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AUGUSTUS LE PLONGEON: EARLY MAYA ARCHAEOLOGIST by Lawrence Gustave Desmond B.S.C., University of Santa Clara, 1957 M.S., San Jose State University, 1964

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AUGUSTUS LE PLONGEON: EARLY MAYA ARCHAEOLOGIST by Lawrence Gustave Desmond B.S.C., University of Santa Clara, 1957 M.S., San Jose State University, 1964 AUGUSTUS LE PLONGEON: EARLY MAYA ARCHAEOLOGIST by Lawrence Gustave Desmond B.S.C., University of Santa Clara, 1957 M.S., San Jose State University, 1964 ~1.A., Universidad de las Americas, 1979 A thesis submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Colorado in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Anthropology 1983 This thesis for the Doctor of Philosophy degree by Lawrence Gustave Desmond has been approved for the Department of Anthropology ,/ :> David L. Greene Date Desmond, Lawrence Gustave (Ph.D., Anthropology) Augustus Le Plongeon: Early Maya Archaeologist Thesis directed by Associate Professor James Russell McGoodwin Although he was one of the earliest individuals to investigate extensively the Maya civilization, Augustus Le Plongeon is today dismissed by nearly all Maya scholars as little more than a troublesome eccentric, who spent a considerable time working in Yucatan, and propounded preposterous theories about the ancient Maya. The purpose of this research was to make a thorough study of Le Plongeon's work, in order to discern just what role his work might have played in the development of Maya studies in their earliest days. Thus, my aim has been to bring Augustus Le Plongeon out of the realm of mythology, and into the realm of history. The research relied heavily on archival records, including the following: Le Plongeon's photographs from Yucatan, qis field notes, drawings, and published writings by both himself and his wife, Alice Dixon; the Le Plongeon correspondence with contemporaries-­ scholars and others--also involved in studies of the ancient Maya; and writings about Augustus Le Plongeon iv and his work. A brief, informal field study was also conducted in Yucatan, Mexico, in order to better understand Le Plongeon's work in the context in which it took place. In addition to producing a great corpus of descriptive materials, which is little known even now, his main contribution was that of provocateur: one who prompted theoretical controversy about the Maya civilization, forcing other scholars of his time to examine more deeply and refine their own hypotheses. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS A great number of people have given me assitance and encouragement during the research for this thesis. To spell out their total contributions would take too many pages, so only a brief indication of their invaluable assistance can be given. I cannot emphasize too strongly that without them I could not have possibly written this dissertation on Augustus Le Plongeon. Manly P. Hall, President and Founder of the Philosophical Research Society, comes to mind first for his enocuragement and generosity in allowing me to work with the Le Plongeon glass negatives and pro­ viding me with access to the resources of the Society's collections, archives and library. His staff, including librarian Pearl Thomas, were always ready to locate obscure articles and materials, and to assist me in any way they could. Thanks are also due to a number of persons in the Los Angeles area who contributed in many ways: Thea Litsios, a fine arts photographer, for the use of her darkroom space in the second printing of the negatives; and Nicholas Kappes, professional vi photographer, for providing technical assistance in the initial printing of the negatives, darkroom space, and assistance in Yucatan during field identification of the photos and rephotographing. Additional assistance during my work in Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Cambridge, and Berkeley was given by Dr. David Brandes, Marilyn Hauser, Dr. Karen Butterfield, Dr. James Tetrud, Dr. Geroge Lazarus, Jane Kretchman, Thomas Brosnahan and Dr. Karl Anderson. Regarding photography, Ansel Adams took time from his busy schedule to review and comment on the Le Plongeon prints. His enthusiasm for photography was an inspiration to me. At the San Fr~ncisco Art Institute, Pirkle Jones spent many hours going over each photo, evaluating it technically and aestheti­ cally for publication. Richard F. Carter and Ralph E. Black of the University of Colorado guided me through the intricate techniques of restoration and the making of prints from copies of old photos. And, Carter managed to find a view camera manufactured by Scovill which is stmilar to the one used by Le Plongeon. Never one to pass up a challenge, the late Dennis Puleston, Professor of Anthropology at the University of Minnesota, played an important role in vii the Le Plongeon project until his sudden death at Chichen Itza in June 1978. At the time of his death, a research team comprised of myself, Lewis (Skip) and Phyllis Messenger, Alison Kennedy, and Denny Puleston where investigating the claims of Maude Blackwell that codices were to be found at several locations at