Stempell thinks they may be ravens, but this is very doubtful, for the raven probably was unknown to the Mayas, since its range is to the northward. What appears to be a crest is seen on the head of the bird in Pl. 19, fig. 4. The black coloring and the shape of the bill otherwise suggest the black vulture, though perhaps the crest would indicate the harpy eagle. Similarly, Pl. 19, fig. 14, is provided with a sort of tuft or crest, but its general appearance is suggestive of the vulture. A pottery whistle (text fig. 2) from the Uloa Valley evidently represents a black vulture. The head of the bird shows the characteristic wrinkled appearance seen in the drawings, with the heavy beak. The absence of the rostral k.n.o.b would preclude its being a king vulture.
[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 2.
POTTERY WHISTLE, VULTURE. ULOA VALLEY, HONDURAS.]
It is natural that this bird should find an important place in the Maya writing, as it is an abundant species in the region considered, and of great importance as a scavenger. The black vulture seems to lack the mythological character a.s.sociated with the king vulture. It appears usually in connection with death and in the role of a bird of prey. This is especially true in the Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s where in 24d, 26d (Pl. 19, figs. 5, 6) and 28c, it is attacking a human being, in the first and last cases represented as dead. In 86a and 87a, the bird is shown plucking out the eye of a man. In Dresden 3a (Pl. 19, fig. 7), it appears at the top of the tree above the human sacrifice and seems to be in the act of consuming the victim. In Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 91c, it also appears in a tree. In Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 40a (Pl. 17, fig. 9), and 42a (Pl.
19, fig. 1), it is shown as eating the entrails of a deer. In the first case, the bird looks like a king vulture, although this is the only instance where this species is shown as a bird of prey. In Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 28b and 36b (Pl. 18, fig. 17), the black vulture appears eating the Kan sign. In the first example, the _Kan_ represents the newly sowed corn, in the second, the _Kan_ is held by G.o.d F. Landa (1864, p. 230)[333-*] records that in the _Cauac_ year there was a ceremony to prevent the ants and the birds devouring the corn. In Dresden 34b and 35b, the vulture is shown on top of the head-dress of G.o.d F, evidently the enemy of the harvest and, again, on 35b (Pl. 19, fig. 4) on top of the _Cauac_ sign. Its role as a bird of prey is further shown in Dresden 36b (Pl. 19, fig. 11), where it is shown attacking a serpent.
This vulture is a.s.sociated with G.o.d B in Dresden 69b, with G.o.d M in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 70a (Pl. 18, fig. 12), and with G.o.d D in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 67a (Pl. 17, fig. 1). The last may be the king rather than the black vulture, as suggested above. The black vulture occurs only once as the usual head-dress, in Dresden 17b (Pl. 18, fig. 13), and here in connection with a female figure and the idea of birth. Two birds, probably vultures, appear over the enclosure around the head of G.o.d C in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 100b (Pl. 19, fig. 12). In the Lower Chamber of the Temple of the Tigers occurs a black vulture in bas-relief with a necklace represented (Pl. 19, fig. 14).
The glyph of the king vulture has already been discussed. There are other glyphs which seem to show the black vulture, although it is quite possible that no sharp distinction was made between the two in regard to the glyphs at least. In one case (Pl. 18, fig. 18), the wrinkled skin of the head and neck is indicated much as in the case of the king vulture. A few other glyphs are shown (Pl. 18, figs. 16, 19, 22, 27), as well as a variety from the Nuttall Codex in which the minute hair-like feathers of the head are variously represented, usually much exaggerated as a sort of crest or comb. Pl. 18, fig. 22, is interesting as being the only case in the Maya codices where the whole figure is shown in the glyph. As noted in the case of the glyphs of the king vulture, the greater number of these occur quite alone. They seem to indicate that a full drawing of the bird is meant to be understood as occurring below.
