| Chichen Itza's Ball Court |
| The Yucatan, Mexico |
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| Mexico's largest Mayan ball court reveals many secrets of how the game was played at Chichen Itza. The goal appears to have been hitting the ball through the stone hoop high up on the wall. A close up of that target is two pictures down on this page. |
| The carvings here show actual Mayan ball players, dressed in elaborate costumes. The two men above carry implements, some form of bat, for hitting the ball. If you look carefully, the top of each bat takes the form of a human skull. Far more than a game, Mayan ball was a ceremonial matter of life and death. |
| The hoop may look large in close-up, but considering how high it is placed on the wall, scoring a goal must have been extremely difficult. Whether you call it the Maya sports equivalent of overtime or sudden death, the game was completed once either team scored the first and only goal. Then came the human sacrifices, which during certain periods at Chichen Itza apparently included the losing team's captain, if not the entire defeated squad. The subject of human sacrifice at Chichen Itza is explored further on the next page. |
| If you have a high speed internet connection, watch the Intrepid Berkeley Explorer's free streaming video of this trip to Central America and Mexico, "Mayavision", by clicking on AdventurePics.com . |
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