Page:A Study of the Manuscript Troano.djvu/276

208 possibly indicating stars as emblematic of the heavens; and, fourth, the bird at the top. In this (the Palanque Tablet) we see at the base the head of some fabulous reptile, notwithstanding the opinion quoted in Dr. Rau's paper to the contrary. The appendages at the right and left just above the head are probably intended for fore limbs. By looking carefully at the upright we observe little knots on the sides opposite each other, indicating the nodes as marked on the figures of trees in the Manuscript.

Referring to the middle plate between pages 156 and 157, Stephens's Central America, Vol. I, we observe on the back of the statue an abridged type of the Palenque cross. Here we see the same broad nose, the rows of teeth, and the spiral lines representing eyes, but we would never imagine it represented a head but for what we see on the Palanque Tablet.

The arms issue from the upper portion of the head; the knobs are represented by balls along the arms without stems; and the bird is changed into a human figure with wings and a little bird head.