Several of the carved glyphs (Pl. 19, figs. 8-10) show the black vulture heads in some detail with the conspicuously open nostril and hooked beak. A carving of the entire bird may be shown on Stela D from Copan (Pl. 28, fig. 5), where the naked head and neck are marked off by lines indicating wrinkled skin. The same lines on the neck of the bird depicted on Pl. 28, fig. 2, will probably identify it as a vulture, and, if the square ornament above the beak certainly is part of the figure, it is unquestionably the king vulture. The k.n.o.b is not, however, clearly on the bird"s beak. There are two interesting glyphs which occur on the eastern facade of the Monjas at Chichen Itza. The glyphs in this inscription are unlike the usual Maya hieroglyphs, although several of the so-called constellation signs can be made out. The two glyphs in question represent the entire body possibly of a vulture, that on Pl.
17, fig. 13, probably the king vulture, and that on Pl. 18, fig. 14, the black vulture.
HARPY EAGLE (_Thrasaetos harpyia_). In the Nuttall Codex, what is undoubtedly the harpy eagle is of frequent occurrence. This great bird is not uncommon in the forests of southern Mexico and Central America, and must have attracted the notice of the people from its size. The elongated feathers at the back of the head form a conspicuous crest, a feature that characterizes this species in most of the representations.
A stone carving from Chichen Itza (Pl. 20, fig. 10) pictures a harpy eagle eating an egg-shaped object, and another similarly engaged is copied from the Codex Vatica.n.u.s 3773 (Pl. 20, fig. 14). The former is considered to be a vulture by Maudslay, but the presence of feathers covering the head excludes this interpretation. In two stone glyphs (Pl.
20, fig. 1, 3), occurs a large bird apparently devouring something held in its talons, as in Pl. 20, fig. 10. From this general resemblance, it seems probable that both represent the harpy, although no crests are shown on the glyphs. In the Dresden and the Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s occur a few figures of crested birds that probably are the same species. The crest feathers are reduced to two, however, or, in some cases, what may be a third projecting forward from the base of the bill (Pl. 20, figs. 5, 7, 12, 13). The last two figures are not certainly identifiable, though it is probable that they represent the harpy.
The eagle seems to be the bird a.s.sociated with warriors in the codices.
Seler (1900-1901, p. 89) notes that the eagle and the jaguar are both the mark of brave warriors among the Nahuas. In the Aubin ma.n.u.script, the warrior G.o.d, _Yaotl_, is always a.s.sociated with the eagle (_quauhtli_). In the Maya pantheon, G.o.d M is usually considered the war G.o.d, as he is almost always armed with a spear. He is seen in Dresden 74 (Pl. 20, fig. 13), and in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 109c with an eagle as a head-dress. There are other G.o.ds, however, who wear a similar head covering. G.o.d L appears in Dresden 14b (Pl. 20, fig. 7) and again in 14c (Pl. 20, fig. 5) with an eagle head-dress. G.o.d D in Dresden 23c (Pl. 20, fig. 11) has an eagle coming from a _Tun_ sign on top of his head. The eagle is probably represented at the prow of a boat in Dresden 43c (Pl.
20, fig. 12) in which G.o.d B is rowing. In Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 88c (Pl. 20, fig. 4), a bird which may represent the eagle appears sitting on a _Cimi_ (death) sign. Above in the glyphs the character for the south is shown. Here, clearly, there is some connection between the signs of the cardinal points in the line of glyphs and the various creatures pictured below.
There seems to be only one glyph which can in any way be taken for that of the eagle in the Maya ma.n.u.scripts and this appears only once, in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 107c (Pl. 20, fig. 9). This identification may be questioned, as there is no drawing of an eagle a.s.sociated with the glyph. Attention has already been called to the two stone glyphs in Pl.
20, figs. 1, 3. There are various drawings of the glyph for the eagle in the Nahua and Zapotecan codices (Pl. 20, fig. 8), as the Nahua day, _Quauhtli_, has the meaning eagle. It is interesting to note in the glyph from the Nuttall Codex (Pl. 20, fig. 8) the tips of the feathers are crowned with stone points, a frequent way of representing birds of prey among the Mexican peoples.
