements, pieces of pottery, and ornaments were probably buried with the dead, pretty much as are similar objects in all parts of America. The almost total disappearance of the human remains makes a determination of exact relative disposition impossible, The universal testimony however, is that all were not placed with the body, but that some were added as the graves were filled, being placed in crevices of the walls or pillars or thrown in upon the accumulating earth or pebbles of the surface pavement. The relics obtained from the tombs are confined almost exclusively to the three least perishable materials: stone, clay, and metal. The 8 USE OF GOLD AND OTHER METALS collections show a great preponderance of objects of clay, of which the National Museum now owns about four thousand pieces. Objects of stone are plentiful, comprising perhaps a tenth of the whole number of relics. Objects of metal are comparatively rare; they are described in detail in the following pages. USE OF GOLD AND COPPER. The Chiriquians, like many of their neighbors in the tropieal portions of the American continent, were skilled in the working of metals. Gold, silver, copper, and tin —the latter in alloys with copper forming bronze— are found in the graves. Gold is the most important and is associated with all the others in alloys or as a surface coating. The inhabitants of the Isthmus at the time of the discovery were rich in objects, chiefly ornaments, of this metal, and expeditions sent out under Balboa, Pizarro, and others plundered the natives without mercy. When the Indian village of Darien was captured by Balboa (1510) he obtained ‘plates of gold, such as they hang on their breasts and other parts, and other things, all of them amounting to ten thousand pesos of fine gold.”! From an expedition to Nicaragua, the same adventurers brought back to Panama the value of ‘4112,524 pieces of eight in low gold and 145 in pearls.” Early Spanish-American history abounds in stories of this ciass. Among others we read that Columbus found the natives along the At- lantie coast of Chiriqui and Veragua so rich in objects of gold that he named the district Castillo del Oro. Itis said that the illusory stories of an Hl Dorado somewhere within the continent of South America arose from the lavish use of gold ornaments by the natives whom the Span- iards encountered, and Costa Rica gets its name from the same circum- stanee. It is also recorded that the natives of various parts of Central and South America, at the date of the conquest, were in the habit of opening ancient graves for the purpose of securing mortuary trinkets. The whites have followed their example with the greatest eagerness. As far back as 1642 the Spaniards passed a law claiming all the gold found in the burial places of Spanish America,’ the whole matter being treated merely as a means of revenue. The objects of gold for which the tombs of Chiriqui are justly famous are generally believed to have been simple personal ornaments, the jewelry of the primeval inhabitants, although it is highly probable that many of the figures had, at least as originally employed, an emblematic meaning. They were, doubtless, at all times regarded as possessed of potent charms, and thus capable of protecting and forwarding the interests of the own- ers. They have been found in great numbers within the last twenty- five years, but for the most part, even at this late date, have been es- 1 Herrera, Hist. America, Vol. VI, p. 369. 2Herrera, Hist. America, Vol. III, p. 287. °>Mr. Hawes’s letter answering questions about Chiriqui, read by Mr. Davis before the Am, Eth. Soc., April 17, 1860. BY ANCIENT INHABITANTS OF CHIRIQUI. 9 teemed for their money value only. Very many specimens found their way to this country, where they were either sold for curiosities, or, after long waiting for a purchaser, even in the very shadow of our muse- ums, were consigned to the furnace. Many stories bearing upon this point have been told me. A Washington jeweler is represented as having exhibited (about the year 1860) in his window on Pennsyl- vania avenue a remarkable series of these trinkets, most of which were afterwards sent to New York to be melted. About the same period a gentleman on entering a shop in San Francisco was accosted by a stranger who had his pockets well filled with these curious relics and wished to dispose of them for cash. A number of my acquaint- ances have neat but grotesque examples of these little images of gold attached to their watch guards, thus approving the tastes of our prehis- toric countrymen and at the same time demonstrating the identity of ideas of personal embellishment in all times and with all peoples. The ornaments are found only in a small percentage of the graves, those probably of persons sufficiently opulent to possess them in life; the great majority of graves contain none whatever. They are often found at the bottom of the pits, and probably in nearly the position occupied by them while still attached to the persons of the dead. It is said that occasionally they are found in the niches at the sides of the graves, as if placed during