The Artifact: Costa Rica’s Stone Spheres

reaching weights of up to fifteen tons. In time, more than three hundred of these petrospheres were discovered, all pre Columbian in origin, the work of the Deecas people, and found primarily in the Decas Delta of southwestern Costa Rica. The Deacast people flourished in this region from roughly seven hundred to fifteen thirty se is pointed out by Mark Milligan in a twenty twenty one article for Heritage Daily the Mysterious stone Spheres of Costa Rica. Sixteenth century Spanish

invaders seemingly made no mention of the artifacts. The cascading devastation, disease, colonization, and war brought on by Europeans seemingly erased any knowledge of their purpose, and the artifacts were forgotten for centuries, hidden under thick layers of sediment, but also protected. Since their rediscovery, the spheres have become iconic artifacts of pre Columbian Costa Rica, with examples found in the country's own national Museum, which I've had the privilege of visiting, and

other museums around the world. As explored in James Doyle's A Stone Sphere from Costa Rica for the met as well as the Denver Art Museum's online catalog, the spheres are composed of igneous rocks common to the area, carefully and painstakingly worked into spheres and polished with sand. Furthermore, we know the stones were often positioned in places rather far from the suspected source stone sites, though no quarries

or workshops have ever been found. Exact arrangements of the stones vary from straight lines to geometric patterns, some seeming to stand as works of public art or boundary markers of some sort. Without any surviving myths or narratives about the stones were left to speculate possible astronomical or celestial importance, perhaps related to solar or lunar observations, but Doyle stresses

that such is the artistry of their construction. They surely served as prestige objects for the Deacas people, perhaps signifying the dwellings of the social elite. Beyond that, the stones might have served varying purposes for the conveyance of religious information, or even as a way to keep track of the agricultural calendar. In some manner. The ancient Decas people left other artifacts behind as well, elaborate metal objects such as

decorative pendants and stone platforms. They were hunters and fishermen in addition to expert stone and metal workers. But again, perhaps already in decline before the arrival of Europeans, the secret of their spheres was truly lost in the ensuing destruction. In twenty fourteen, UNESCO named four sights featuring the stones to its World Heritage List. Tune in for additional episodes of the Artifact, the Monster Fact or Animalius Stupendium each week.

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