YUCATAN HORNED OWL (_Bubo virginia.n.u.s mayensis_). Stempell makes a serious mistake by confusing the eared owl shown in full face with that shown in profile in the drawings, for he considers both to represent the great horned owl. The figures are, however, quite different in every way. The owl in full face view is unquestionably the great horned owl (Maya, _ikim_), the Yucatan form of which is recognized by the subspecific t.i.tle _mayensis_. This is the bird opposed to the "Moan-bird" which, as will be shown later, is a.s.sociated with death. In Pl. 21 are some truly remarkable figures which seem to represent this horned owl, the first modelled in stucco from Palenque, the second carved in stone from Yaxchilan, and the third carved in wood from Tikal.
Figs. 1 and 3 show the bird in flight with extended wings. The two erectile tufts of feathers or "horns" are conspicuously represented in fig. 3, at either side of the bird"s head and between them the flat top of the crown is secondarily divided in like manner into three parts, representing the "horns" and the top of the head. The beetling brows, heavy hooked beak, and spread talons combine to give a fierce and spirited mien to the great bird. Pl. 21, fig. 2, may be a greatly conventionalized owl in which the essential characteristics of the bird are reproduced in a rectangular design. The large bill is conspicuous in the center, and in each upper corner terminates one of the ears. The eyes are represented by rectangular areas at the base of the bill, each with three vertical bars across it. Below the beak, or at either side of the tip, are the feet, each with the claw cross-hatched. What seem to be the reduced and highly conventionalized wings fill the lower corner of each side of the figure.
The shield in the center of the Tablet of the Sun at Palenque (Pl. 22, fig. 6) shows a face in which the motif seems to be the full-face view of the horned owl. The hooked bill curves over the mouth at each side of which is the curious scroll seen in the same connection in the figures of Pl. 21. The ears are somewhat shorter in proportion than usual and below each, at the sides of the face, is a large ear-plug, similar to that elsewhere found. The eyes are still further conventionalized with a decorative scroll surrounding each. Another example of the conventionalized owl"s head is on Stela 1 from Cankuan (Maler, 1908, Pl.
13). We are not yet ready to advance an explanation of the reason why the owl should occupy such a prominent position in the art of the Mayas.
In only one case is the horned owl found in the Maya ma.n.u.scripts. In Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 95c (Pl. 22, fig. 2), this owl appears as the head-dress of a woman in that portion of the codex where baptism and naming are shown. An owl"s head seems to be shown on the end of a warrior"s staff in the bas-relief of the Lower Chamber of the Temple of the Tigers at Chichen Itza (Pl. 22, fig. 4). Pl. 22, figs. 5, 7, show two owls from the Aubin ma.n.u.script; the first is considered to be the screech owl (_chiqualli_) and the second the horned owl (_tecolotl_, in Nahuatl).
Pl. 22, figs. 1, 3, show two drawings of owls from Nahua ma.n.u.scripts.
YUCATAN SCREECH OWL or MOAN BIRD (_Otus choliba thompsoni_). A second species of owl is represented by the figures on Pl. 23. This has likewise two feathered tufts or "ears" on its head and is always shown with the head, at least, in profile, but the tufts one in front, the other at the back of the head. The facial disc is not very prominent the beak rather long, the tail short, and the plumage somewhat mottled. A dark ring usually surrounds the eye. It is, with little doubt, the screech owl, the only other form of eared owl commonly met with in the Central American region, and in Yucatan is represented by the race above indicated. This owl, under the name of the Moan bird,[338-*] is always a.s.sociated with the idea of death among the Mayas. The familiarity of this species and its mournful quavering cry uttered at night have no doubt led to its a.s.sociation with death and mystery as with owls in other parts of the world.
This Moan bird has an important place in the Maya pantheon, as it is the representative in many places of G.o.d A, the Death G.o.d. It appears with a human body in Dresden 7c (Pl. 23, fig. 1), 10a (Pl. 23, fig. 8), and 11a (Pl. 23, fig. 3) and in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 66a (Pl. 23, fig. 2). In each of these places, it occupies the s.p.a.ce in which one of the regular G.o.ds is usually found. In Dresden 10a, the day reached in the _tonalamatl_ reckoning is _Cimi_, meaning death, and here, as has been noted, is found the Moan bird, the symbol of death, with another sign of death in the circle just above the head of the bird (Pl. 23, fig. 8).