the site. Early one morning we had run a number of non-intrusive tests and examined a few structures based on the Blackwell clues when, later, Denny, while examining bas-reliefs on the Castillo Pyramid, was struck by lighting and instantly killed. In life, as in death, he was a great inspiration to us all. My field work in Yucatan was facilitated by the assistance and encouragement provided by the archaeologist Norberto Gonzalez, Director, Centro Regional Sureste, Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAR) , and was further assisted by archaeologist Dr. Peter J. Schmidt of INAH. A number of institutions and individuals were of great help with the archival research: Dr. Gordon F. Ekholm, Curator Emeritus of Mesoamerican Archaeology for the American Museum of Natural History in New York; William Joyce, Curator of Manuscripts, of the American Antiquarian Society; Dr. Franklin H. Portugal, viii Archivist, of the Carnegie Institution of Washington; and Daniel W. Jones, Jr., Photographic Archivist, who was particularly helpful in locating Le Plongeon photos, Sally L. Bond, Collections Administrator, and Ian Graham, all at the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University; Dr. Thomas Niehaus, Director, Latin American Library of Tulane University; Diane Trubandt, John Q. Packard Library, Marysville, California; the staffs of the Bakken Museum of Elec­ tricity in Life at Minneapolis; the California Academy of Sciences; the Bancroft Library of the University of California; the Long Island Historical Society; the Smithsonian Institution; the Metropolitan Museum of Art; and the Brooklyn Museum. Particular thanks are due to Dr. Susan Milbrath for her assistance in the 1980 fieldwork in Yucatan, and for her review and comments on the first draft of my research; Dr. Linnea Wren for taking the time during her work at Harvard in 1981 to comment on my research, tracking down a number of items in the archives, and for checking out in Yucatan, along with Dr. David Wren, some details previously missed by me in my fieldwork there. Thanks again to Dr. David Wren for his critical reading of my draft, his comments and suggestions; and for the same help, thanks also to Dr. Clarence Weiant, Shirley W. Lee, Lewis C. Messenger, Jr., and Phyllis ix Messenger. Dr. Jacques Barchilon, of the University of Colorado, kindly took time from his busy schedule to translate into French a number of my letters to scholars in France concerning the life of Augustus Le Plongeon. The following scholars were also generous in sharing their knowledge: Barbara MacLeod and Dorie Reents of the University of Texas, Austin, who helped with Maya hieroglyphics and Yucatecan Maya; Dr. Keith McElroy of the University of Arizona, who provided information on Le Plongeon's years in Peru; Dr. Curtis Hinsley, Jr. of Colgate University, who provided infor­ mation on the history of American archaeology and some difficult to obtain archival items; Ross Parmenter of Oaxaca, Mexico, who sent background information on Zelia Nuttall and new citations on Alice Le Plongeon; Dr. George Andrews of the University of Oregon, who sent plans of Maya structures, as did Donald Patterson of INAH, Mexico; and Dr. A. E. Mourant of the Island of Jersey, who sent archival information on Le Plongeon's early years. Thanks are also due to the members of my dissertation committee for their help, advice, discus­ sions and ideas. They are: Dr. Boulos Ayad, Dr. Davfd Carrasco, Dr. James J. Hester, Dr. Gordon W. Hewes, and Dr. Joseph Lischka. x Finally, thanks to Russ McGoodwin, who, after reviewing my years of research on Le Plongeon, helped and encouraged me to bring that work to fruition. CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1 Background . 1 Maude A. Blackwell . 8 The Purpose of This Research and Its Methodology ..... .. ... 14 Le P1ongeon's Method, Theory, and Its Impact on Maya Studies ...... 22 CHAPTER I. THE MISSING YEARS: 1826-1848 28 II. THE CALIFORNIA YEARS: 1849-1862 32 Surveyor, Land Speculator, Photographer and Physician . 32 Le P1ongeon as Physician .. 42 III. PERU, CALIFOm~IA, NEW YORK AND LONDON. ENTER ALICE DIXON: 1862-1872 44 Photographer .. 44 Physician 45 Earthquake Research 46 The Conflict with E.G. Squier 51 San Francisco, New York and London ..... 55 Enter Alice Dixon 56 .. IV. FIELD WORK IN YUCATAN AND BELIZE: 1873-1884 .... 60 Arrival in Yucatan ....... .. 60 xii CHAPTER Research Begins 66 Uxmal . 71 Life at Uxmal 78 Le Plongeon as Archaeological Photographer ..... 82 Work at Uxmal Completed .... 88 The Use of Dynamite at Uxmal and Chichen Itza . 91 Looting the Ruins . 92 Le Plongeon's Evidence of Free­ masonry at Uxmal 95 Chichen Itza 99 The Chacmool and Its Excavation . 105 The Chacmool 115 The Akab Dzib 124 Maya Hieroglyphics and the Electric Telegraph 127 From Yucatan to Belize 132 Isla Mujeres 133 Isla Cozumel 136 The Priest 137 Belize 138 A Short Trip to New York: April 1880 ... 142 Return to Yucatan 143 Enmity Between Le Plongeon and Charnay ........... 144 xiii CHAPTER Mayapan 146 Another Short Visit to New York: 1881 ............ .. 150 The Break with the American Antiquarian Society ..
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