PREHISTORIC LIBRARY

Evening Star, Issue 18714, 16 August 1924, Page 19

PREHISTORIC LIBRARY

TABLETS FOUND IN MEXICO. SEVEN THOUSAND YEANS OLE. The discovery of ft buriod collection of engraved stone tablets near the city of Mexico Is described by William L. Stidger in the Dearborn” ‘ Independent ’ (Dearborn, Mich.). The antiquarians who have discovered and unearthed this find say that it is a prehistoric library, the product of a Mongoloid civilisation earlier than that of the Aztecs, or even that of their predecessors, the Toltecs. The situation of the buried tablets .with reference to certain lava streams, the time of whose emission can be estimated, shows their age, we ore told, to be at least 7,000 years—possibly much older. Mr Stiager assures us that the days of the Devolution in Mexico never produced anything more exciting than those of July last, when Professor William Niven and Dr J. H. Comyn uncovered this library, from 10ft to 25£t under the earth, just beneath a thick layer of volcanic ashes. We read : - “ How old would you say the library is Professor Niven was asked, as the pieces tumbled out from perfect shelves where they had evidently been placed many thousands of years ago. “‘ At least 7,000 years old, aqd possibly 10,000. Wo know that the volcanic deluge came about 5,000 years ago, for we can measure that by the various strata that arc above the volcanic debris. This entire valley was a great volcanic cone with fifty active volcanic mountains, and at least three of these giants consistently threw out streams of lava and ash and fire which inundated this valley like a great flood. It was at that inundation that tins prehistoric library .was covered and the attendants buried.’

“To the average American mind this seems hard to believe. The prehistoricpyramid near Mexico City is so old that it has no ornaments on it at all. It is just a great, crude pyramid of rough masonry without a sign of cement to hold together tho stones with which it is built. They are laid, stone upon stone, but they have stood through ton centuries or more. When I visited this pyramid they -showed me a stream of lava which is 20ft deep. You can see its pathway as distinctly as vou can see tho Mississippi River, where it flowed forth from the now dead volcanic cono, winding its way down the valley toward the present site of Mexico City, covering everything in its path 20ft deep, until it came to this ancient pyramid, which it surrounded as it would a small mountain. Professor Cummings has dug clown through this layer of volcanic lava to the bottom of the pyramid, which is 10ft below the lava stream. As to the age of this pyramid, scientists know that the volcanic upheavals must have come at least 7,000 years ago, and the pyramid was erected centuries before that. Human skeletons aro found both beneath and imbedded in this lava stream. “ So it is with tho, library that has just been uncovered by the archaeologists. They know that it is at a depth beneath the lava ash and debris, although, no stream of lava came this way. “ The books are tablets, just as the books of the libraries of ancient peoples have always been. These tablets afe of all sizes. They have their writings on five sides of a stone. Some of the books are crude, and some of them show a high degree of stone-book-making skill. _ They range over a long period of just as the books in our modem libraries do. “ < How do vou tell for a certainty the age and extent of this library ? ’ Professor Niven was asked as we tho men digging out piece after piece with ancient hieroglyphics telling tho story of the past. ... “ ‘ Because we know certain letters and signs and figures. They are stable and certain. We have established them scientifically.’ “ ‘ What are some of these signs that you know for a certainty ? ’ “‘There are more than 2Co'symbols that we can recognise in this library. We recognise the symbol of the moon, the symbol of fire, the earth mother, water, lightning, the sun’s rays, the symbol of the volcano god, the symbols of morning and evening, the symbols of various stars and heavenly bodies, of which tho people of that period knew much. Many of tho books of the Mongoloid library are books' on the stars. They knew the heavens.’ “ ‘ 'When did this Mongolian civilisation which left behind it this tremendous library exist?’ these men were asked. “ ‘ Many centuries before even thp Toltec or the Aztec races.’ “ In this excavated library of the Mongoloid civilisation that preceded both the Toltec or Aztec civilisation, a conventional flower is the sign which represented fire; a half circle with a _ concentric circle represented either the rising or the setting sun; a cross represented the four movements of the sun. Mythical animals appear in this library, and they are always connected with the fire and sun signs. The sun. ia alwavs shown in yellow or orange. The fire Is always shown in deep red. The water symbol is always in green or blue. The morning symbol is always white. . ...

“ Each day new books from this library are being unearthed, and they have these symbols and stories still intact; perfect specimens, with the colors still as brilliant as when they were painted on and baited in day ten ’ thousand years ago. This set of ancient books tells us that tho fire god is the oldest god of the Mongolian civilisation. He is always represented as a wrinkled old man. He always wears a pointed hat as a symbol of productivity. The origin of tho fire god was the volcanic-shaped cone with fire pouring out, but it evolved into the coneshaped hat of another aymholism. “ Smoke is always represented by up-ward-curling rays, “ Tho mountain god Is said by the Aztecs to have an incense pot burning inside of tho volcanoes. There are historic evidences of three great volcanoes which ten centuries ago were in constant erup tion. These are represented by throe circles in all symbolism 0 0 o sun god™ volcano god fire god “ This symbolism came down from the Mongolian civilisation up to tho Aztec times.”

One conventional type of deep dish is found constantly in these ruins ; It is a great incense dish. Symbolically it represents tho Mexico Valley. On the edge aro three volcano gods, each with a hole through his body coming out of the top of his bend. In tins bote the ancient peoples burned their incense. Those three volcano gods were the three great volcanic mountains that at that time were in constant eruption. To quote further : “ This library shows that the various pyramids that were erected in the valley also represented worship of the volcano gods. They are shaped like a volcano, and the chief method of worship was to build fires on tho tops of these pyramids and keep them burning for fifty-two years, which was the century of these ancient peoples. It was on top of these pyramids that human sacrifices were made to the volcano gods long before the Aztecs came along with their human sacrifices. “ In addition to the books, architectural drawings have been dug up by hundreds. “They are draxvn by the_ architect in colors, and show each dimension and floor of the various pyramids and temples;”