This owl is used as a head-dress itself, but always for women, Dresden 16a (Pl. 23, fig. 19), 18b (Pl. 23, fig. 5), Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 94c (Pl.
23, fig. 4), and 95c (Pl. 23, fig. 20). It occurs in both ma.n.u.scripts in the pages mentioned several times before, where birth, baptism, and the naming of children are shown. The curious figure, with a head similar to Pl. 23, fig. 21, carried on the back of some of the women, is the Moan sign, referring to the idea of death, possibly to still-birth, as copulation and birth are shown in this section of the codex (Dresden 18c, 19c). The Moan is found a.s.sociated with man only once in the ma.n.u.scripts. In Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 73b (Pl. 23, fig. 18), he is found perching on a curious frame-like structure in which G.o.d B is sitting.
There are several glyphs representing the Moan bird or screech owl; the first type is easily identifiable, as the head of the bird is clearly pictured (Pl. 23, figs. 11-14, 16). This head is frequently a.s.sociated with the number thirteen (Dresden 8b). It may occur in the line of glyphs (Dresden 16c), and refer to the Moan pictured below, or it may occur in the line of glyphs with no picture corresponding to it below (Dresden 53b). Pl. 23, fig. 15, from Dresden 38c has been placed with these drawings, although the identification is not certain. It may refer, however, to the large Moan head below, on which G.o.d B is sitting (Pl. 23, fig. 11). The second type of glyph does not resemble in any way the Moan, but they are clearly signs for it, as they are often found in connection with the picture of the Moan, Dresden 7c (Pl. 23, figs. 6, 7, 21) and 10a. In both places fig. 7 is a.s.sociated with the number thirteen. Sch.e.l.lhas also places Pl. 23, fig. 17, among the Moan signs.
[Ill.u.s.tration: FIGS. 3, 4, 5, 6.
GLYPHS OF MONTH MUAN SHOWING MOAN-BIRD CHARACTERISTICS.]
One of the eighteen Maya months is named Muan, and some of the glyphs appearing for this month in the codices certainly represent the Moan or screech owl. This is especially so with text figs. 3-6. Forstemann (1904a) considers that the month Muan and, consequently, the sign as well, refer to the Pleiades.
In connection with the screech owl referring to death, it is interesting to note that among the Nahuas the owl is considered of unlucky augury and is usually found in the "House of Death" and "of Drought", as contrasted with the turkey, considered as a bird of good fortune, and found in the "House of Rain."
COPPERY-TAILED TROGAN or QUETZAL (_Pharomacrus mocinno_). The quetzal is common locally in certain parts of southern Mexico. Its brilliant metallic green plumage and the greatly elongated tail feathers make it a very notable bird. The feathers of the head are erect and stand out as a light crest, those of the anterior portion being slightly recurved. The delicate erect feathers of the head are well indicated in Vatica.n.u.s 3773, 17 (Pl. 24, fig. 9) and the tail, also, in this figure, is only slightly conventionalized with an upward instead of the natural downward sweep. In most of the representations, the crest feathers are indicatd[TN-7] by large plumes, the most anterior of which project forward. They may be even further modified into three k.n.o.bs shown in Dresden 7c (Pl. 24, fig. 1). The two characteristics of the quetzal, namely its erect head feathers and its extraordinarily long tail feathers, are often used separately. Thus the tail, which is commonly drawn with the outer feather of each side strongly curled forward, appears by itself in Pl. 24, fig. 8, or it may be seen as a plume in the head-dress of a priest or warrior and in other connections as an ornament. A greatly conventionalized drawing of the bird is also shown in Pl. 24, fig. 11, in which the head bears a curious k.n.o.b and the dorsal feather of the tail is upcurled in the manner of the other drawings. It is not at once apparent why the long drooping tail feathers should be shown thus recurved. Possibly these feathers, when used by the Mayas for plumes, curled over by their own weight, if held erect, so that the representations are a compromise between the natural appearance and that when used as ornament in the head decoration.
[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 7.
QUETZAL, TEMPLE OF THE CROSS, PALENQUE.]
