Page:Mexico as it was and as it is.djvu/134

 At the western end of this room are several models of Mines, chiefly made of the different stones found in the mineral regions of Mexico. The figures are of silver; and the various parts of the mine, the mode of obtaining the ore, of freeing them from water, of sinking shafts, the dresses, appearance and labors of the workmen, are most faithfully portrayed.

In one of the corners, behind a quantity of rubbish, old desks and benches, is the Armor of Cortéz—a plain unornamented suit of steel, from the size of which, I judge that the Conqueror was not a man of large frame or great bodily strength. Among the portraits of the Viceroys contained in this apartment, there is one of Cortéz; and in it he is depicted in a different manner from that in which we have been accustomed to know him since our boyhood, when we first made his acquaintance in school histories, drawn as a savage-looking hero with slouched hat and feather and fur-caped coat. There is no doubt, I am told, of the genuineness of the picture in this Museum; and its history is traced with certainty to the period of the third Viceroy, when the gallery of portraits was commenced. It represents him in armor, highly polished, and inlaid with. gold. One hand rests upon his plumed helmet and the other on a truncheon. The figure is slender and graceful. I should say, from the expression of the head alone, that the portrait was accurate. His eyes are raised to heaven—his gray hair curls around a rather narrow and not very lofty brow, and the lower part of his face is covered with a grizzly beard and mustache, through which appears a mouth marked with firmness and dignity. There is a look of the world, and of heaven; of veneration and authority. It is, in fact, a characteristic picture of the bigoted soldier, who slew thousands in the acquisition of gold, empire, and a new altar for the Holy Cross. Never was the biography of a hero and enthusiast, more fully written in history, than has been done by the unknown painter of this portrait on the canvas which embellished the walls of the Colonial Palace of Mexico.

In the same room with this picture, hangs the banner under which he conquered. It is in a large gold frame, covered with glass; and, as well as I could distinguish in the bad light in which it is placed, represents the Virgin Mary, painted on crimson silk, surrounded with stars and an inscription.

Just below this is an old Indian painting, made shortly after the conquest, of which the following engraving is a facsimile. I copied it very carefully, as an authentic record of some of the cruelties practiced by the Spaniards in subduing the chiefs of the country, and striking terror to the minds of the artless Indians.