Two Late Preclassic Ballcourts at the Lowland Maya Center of Cerros, Northern Belize

Bibliographic Data

ID11073010
AuthorsVernon L Scarborough (0000-0002-1246-7770, corresponding author), Vernon Scarborough, Beverly Mitchum, Beverly A Mitchum, Sorraya Carr, David A Freidel (0000-0002-4704-863X), David Freidel
Year1982
Volume9
Issue1
Pages21-34
Publication date1982-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Field Archaeology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0093-4690 • E-ISSN: 2042-4582
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1179/009346982791974679
OpenAlexW2059901042
LanguageEN
Citations received5

The rubber-ball game is a characteristic feature of Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican civilization. Masonry courts designed for variants of the game are relatively common at lowland Maya sites of the Late Classic period (660–900 A.C.). Before this period, ballcourts are extremely rare in this region; the developmental history of the game, therefore, remains obscure. Two masonry courts dating to the Late Preclassic period (400 B.C.–150 A.C.) have been discovered at the lowland Maya center of Cerros, northern Belize. The two courts are described in detail in terms of construction techniques, masonry style, architectural design and overall position in the settlement. It is concluded that these courts are neither experimental nor unique and, therefore, that more masonry courts will be discovered dating to this period. It is further suggested that the apparent absence of courts during the Early Classic period (300–600 A.C.) is a real hiatus reflecting the adoption of a variant of the game played without masonry courts

Archaeology · Art · Civilization · Geography · Masonry · Maya · Period (music · Archaeological and Geological Studies · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Archaeology and Natural History · History

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