presenting the victims. The ancients (from their Mythology) believed that their God,--Saturn,--devoured its own children,--thence the worship,--and those who sacrificed a child to him, were supposed to be under his peculiar care and guidance:--this Sculptured Mask,--has a hideous face,--distorted eyes, a ravenous and distended mouth,--and its tongue hanging out, as if athirst for infant blood,--thus presenting a perfect portraiture of the child-craving appetite of the Demon. It must be evident that the above _analogy_ is a most powerful one,--nor have the parallels been strained in order to prove their equi-character;--the analogy is so strong,--and apparently so convincing,--that it cannot fail to reach the mind of the reader with a conviction of their identity. The Sculpture described, having reference to the Tyrian God--Saturn,--is, as we have stated, upon the stuccoed walls of Palenque,--and, we believe, was placed there as a record of a Religious custom, _practised anterior to the walls being stuccoed_,--_for, another piece of Sculpture represents the perfect overthrow of this worship, by a more sublime Religion_, which will be shewn in the third Volume. This discovery by us, suggested the apparent truth, that the Temple of Palenque was originally of stone, and dedicated to the Sun (the elliptical _stone_ tablet will prove that), and that its _second æra_ was the stuccoing of the walls,--this fact we think can be established, to have taken place about 350 years after the Temple was first erected. As this subject involves that portion of our History, which embraces the introduction of Christianity into the Western Hemisphere, all argument to prove the second æra in the Temple of Palenque, is reserved for that Volume, devoted to the interesting and important investigation. The pictorial description given in the engraving, furnished by Baron Humboldt, of the Mexican Calendar found in the _plaza_ of Mexico (buried in the time of Cortez) has a direct bearing upon the Tyro-Mexican Saturn, as represented at Palenque. The centre of the sculptured Calendar-circle recorded by the great Traveller,--is a horrid mask, or face,--nearly a likeness of that at Palenque;--and one remarkable incident of identity is, that each face has the tongue hanging out, and by the muscular action,--in the same blood-devouring manner. Now these Masks of Saturn (as we have named them) were discovered many hundred miles apart, which would seem to indicate that the worship, or adoration of that heathen deity was a general one, and practised by all the Mexican Aborigines. The several Idol-obelisks at Copan, having the Altars in front, were the personation of deities of less denomination than Saturn,--but to whom, without doubt, were sacrificed devoted victims and captives;--the same also upon the pyramidal Altars of Cholula and Quirigua. The Tyrians of Phœnicia had many minor deities claiming human sacrifice.