MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – A stone scoreboard used in an ancient soccer-like ball game has been discovered at the famous Mayan site of Chichen Itza on Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula, archaeologists say. announced this week.
According to a statement from Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), the circular piece measuring just over 32 centimeters (12.6 inches) in diameter and weighing 40 kilograms (88 pounds) contains two players standing next to the ball. A hieroglyph is drawn surrounding the ).
“At this Mayan site, we find hieroglyphic writings, not to mention complete texts,” said Francisco Perez, one of the archaeologists coordinating the survey of the Chichanchobu complex, also known as Casa Colorada. rarely.
The stone believed to be the scoreboard dates to between 800 and 900 AD.
Ball games were traditional practices of Mesoamerican peoples and are thought to have had a ceremonial feel.
INAH researchers are currently taking high-resolution images of the text and iconography for detailed study and preparation for preservation.
A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Chichen Itza Complex is one of the major archaeological centers of the Maya civilization on the Yucatan Peninsula. According to official data, about 2 million people visit the site each year.
Reporting by Manuel Carrillo and Nina Lopez. Written by Marion Girardot and Isabel Woodford.Editing by Rosalba O’Brien
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