the filling of the pit. Strangely enough, the gold is very generally alloyed with copper, the composite metal ranging from pure gold to pure copper. A small per- centage of silver is also present in some of the specimens examined, but this is probably a natural alloy. In a few cases very simple figures appear to have been shaped from nuggets or masses of the native metals; this, however, is not susceptible of proof. The work is very skillfully done, so that we find it difficult to ascertain the precise methods of manipulation. The general effect in the more pretentious pieces resem- bles that of our filigree work, in which the parts are produced by ham- mering and united by soldering; yet there are many evidences of cast- ing, and these must be considered with care. As a rule simple figures and some portions of composite figures present very decided indications of having been cast in molds; yet no traces of these molds have come to light and there are none of those characteristic markings which result from the use of composite or “piece” molds. Wire was extensively used in the formation of details of anatomy and embellishment, and its presence does not at first seem compatible with ordinary castings. This wire, or pseudo-wire it may be, is generally about one-twenty-fifth of an inch in diameter. The manner in which the numerous parts or sections of complex fig- ures are joined together is both interesting and perplexing. Evidences of the use of solder have been looked for in vain, and if such a medium was ever used it was identical in kind with the body of the object or so small in quantity as to escape detection. At the junction of the parts 10 USE OF GOLD AND OTHER METALS there are often decided indications of hammering, or at least of the strong pressure of an implement; but in pursuing the matter further we find a singular perfection in the joining, which amounts to a coales- cence of the metals of the two parts concerned. There is no weakness or tendency to part along the contact surfaces, neither is there anything like the parting of parallel wires in coils or where a series of wires 1s joined side by side and carried through various convolutions. In a number of cases Ll made sections of coils and parts composed of a num. ber of wires, in the hope of discovering evidences of the individuality of the strands, but the metal in the section is always homogeneous, breaking with a rough granular fracture and not more readily along apparent lines of junction than across them; and further, in studying in detail the surface of parts unpolished or protected from wear by handling, we find everywhere the granular and pitted unevenness characteristic of cast surfaces. This is true of the wire forms as well as of the massive parts, and in addition to this, such defects occur in the wires as would hardly be possible if they were of wrought gold. All points considered, I am inclined to believe that the objects were cast, and cast in their entirety. It is plain, however, that the original model was made up of separately constructed parts of wire or wire like strands and of eccentric and often rather massive parts, and that all were set together by the assistance of pressure, the indications being that the material used was sufficiently plastic to be worked after the manner of clay, dough, or wax. In one case, for example, the body of a serpent, consisting of two wires neatly twisted together, is held in the hand of a grotesque figure. The hand consists of four fingers made by doubling together two short pieces of wire. The coil has been laid across the hand and pressed down into it until half buried, and the ends of the fingers are drawn up around if without any indication of hammer strokes. Indeed, the effect is just such as would have been produced if the artist had worked in wax. Again, in the modeling of the eyes we have a good illustration. The eye is a minute ball cleft across the eutire diameter by a sharp implement, thus giving the effect of the parted lids. Now, if the material had been gold 0: copper, as in the specimens, the ball would have been separated into two parts or hemi- spheres, which would not exhibit any great distortion, but as we see them here the parts are flattened and much drawn out by the pressure of the cutting edge, just as if the material had been decidedly plastic. It seems to me that the processes of manufacture must have been analogous to those employed by the more primitive metal workers of our own day. In Oriental countries delicate objects of bronze and other metals are made as follows: A model is constructed in some such material as wax or resin, and over it are placed coatings of clay or other substance capable of standing great heat. These coatings, when sufficiently thickened and properly dried, form the mold from which the original model is extracted by means of heat. The fused metal is BY ANCIENT INHABITANTS OF CHIRIQUI. 