The color of the bird and the very long tail feathers have already been mentioned, and these explain the reason of the importance of this bird among the Mayas. It is claimed by several old authorities that the quetzal was reserved for the rulers, and that it was death for any common person to kill this bird for his own use. It seems from a statement in Landa (1864, p. 190)[341-*] that birds were domesticated for the feathers. This bird occurs again and again in various modifications throughout the Maya art. The feathers of the quetzal are the ones usually a.s.sociated with the serpent, making the rebus, _Quetzalcoatl_, the feathered serpent, the culture hero of the Nahuas, or _Kukulcan_, which has the same signification among the Mayas. It is impossible to mention here all the various connections in which the quetzal appears. The feathers play an important part in the composition of the head-dresses of the priests and warriors, especially those in the stone carvings. A quotation has already been given from Landa, showing the use made of feathers in the dress of the people. Text fig. 7 shows perhaps the most elaborate representation of this bird. It is found on the sculptured tablet of the Temple of the Cross at Palenque. The quetzal is shown seated on top of a branching tree which was long taken to represent a cross. A similar representation is seen on the tablet of the Temple of the Foliated Cross from the same ruined city. In the Codex Fejervary-Mayer, there are four trees in each of which there is a bird.
A quetzal is perched in the one corresponding to the east, which is regarded as the region of opulence and moisture. Seler (1901, p. 17) suggests that the quetzal in the tree on the two bas-reliefs at Palenque may represent a similar idea and that temples which would show the other three trees and their respective birds had not been built in that center.
The representation of the quetzal as an entire bird is, after all, comparatively rare. The most realistic drawing is seen on a jar from Copan in the collections of the Peabody Museum. The whole body of the bird is shown as a head-dress in a few places in the codices where birth and the naming of children are pictured. In Dresden 16c (Pl. 24, fig. 3) and Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 94c (Pl. 24, fig. 6), the quetzal is the head-dress of women. In Dresden 13b (Pl. 24, fig. 2), a partial drawing of the bird is shown as a part of the head-dress of G.o.d E, in Dresden 7c (Pl. 24, fig. 1) of G.o.d H, and in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 110c of G.o.d F. The feathers alone appear as a female head decoration in Dresden 20c (Pl. 24, fig.
8). It occurs as a sacrifice among the rites of the four years in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 36b (Pl. 24, fig. 12). In Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 70a (Pl. 24, fig. 5), it is found in the act of eating fruit growing over the "young G.o.d." In Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 100b (Pl. 24, fig. 4), the bird is perched over the encased head of G.o.d C.
There seems to be a glyph used for the quetzal. In those drawn in Pl.
24, figs. 10, 17, it is noticeable that the anterior part only of the head is shown. The first is a glyph from the tablet of the Temple of the Sun at Palenque, and at least suggests the quetzal by the feathers on the top of the head, as also Pl. 24, fig. 13, a glyph from Copan, Stela 10, where the entire head appears in a much conventionalized form. Other glyphs are shown in Pl. 24, figs. 14-16, in which there is a single prominent recurved feather shown over the eye, succeeded by a few conventionalized feathers, then one or more directed posteriorly. It is to be noted that whereas in many previous examples of glyphs the full drawing of the animal or bird has been found in connection with them, here with the quetzal glyphs there is no instance where a drawing of the bird occurs with them. A curious human figure (Pl. 24, fig. 19), with a head decoration similar to the frontal curve and markings on the quetzal glyphs (fig. 14-16), may possibly represent this bird in some relation.
BLUE MACAW (_Ara militaris_). A large macaw (Maya, _mox_ or _?u?_) is undoubtedly pictured in the figures in Pl. 25. The least conventionalized drawing found is that shown in Dresden 16c (Pl. 25, fig. 2), a bird characterized by long narrow tail feathers, a heavy bill, and a series of scale-like markings on the face and about the eye.
