Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XII.djvu/833

 PALENQUE vegetables, and fruits are produced. Blankets and other woollen goods are manufactured. Among the principal towns are Cervera, Sal- dafia, and Carrion. II. A city (anc. Pallan- tia), capital of the province, on the left bank of the river Carrion, 117 m. N. N. W. of Ma- drid; pop. about 13,000. The river is crossed by several fine bridges, and the town is pro- tected by a strong wall. It contains a cathe- dral, begun in the 14th century and finished in the 17th, several churches and convents, an episcopal palace, a former royal palace, sev- eral charitable institutions, including a found- ling hospital, an academy and numerous schools, a picture gallery, and a library. About one third of the population are employed in wool- len manufactures. The town was a place of importance in the time of the Romans. In honor of the bravery displayed by the women of Palencia, in their successful defence of the city when besieged by the Black Prince, they were permitted by John I. to wear a golden band upon their heads. It was occupied by the French in 1808, and by the English in 1812. PALENQUE, Ruins of, remarkable aboriginal remains on the Rio Chacamas in the state of Chiapas, Mexico, 8 m. S. E. of Santo Domingo de Palenque. They consist of artificial ter- races, or terraced, truncated pyramids, of cut stone, surmounted by edifices of elaborate plan, covered with figures and hieroglyphics in relief or in stucco, and showing evidences of having once been painted in brilliant colors. The principal structure, known as the palace, stands on a truncated terraced pyramid, faced with cut stone, 310 ft. long and 260 ft. broad at the base, and 40 ft. high. It is 228 ft. long, 180 ft. deep, and 25 ft. high, with a broad, pro- jecting cornice of stone. It is constructed of cut stones cemented with a mortar of lime and sand, and the entire face was once covered with stucco and painted. The piers are orna- mented with bass reliefs in stucco, with bor- ders of hieroglyphics, which show a better knowledge of the anatomy of the human figure than has been found among the other works of the aboriginal nations of America. In one of the courts are a number of stucco tablets, and one of stone which represents a figure seated cross-legged, after the manner of Buddha in some of the Hindoo sculptures and paintings, on a seat carved with the figures of jaguars, before which kneels another figure, richly dressed, in the act of presenting some object highly ornamented. There are several hiero- glyphical figures on the tablet, below which are traces of a table of stone, perhaps an altar. Another building is 75 ft. long and 25 ft. deep, with solid walls on all sides except the north, which has five doorways and six piers. The whole front is richly ornamented in stucco, and the two corner piers are covered with hieroglyphics, 96 squares to each pier. The four piers dividing the doorways are orna- mented with female figures, well executed, sur- rounded with borders of hieroglyphics. There PALERMO 819 are three inner rooms, with a corresponding number of doorways, between which are mas- sive stone tablets set in the wall, 13 ft. long and 8 ft. high, covered with hieroglyphics, 240 squares or combined figures in each. In an- other structure a tablet exhibits a group of human figures, apparently in the act of making a solemn sacrifice. There are other similar structures with tablets covered with human figures in relief and hieroglyphics, some of which seem to have been dedicated to re- ligious purposes, while most of them probably were dwellings, each inhabited by a number of families. The pavements are skilfully con- structed of large blocks of stone. The ruins were discovered by the Spaniards in 1750, ex- plored by Bernasconi in 1784, by Del Rio in 1787, and by Du Paix in 1807, whose account was published in 1834. In 1822 M. Frederic de Waldeck started for the exploration of the ruins, and during a stay of several years made many elaborate drawings and plans. In 1840 they were explored by J. L. Stephens and F. Catherwood, and their account, illustrated with drawings and plans, was soon after published. (See Stephens's " Incidents of Travel in Cen- tral America, Chiapas, and Yucatan," and Catherwood's "Views of Ancient Monuments in Central America, Chiapas, and Yucatan.") They were visited in 1846 by Arthur Morelet, who published Voyage dans VAmerique Gen- trale (Paris, 1857; translated into English, "Itza, or the Unexplored Region of Central America," New York, 1860). PALERMO. I. A N. W. province of Sicily, bordering on the Mediterranean and the prov- inces of Messina, Catania, Caltanisetta, Gir- genti, and Trapani; area, 1,964 sq. m. ; pop. in 1872, 617,678. It is the largest and most populous of the Sicilian provinces. The coast is irregular and the surface is hilly, but there are many very fertile valleys. The country has a general slope N. toward the Mediter- ranean. Its streams are numerous but small. It produces grain, oil, fruits, almonds, manna, sumach, liquorice, and silk. II. A city (anc. Panormus), capital of the province and of the island of Sicily, in lat. 38 6' N., Ion. 13 20' E., 120 m. W. by S. of Messina; pop. in 1872, 219,398. It is on the K side of the island, on a deep bay between Capes Gallo and Zaffara- na, and in a rich plain which is surrounded on the land side by two distinct mountain ridges. This enclosure between the hills and the sea has been called from its form and beauty the Conca d'Oro, or golden shell. The situation is extremely picturesque, and the numerous spires, domes, and towers present a striking appearance. The climate is delightful, espe- cially in winter, when many invalids and other strangers reside here. The harbor, formed by a mole about 1,300 ft. long, is spacious. The city proper is nearly rectangular, and forms an oblong parallelogram, about 4 m. in circum- ference. It is surrounded by decayed walls, entered by four main and many minor gates,