Costa Rica, a small country located between North and South America not only is blessed with amazing landscapes, pristine beaches and one of the richest diversities in the world. But nestled in the dense rain forest of Palmar Sur, on the southern pacific coast, lie the intriguing Stone Spheres of Costa Rica. Locally also known as the Bolas de Piedra (Stone Balls). They are a collection of about 300 perfectly carved stone spheres ranging anything from a few centimetres to 2.66 metres in diameter and weighing up to 15 tons. Albeit that the origin of the spheres is attributed to the extinct Diquis Culture, dating back about 300 AD, not much is known about why they exist. All we know is that they are made from either gabbro, a coarse-grained magmatic rock found in the hills above from where they were found, or from a shell-rich limestone or from a softer sandstone.
It is speculated that the spheres were made by hammering natural boulders with rocks and then polishing them with sand. The precision of achieving near perfect spheres is what makes them so intriguing, and their purpose even more mysterious. Some believe that they could have been a representation of stars and planets, markers of equinox and other important calendars details. Others have theorised that they were status symbols that adorned the homes of chiefs, the bigger the balls the more important the person (that sounds familiar). Love the idea that someone has even theorised that they where a form of game that adults would play, like marbles. But theories are just that, speculative ideas that cannot be proven and the Stone Spheres of Costa Rica will remain yet another elusive clue of an talented, maybe playful ancient culture.
