201
MEX
° c cas'° r< ^ rnetatome is found for metoche. Hence Daviler takes<*7° suspect that the common text of Vitruvius isnip*„ , e “> and concludes that it should not be metoche, but
0!ri) ■‘■OPE, or Metopa , (from fiera, inter, between, and
i>etw* n a P erture )< in architecture, the square piece or intervalG,eek en t h the trigl yP hs ’ in the Doric frieze. In the original° r j (o j’ t * le word signifies the distance between one aperture,the t • e ’, an< ^ another, or between one triglyph and another ;the Ig yphs being supposed to be solives, or joists, that fill
^apertures.
r rorn '- Uv - s having shown that the Doric order took its risethe ^position of the timberwork in the construction of
« p| glIla i hut, proceeds as follows :a nd I0In ‘^' s 'nutation, therefore, arose the use of triglyplisneo u ?^ ‘ n Doric work : for it cannot be, as some erro-trin.] y assert, that the triglyphs represent windows; becausethe p| 8 are disposed in the angles, and over the quarters ofif nmns, in which places windows are not permitted; forinw;, n dows were there left, the union of the angles of build-toV^ld he dissolved ; also, if the triglyphs are supposed8o n . Sltua ted in the place of the windows, by the same rea-pl aceg le dentils in Ionic work may be thought to occupy thetil, „ 0 ‘he windows ; for the intervals between the den-^»ree] 5 g W ' n aS ‘ )e ‘ ween ‘he triglyphs, are called metopce; thelit.
call it"*„ Ca ^' n S ‘h e bed of the joists and assers opas, (as we
t\vo (jr, ttVr ?’ columbaria;) so because the inter-joist is betweenj^ a ‘ Ja5 ’ *‘ is by them called met-opee.”aieton S °. rae difficulty arises in disposing the triglyphs andHany a l !*,‘*‘at just symmetry which the Doric order requires,Jrj .^hitects use this order only in temples.
‘hle s v e Doric order, it is not the space between the mu-Het 0 p e ut ‘he space between the triglyphs, that forms the
‘he ffiq 1 ^he authority of Stewart, in his Ruins of Athens,ate proportions are taken ; where observe, that feet
aid • ’"guished by the mark (") being placed over them,Ritual's 168 ‘l' us (") i the numbers following the latter are
^ s pa!' e ? or ’ c portico at Athens, the breadth of the metope,phgp. j e between the triglyphs, is 3' 3" and 3' 3 " .6, ( seehand 0 ,.’ ^l a ‘ e IV. j ; the height is 3' 0" .7, including the8 - 9 „
tl ’
S' 8 heigi tem pl® of Minerva, at Athens, (Vol. ii. Chap. I.)' hi" .ft ,°h ‘he metope, without its capital, or band, isls “b 3" 8 . (-Plate VI); and the breadth of the metope
of He '
‘h,
it u ■ I 1 tilt/ llClglll IS U v *1 ) llU/lUUlllg lllC
capital over it, (see Plate V.) ; or without the band,(*ee Plate VI).
‘he m Pro Pyl®a, (Vol. II. Chap. V. Plate VI.) the breadthe band et °? e ' s 8".25, and the height 3' 9".85, including
a *'te (pi an d the bead over it; and in the entablature of theh® ‘he breadth of the metope is 2' 8".734, and
,, ho t| le f ® > without the band.
2- br eadM ple of Theseus, (Vol. III. Chap. I. Plate VI.)8 ''.55 , th . of the ....
of
metope is 2' 6".475, and its height
‘he (yj^loding a very broad band. So that the height
f >:x ; °r panel, is universally less than the breadth.J 1 aiitig a ARCHITECTURE, is remarkable chiefly as
hl°P‘cd h v , s l lec 'nien of the style and mode of buildingji^hoe to g 0 ' e aborigines of the New World. Their resem-. 6v alent op ‘l' e ancient edifices and forms of buildingn ‘he eastern continent is curious, and worthy of
aS>t.
ia rern ain, ' e onl y Mexican buildings of which we have,, ° 8 ‘ Univ 316 tbe ‘eocahiS) or houses of God , which are;t >id s of % Sa Uy of the pyramidal form, resembling thesimp g yp‘> but bearing, it would seem, even a more°l. jj at 'ity to the famous tower of Babel , as described3 F
by Herodotus and modern travellers. See BabylonianArchitecture. This resemblance is especially pointed outby Humboldt , to whom we are indebted for the greater part ofour information on the subject.
These teocallis were solid masses of earth raised up in apyramidal form, having the shape of a truncated pyramid,and faced either entirely or partially with masonry. In theinterior were small cavities similar to those discovered in theEgyptian pyramids, and which were evidently intended forplaces of sepulture. The sides of the pyramid often facethe cardinal points, and are divided into steps or stories onthe exterior, in both which particulars they resemble those ofEgypt. Their similarity to the tower of Babel is noticedfurther in the temple at the top of the pyramid, and the useto which both erections were put as observatories for astro-nomical purposes.
The largest temple in Mexico is the great pyramid ofCholula, which is constructed of alternate layers of unburntbricks and clay, and consists of four stories. In the interiorare cavities of considerable size, one of which, upon beinglaid open, was found to contain skeletons and a number ofcuriously painted and varnished vases, thus proving theirsepulchral character. The height of the pyramid is 177 feet,the length of a side of the base 1,423 feet, the area on thetop 3,500 yards, and the number of steps to the top 120.
At Papantla, in the northern part of Vera Cruz , is a smallpyramid, 80 feet square at the base and 60 feet high, dividedinto seven stories, and ascended by a flight of 57 steps. It isconstructed of immense blocks of stone laid in mortar, thefaces of which are covered with hieroglyphics, amongstwhich are to be seen serpents and crocodiles. There are alsoa number of niches regularly disposed round each story.
A mass of ruins known as the Casa Grande are situated inthe gulph of California , on the banks of the Rio Gila: thesides facing the cardinal points are of irregular size, thosefrom north to south measuring 445 feet, while those fromeast to west are only 276 feet. They are composed ofunburnt bricks of irregular size, the walls being 4 feet inthickness, and divided into three stories.
“ In the district of Oaxaca, south of Mexico , stands thepalace of Mitla, contracted from Mignitlan, signifying, inAztec , the place of woe. By the Tzapotec Indians the ruinsare called leola or luiva (burial or tomb), alluding to the exca-vations found beneath the walls. It is conjectured to havebeen a palace constructed over the tombs of the kings, forretirement, on the death of a relation. The tombs of Mitlaare three edifices, placed symmetrically in a very romanticsituation. That in the best preservation, and at the sametime the principal one, is nearly 130 feet long. A staircaseformed in a pit, leads to a subterranean apartment 88 feet inlength and 26 feet in width. This, as well as the exteriorpart of the edifice, is decorated with fret and other ornamentsof similar character. But the most singular feature in theseruins, as compared with other Mexican architecture, was thediscovery of six porphyry columns, placed for the support ofa ceiling in the midst of a vast hall. They are almost theonly ones which have been found in the new continent, andexhibit strong marks of the infancy of the art, having neitherbase nor capital. The upper part slightly diminishes. Theirtotal height is 19 feet in single blocks of porphyry. Theceiling under which they were placed was formed by beamsof sabine wood and three of them are still in good preser-vation. The roof is of very large slabs. The number ofseparate buildings was originally five, and they were disposedwith great regularity. The gate, whereof some vestiges arestill discernible, led to a court 150 feet square, which, fromthe rubbish and remains of subterranean apartments, it is