11 afterwards poured in. As a matter of course, both the mold and the model are destroyed in each case, and exact duplications are not to be expected. Mr. George I. Kunz, of New York, with whom I have dis- cussed this matter, states that he has seen live objects, such as insects, used as models in this way. Being coated with washes of clay or like substance until well protected and then heavily covered, they were placed in the furnace. The animal matter was thus reduced to ashes and extracted through small openings made for the purpose. As bear- ing upon this subject it should be mentioned that occasionally small figures in a fine reddish resin are obtained from the graves of Chiriqui. They are identical in style of modeling with the objects of gold and copper obtained from the same source. In discussing possible processes, Mr. William Hallock, of the division of chemistry and physics of the United States Geological Survey, sug- gested that, if the various sections of a metal ornament were imbedded in the surface of a mass of fire clay in their proper relations and con- tacts, they could then be completely inclosed in the mass, and subjected to heat until the metal melted and ran together; after cooling, the complete figure could be removed by breaking up the clay matrix. I imagine that in such work much difficulty would be experienced iu se- curing proper contact and adjustment of parts of complex figures. It will likewise be observed that evidences of plasticity in the modeling material would not exist. I must not pass a suggestion of Nadaillac! which offers a possible solution of the problem of manipulation. Re- ferring to a statement of the early Spanish explorers that smelting was unknown to the inhabitants of Peru, he states that it would be possible for a people in a low state of culture to discover that an amalgam of gold with mercury is quite plastic, and that after a figure is modeled in this composite metal the mercury may be dissipated by heat, leaving the form in gold, which then needs only to be polished. There is, how- ever, no evidence whatever that these people had any knowledge of mercury. There is no indication of carving or engraving in the Chiriquian work. In finishing, some of the extremities seem to have been shaped by hammering. This is a mere flattening out of the feet or parts of the accessories, which required no particular skill and could have been accomplished with comparatively rude stone hammers. It is a remark- able fact that many, if not most, of the objects appear to be either plated or washed with pure gold, the body or foundation being of base gold or of nearly pure copper. This fact, coupled with that of the associa- tion of objects of bronze with the relies, leads us to inquire carefully into the possibilities of Huropean influence or agency. I observe that recent writers do not seem to have questioned the genuineness of the objects described by them but that at the same time no mention is made ot the plating or washing. This latter circumstance leads to the infer- 'Nadaillac, Prehistoric America, p. 450. ne 4 USE OF GOLD AND OTHER METALS ence that pieces now in my possession exhibiting this phenomenon may have been tampered with by the whites. In this connection attention should be called to the fact that history is not silent on the matter of plating. The Indians of New Grenada are not only said to have been marvelously skillful in the manipulation of metals, but, according to Bollaert, Acosta declares that these peoples had much gilé copper, ‘and the copper was gilt by the use of the juice of a plant rubbed over it, then put into the fire, when it took the gold color”! Just what this means we cannot readily determine, but we safely conclude that, whatever the process hinted at in these words, a thin surface deposit of pure gold, or the close semblance of it, was actually ob- tained. It is not impossible that an acid may have been applied which tended to destroy the copper of the alloy, leaving a deposit of gold upon the surface, which could afterwards be burnished down. It has been suggested to me that possibly the film of gold may in cases be the result of simple decay on the part of the copper of the alloy, the gold remaining as a shell upon the surface of the still undecayed portion of the composite metal; but the surface in such a case would not be burnished, whereas the show surfaces of the specimens recovered are in all cases neatly polished. If we should conclude that the ancient Americans were probably able to secure in some such manner a thin film of gold it still remains to in- quire whether there may not have been some purely mechanical means of plating. In some of the Chiriquian specimens a foundation of very base metal appears to have been plated with heavy sheet gold, which as the copper decays comes off in flakes. Occasional pieces have a blistered look as a consequence. Were these people able with their rude appliances to beat gold out into very thin leaves, and had they discovered processes by which these could be applied to the surface of objects of metal ? The flakes in some cases indictite a very great degree of thinness. Specimens of sheet-gold ornaments found in the tombs are thicker, but are sufficiently thin to indicate, if actually made by these people, that almost any degree of thinness could be attained. It would probably not be difficult to apply thin sheet gold to the comparatively smooth surfaces of these ornaments and to fix it by burnishing. Mr. Kunz suggests still another mention by means of which plating could have been accomplished. If a figure in wax were coated with sheet gold and then ineased in a clay matrix, the wax could be melted out, leaving the shell. of gold within; the cavity could then be filled with alloy, the clay could be removed, and the gold, which would adhere to the metal, could then be properly burnished down. It will be seen from this hasty review that, although we may conclude that casting and plating were certainly practiced by these peoples, we must remain in ignorance of the precise methods employed. 