Further conventionalized drawings are found in Pl. 25, figs. 3, 10, 13, and Pl. 26, fig. 1. In all these the tail is less characteristic, though composed of long, narrow feathers, and the facial markings are reduced to a ring of circular marks about the eye. These last undoubtedly represent, as supposed by Stempell, the bare s.p.a.ce about the eye found in certain of these large parrots. In addition, the s.p.a.ce between the eye and the base of the bill is partially bare with small patches of feathers scattered at somewhat regular intervals in rows. It is probable that this appearance is represented by the additional round marks about the base of the bill in Pl. 25, figs. 1, 2, 5, 8, the last two of which show the head only. There has. .h.i.therto been some question as to the ident.i.ty of certain stone carvings, similar to that on Stela B from Copan, of which a portion is shown in Pl. 25, fig. 8. This has even been interpreted as the trunk of an elephant or a mastodon, but is unquestionably a macaw"s beak. In addition to the ornamental crosshatching on the beak, which is also seen on the glyph from the same stela (Pl. 25, fig. 5), there is an ornamental scroll beneath the eye which likewise is crosshatched and surrounded by a ring of subcircular marks that continue to the base of the beak. The nostril is the large oval marking directly in front of the eye.
The animal in Dresden 40b (Pl. 25, fig. 1) has always been considered to be a tortoise (Sch.e.l.lhas, 1904, p. 44, and Forstemann, 1904). This animal, together with the dog, is found beneath the constellation signs carrying firebrands; both are regarded as lightning beasts. By comparing the head of the figure shown in Pl. 25, fig. 1, with figs. 2, 4, 5, of the same plate, the reasonableness of the identification of this head as that of a macaw and not that of a tortoise appears clear. The same figure occurs in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 12a (Pl. 25, fig. 3) carrying a torch.
In order to make this point clearer, we will take up the consideration of the glyphs at this place, rather than at the end of the section as usual. As the macaw in Pl. 25, fig. 1, has been hitherto identified as a turtle, so the glyph found in connection with it (Pl. 25, fig. 6) has been considered to stand for the turtle. Pl. 25, fig. 7, is another drawing of the same glyph. By comparing the markings on the face of fig.
1, it is seen that a similar ring surrounds the eye shown on the glyph.
The second glyph (Pl. 25, fig. 7) is better drawn and shows, in addition to the eye ring, the slightly erectile feathers at the back of the head.
Comparison with the glyphs representing turtles (Pl. 14, figs. 7-10) hitherto confused with these macaw glyphs shows differences, the most important of which are of course the eye ring and the feathers at the back of the head.
Various other glyphs occur which undoubtedly represent the heads either of macaws or smaller parrots. They are, for the most part, glyphs from the stone inscriptions. A crest, resembling that depicted on the head of the quetzal, is found on a glyph on Altar Q from Copan (Pl. 25, fig.
10). The eye ring, however, seems to indicate the macaw which also has slightly erectile feathers on the head. Much doubt is attached to the identification of the glyph of the month _Kayae_[TN-8] from Stela A, Quirigua (Pl. 25, fig. 9). It resembles closely the glyphs of the turtle (Pl. 14, figs. 7-9) and especially that on Pl. 14, fig. 10. The Quirigua glyph has a prominent fleshy tongue, however, like the parrot. From the fact that the glyph is certainly that for the month _Kayab_ and the _Kayab_ glyphs in the codices (Pl. 14, fig. 10) resemble the sign for _a_, in the Landa alphabet which seems to stand for _ak_ (turtle), we are led to identify this as a turtle rather than a parrot.
The use of the macaw as a lightning beast has already been commented upon. The parrot is also used in the codices as a head-dress. As with several other birds the only places in the ma.n.u.scripts where the whole bird is shown is in connection with the bearing of children and the baptism. Here the parrot head-dress is seen on women, Dresden 16c (Pl.
25, fig. 2) and Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 94c (Pl. 25, fig. 13). There seems to be an exception to the whole bird appearing as a head-dress exclusively with women in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 26c (Pl. 26, fig. 1), where G.o.d F appears with a head-dress composed of the whole bird. The bird is also seen as a head-dress on Altar Q from Copan (Pl. 26, fig. 3). The head of the macaw appears as part of the head-dress of G.o.d H in Dresden 11a (Pl. 26, fig.
