
Mayan scoreboard used for a ball game found at Chichen Itza’s archaeological site
15:10 JST, April 24, 2023
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) — A stone scoreboard used in an ancient soccer-like ball game has been discovered at the famed Mayan Chichen Itza archaeological site in Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula, archaeologists said recently.
The circular piece, measuring just over 32 centimeters in diameter and weighing 40 kilos, displays hieroglyphic writing surrounding two players standing next to a ball, according to a statement from Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH).
“In this Mayan site, it is rare to find hieroglyphic writing, let alone a complete text,” said Francisco Perez, one of the archaeologists coordinating the investigations in the Chichanchob complex, also called Casa Colorada.
The stone, believed to be a scoreboard, dates from between 800 A.D. and 900 A.D.
The ball game was a traditional practice of Mesoamerican peoples and is believed to have had ritual undertones.
INAH researchers are now preparing to take high-resolution images of the text and iconography for detailed study, while preparing it for conservation.
The Chichen Itza complex, declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, is one of the main archaeological centers of the Mayan civilization in the Yucatan Peninsula. According to official data, about 2 million people visit the site every year.
"World" POPULAR ARTICLE
-
Former North Korean Agent Says Still Many Spies in South Korea Looking to Strain Relations with Japan
-
Japanese Firefighter Who Worked in Quake-Hit Myanmar Hopes Others Will Help in Intl Relief Efforts
-
Glass Stresses Need for U.S.-Japan Alliance to Invest, Innovate; Commends Japan for Taking Leading Role in Region
-
Head of Interim Bangladesh Govt Yunus: Election to Be Held Between Dec. 2025 and June 2026; Cotton, LNG Eyed as Bargaining Chips in Bangladesh-U.S. Trade Talks
-
Headaches and Cigarettes: Conviction of Pyongyang Spies Reveals Their Playbook of Codes, Signals
JN ACCESS RANKING
-
Toyoda to Become Automobile Business Association of Japan Chairman; to Help Guide U.S. Tariff-Affected Industriessns
-
Visitors to Japan Hit Single-Month Record High in April
-
Japanese Researchers Develop ‘Transparent Paper’ as Alternative to Plastics; New Material Is Biodegradable, Can Be Produced with Low Carbon Emissions
-
Japan to Introduce Car Fuel with Up to 10% Biofuels from Fiscal 2028; Limited Rollout Expected at Areas with Refineries
-
Former North Korean Agent Says Still Many Spies in South Korea Looking to Strain Relations with Japan