Show I Monte onte Alban Ancient Fortress City Yields Lost Race Solution r V Je Jewel el Covered Skeletons Ar Are 1 Found in Vaults of Prehistoric Pre Pre- historic Tombs Tombs' B By ALFONSO CASO Discoverer of or Monte lonte Alban torie tone Tomb Archeologist of or National Na Museum of or Mexico Copyright 1932 by Science Service Editors Editor's note In this exclusive dispatch Sr Caso gives the first authentic details of his discovery discover that promise to solve the mystery of an unknown prehistoric American Amen Ameri can race that buried burled Its warriors surrounded b by gold old precious stones and carved human bones rivaling in splendor the tombs of or Egypt t OAXACA CITY Mexico Jan 2 29 For For days we had been excavating at at Monte Alban the ancient fortress city now flOw a mountain of ruins near this city in southern Mexico At last las lastour our picks and shovels encountered the entrance to the ancient Indian In In- dian Iian tomb that was as to prove both in cresting and rich in treasure and archeological evidences We entered the tomb through an antechamber approached by a pair of af f steps As we made our way within we found round that there were two rooms separated b by a portal The first o of these rooms has a flat ceiling n but the second is a gabled vault with ceiling like an inverted V. V There we saw dead warriors six o of them seated around the walls jewel jewe covered and ornamented with gold golc old and precious ornaments The long years ears had dealt severely with them We found that their skeletons had practically disintegrated during the many decades since the they had been placed there PRECIOUS OBJECTS Near them were many extraordinary nary objects objects gold silver copper jade turquoise shell pearl and coral These precious articles immediately were removed under guard to the vaults of the Bank of Mexico for safe safe- keeping Human bones beautifully carved were found round in the tomb and promise to be of the greatest scientific interest inter Inter- est esl ThC They are are carved with a technique not surpassed by fine Chinese work on ivory The various engravings upon these portions of human skeletons skeletons tons picture happenings of history They also have worked upon them details from the ritual calendars used b by these ancient Indians Thus the carved bones are veritable leaves of books books of human bone used to record information important to Lo this ancient race A sacred mask that represents the Indian god is one of the ornaments of gold was the theod god od of the flayed laed in whose honor a woman was beheaded and the skin a of her body worn as a dress b by a 3 ritual dancer FL FiND D TREASURES A diadem of gold breast ornaments of oC gold bracelets and necklaces allor all of or gold and beautifully worked were among the treasure of the tomb An unusual bowl of rock crystal and several beautiful alabaster vessels yes ves sels were in the mass of treasure Many tan pearls also were found some of unusual size I A human skull richly incrusted with turquoise and shell was probably probably proba proba- bly Wy some ancient warriors warrior's trophy When it was found round it had a flint knife resting in the hollow of the thc nose Those who explored this this' ancient tomb with me rae were ere Martin Bazan second leader of the expedition Juan Jua L and m my wit wife wite c Warriors Believed To Be Invaders OAXACA CITY Mexico Jan 2 27 r SS The SS-The The warriors buried bune L with their fabulous gold and gemin gem gems in a n recently discovered tomb of th the ancient Indian city of Monte Alban may have been intruders This u wh what t archeologists now suggest fo for forthe the dead warriors were probably r while the city where the P considered were W was always tec tee l and md now live together to to- to- to gether in the southern Mexican state stat of sf Oaxaca where the tomb was found round The They speak related languages an anc and I together with about half a dozen other other other oth oth- er Indian groups form what scientists scientists call the fam lam il ih and differ in customs customs customs cus cus- toms and language from their southern south south- em ern Mayan neighbors who were one once the he most remarkable nation in America Amer Amer- lea ica ca They also differ from their spectacular spectacular spectacular spec spec- Aztec neighbors to the north although all American Indi Indians ms are o ohe oi of I the he same great race CITY OF DEAD The had as their great city Mitla place of the dead not man many miles from Monte Alban Mitla lien lie lies in n a sunburned covered cactus-covered Its ts many beautiful palaces and temples tern tem pies ples of geometrical stone stand tand on low wide terraces that hardly hardy hard hard- l ly y rise from the ground The city of ot Monte Alban on n the other hand is built on platforms platforms plat- plat forms of ot a mountain top The natural natura mountain pro profile was strikingly hanged changed b by the hand of ot man Mitla W was vas a living city at the time of ot the Spanish conquest but Monte Alban on n its mountain top was already dead and nd forgotten The presence of warriors warriors' graves raves in Monte Alban ma may maj means that l had conquered that lat city Archeological work there theres is s so ne new v that little is as yet et known of f its probable history STAIRWAY UNEARTHED Before the Mexican archeologist Alfonso Caso found the sensational treasure tomb he hc had Unearthed unearthed un- un the giant stairway of a terace terrace terrace ter- ter race ace that had been enlarged three different times This could indicate three different epochs of the history of f the city Carvings Car of human figures on stone in n Monte Alban are vcr very Mayan in style tyle numerals arc are also written as in Maya Many archeologists archeologists believe the learned this from irom their Mayan neighbors but others think the process may have been cen the other wa way around Alfonso I Caso aso who ho has alread already made a be be- inning ginning in classifying writing writing writ- writ ing ng and calendar signs thought the Mayas might have lived in Oaxaca before they moved south and that the he calendar may be based on n an earlier form of the Mayan Maan one Seek eek Origin of of Mayan Calendar OAXACA CITY Mexico Jan 27 SS The SS-The The fabulous treasures of ancient ancient an- an Indians which the Mexican l archeologist Alfonso Caso has found in n a tomb of Monte Alban arc are not the greatest treasures for which he is seeking When Caso started the excavations lin in n October he said that he expected to o find a tomb of kings or priests in Monte Alban But Bul he also expected to o find new information on the tee cc calender which would be of great scientific importance Before starting his excavations Mr Caso had already gathered archeological ical cal materials from Mexican Amen Ameri can an and European museums for a comparative stud study of bf writ writ- ing ng From these studies he has deuced deduced de de- de certain principles of the hieroglyphic hiero- hiero system the used Mr Caso believes it possible that tha the he Mayan calendar the most notable achievement of any native American America civilization originated in Oaxaca th the state tate in which Monte Alban was a 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