13), G.o.d E in Dresden 11b (Pl. 26, fig. 11), G.o.d F in Dresden 14b, G.o.d D in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 89a (Pl. 26, fig. 5) and of women in Dresden 12b (Pl.
26, fig. 6) and 19a (Pl. 26, fig. 9). In the rites of the four years in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 37b, there are two birds which are quite different from those we have been considering, but which may represent macaws (Pl. 25, fig. 12; Pl. 26, fig. 10).
In the Nuttall Codex, occur several figures of heavy-billed birds that may be macaws or other smaller parrots of the genera _Amazona_ or _Pachyrhynchus_. They are not, however, certainly identifiable (Pl. 26, figs. 4, 7).
IMPERIAL WOODp.e.c.k.e.r (_Campephilus imperialis_). We have here introduced two drawings from the Nuttall Codex (Pl. 27, figs. 5, 6) which seem to represent the Imperial ivory-billed woodp.e.c.k.e.r, a large species that occurs in the forests of certain parts of Mexico. The figures show a long-billed bird with acutely pointed tail feathers, a red crest, and otherwise black and white plumage. The red crest of the woodp.e.c.k.e.r is of course highly conventionalized in the drawings where it is shown as of a number of erect feathers instead of the prominent occipital tuft of this bird. The crest and particularly the pointed tail feathers and long beak combined with the characteristic coloring seem to leave little doubt as to the ident.i.ty of the species figured. This bird does not seem to appear in the Maya drawings.
RAVEN (_Corvus corax sinuatus_) (?). There occurs in the Nuttall Codex a figure of a large black bird (Pl. 27, fig. 7), which may be a black vulture, but which, from the presence of what appear as prominent bristles over the nostril, may also be a raven. These bristles are rather prominent in ravens and quite lacking in the vulture, so that we are led to identify the drawing as representing the former bird. We have found no other figures that suggest ravens.
MISCELLANEOUS BIRDS. Four drawings of birds from the Aubin ma.n.u.script are shown here (Pl. 27, figs. 8-11), in order that the conventionalization of the bird form may be seen. The first two are supposed to represent the parrot (_cocho_) and the last two the turkey c.o.c.k (_uexolotl_). There is little in the drawings by which they can be differentiated. In the codex, the heads of the parrots are colored red. There is no doubt, however, about the identification, as they occur in the same relative position on every page of the ma.n.u.script and are two of the thirteen birds a.s.sociated with the thirteen G.o.ds, the "Lords of the House of Day" (Seler, 1900-1901, pp. 31-35). From the foregoing, it may be seen that where there is no question about the identification, the drawing of the bird form is rather carelessly done and no great attempt is made to indicate the special characteristics of the different birds.
As has been shown previously, it is not always possible to identify without question many of the forms appearing in the ma.n.u.scripts. This is especially true with birds. In Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 20c, an unidentifiable bird, painted blue, appears on the top of the staff carried by G.o.d F.
The head-dress of this same G.o.d in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 27c is a bird form and in Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s 55b, the _tonalamatl_ figure is a bird whose ident.i.ty cannot be made out with certainty.
MAMMALIA
OPOSSUM (_Didelphis yucatanensis_, _D. mesamericana_). Figures representing opossums are not with certainty identifiable in the Maya writings. We have provisionally identified as a frog the animal shown in Pl. 29, fig. 6, although at first sight the two median round markings might be taken to represent a marsupial pouch. Stempell considers the animals found in the upper division of Dresden 25-28 as opossums of one of the above species, and this seems very possible. They are shown with long tails, slightly curved at the tips, and with long head and prominent vibrissae. A rather similar figure is found in the Nuttall Codex (Pl. 34, fig. 7). There is nothing, however, that seems to preclude their being dogs and, in our opinion, they represent this animal.
NINE-BANDED ARMADILLO (_Tatu novemcinctum_). This is the common species of armadillo (Maya, _wet_) found throughout the warmer portion of Mexico and Central America, where it is frequently used as an article of food, and its sh.e.l.l-like covering is utilized in various ways. Several representations of it occur in the Tro-Cortesia.n.u.s (Pl. 29, figs. 1-4), where it is characterized by its scaly covering, long ears and tail, and the moveable bands about the body.