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.
According to a statement from Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) archaeologists said that the circular piece, measuring just over 32 centimeters (12.6 inches) in diameter and weighing 40 kilos (88 lb) shows hieroglyphic writing surrounding two players standing next to a ball.
Francisco Perez, one of the archaeologists coordinating the investigations said,
In this Mayan site, it is rare to find hieroglyphic writing, let alone a complete text.”
The ball game was a traditional practice of Mesoamerican peoples and is believed to have had ritual undertones. INAH researchers are now preparing it for conservation and taking more his res photos.
About 2 million people visit the Chichen Itza complex every year.
Chichen is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is one of the main archaeological centers of the Mayan civilization in the Yucatan Peninsula.
(Photos, INAH; via Reuters)