1 Bollaert, Ethnological and other Researches in New Granada, &e. BY ANCIENT INHABITANTS OF CHIRIQUI. £3 Referring to the question of the authenticity of the specimens them- selves, I may note that observations bearing upon the actual discovery of particular specimens in the tombs are unfortunately lacking. Mr. MeNiel acknowledges that with all his experience in the work of exca- vation no single piece has been taken from the ground with his own hands, and he cannot say that he ever witnessed the exhumation by others, although he has been present when they were brought up from the pits. Generally the workmen secrete them and afterwards offer them for sale. He has, however, no shadow of a doubt that all the pieces procured by him came from the graves as reported by his col- lectors. The question of the authenticity of the gilding will not be satisfac- torily or finally settled until some responsible collector shall have taken the gilded objects, and with his own hands, from their undisturbed places in the tombs. There are many proofs, however, of the authenticity of the objects themselves. It is asserted by a number of early writers that the Amer- ican natives were, on the arrival of the Spaniards, highly accomplished in metallurgy; that they worked with blow-pipes and cast in molds; that the objects produced exhibited a high order of skill; and that the native talent was directed with unusual force and uniformity toward the imitation of lifeforms. It is said that the conquerors were “struck with wonder” at their skill in this last respect. And a strong argu- ment in favor of the genuineness of these objects is found in the fact that it is not at all probable that rich alloys of gold would have been used by Europeans for the base or foundation when copper or bronze, or even lead, would have served as well. We also observe that there is absolutely no trace of peculiarly European material or methods of manipulation, a fact hardly possible if the extensive reproductions were made by the whites. Neither are there traces of European ideas em- bodied in the shape and in the decoration of the objects, a condition that argues strongly in favor of native origin. An equally convincing argument is found in the fact that all the alloys subject to corrosion exhibit marked evidences of decay, as if for a long period subject to the destructive agents of the soil. In many cases the copper-alloy base crumbles into black powder, leaving only the flakes of the plating. Lastly and most important, the strange creatures represented are in many cases identical with those embodied in clay and in stone, and for these latter works no one will for a moment claim a foreign derivation. At the end of this paper I present two cuts of objects modeled in clay, intended to illustrate this point. Considering all these arguments, J arrive at the conclusion that the ornaments are, in the main, genuine antiquities, and that, if any fraud at all has been practiced, it is to be laid at the door of modern gold- smiths and speculators, who, according to Mr. MeNiel, are known in a few cases to have ‘‘doctored” alloyed objects with washes of gold, with the view of selling them as pure gold. 1 USE OF GOLD AND OTHER METALS I present the following specimens with a reasonable degree of con- fidence that all, or nearly all, are purely American products, and I sincerely hope that at no distant day competent archieologists may have the opportunity of making personal observations of similar relies in place. Lhe objects consist to a great extent of representations of life forms, in many cases more fanciful than real and often extremely grotesque. They include the human figure and a great variety of birds and beasts indigenous to the country, in styles resembling work of the same region in clay and stone. My illustrations show the actual size of the objects. The human figure —Statuettes of men and women and of a variety of. anthropomorphic figures of all degrees of elaboration abound. Fig. 2 MUM, Mit) "Maines Fic. 2. Human figure, formed of copper-gold alloy. illustrates a plain, rude specimen belonging to the collection of J. B. Stearns. It was obtained by Mr. MecNiel from near the south base of Mount Chiriqui. The body is solid and the surface is rough and pitted, as if from decay. In many respects it resembles the stone sculptures of the Isthmus. The metal is nearly pure copper.