Stone Spheres of Costa Rica: Difference between revisions
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=What are the Stone Spheres?= | =What are the Stone Spheres?= | ||
Each stone sphere is carved from a hard igneous rock. Most of the spheres have diameters ranging from 60 and 120 centimetres. However, some are significantly larger, with diameters of 170 centimetres, and the largest known sphere has a diameter of 257 centimetres and weighs 15 tons <ref name=" | Each stone sphere is carved from a hard igneous rock. Most of the spheres have diameters ranging from 60 and 120 centimetres. However, some are significantly larger, with diameters of 170 centimetres, and the largest known sphere has a diameter of 257 centimetres and weighs 15 tons <ref name="gold" />. | ||
==Discovery== | ==Discovery== | ||
The stone spheres were | The stone spheres were first described by Samuel Lothrop (I think). However, he was not the first person to discover them. Instead, he learned of their existence through an acquaintance whey the spheres where uncovered at a banana plantation in the Diquis delta. By the time he began to study the area it had already been significantly disturbed by the banana plantation's operations, and by the activities of treasure hunters. Indeed, many of the balls were severely damaged by people who hopped to find gold inside them, sometimes even blasting the spheres with dynamite. <ref name="myst" /> | ||
=Context= | =Context= | ||
The spheres have generally been found in preserved static settlements. It appears that the spheres were often placed in public places, such as plazas, for display. These settlements were fairly well developed. They are characterized by paved roads and homes with stone foundations. While some spheres are free standing, many were placed in geometric patterns. <ref name="gold" /> | |||
The Diquis Delta is not the only area in the region with monumental architecture, however. <ref name="gold" /> Another pair of sites in the nearby San Jose Province are known to contain significant monumental constructions dating to the Chiriqui archaeological phase. These sites are characterized by large stone structures in which houses were surrounded by large rings of paving stones. <ref name="quilter" /> | |||
The location in which the spheres were discovered has received relatively little study. The lack of study is due in part to the inaccessibility of some parts of the region, and also to the general disruption caused by the banana plantation and other commercial projects | The location in which the spheres were discovered has received relatively little study. The lack of study is due in part to the inaccessibility of some parts of the region, and also to the general disruption caused by the banana plantation and other commercial projects | ||
<ref name=" | <ref name="gold">https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=JOKITNcYZUIC&oi=fnd&pg=PA205&dq=The+Granite+Spheres+of+Ca%C3%B1o+Island+and+the+Diquis+Delta&ots=I-lXbf43Q6&sig=tZWmCn6vNdntD64aGx_-12UdtvU#v=onepage&q&f=false</ref>. | ||
=What is the pseudoarchaeological narrative associated with the Stone Spheres?= | |||
==Atlantis In America by Ivar Zapp and George Erikson== | |||
Ivar Zapp and George Erikson are responsible for most of the pseudoarchaeological interest in the spheres. They believe that the spheres represent evidence of Atlantian influence in South America <ref name="atlantipedia /> <ref name="hoopes" />. Their argument centres on several points: <ref name="hoopes" /> | |||
* They claim it would have been impossible for local population to manufacture the "perfect" spheres. Although they claim that the spheres are perfectly spherical, this is not the case. The spheres are known to be imperfect, and in any case erosion has damaged many of the spheres too much to be meaningfully measured. This claim appears to come from Lothrop's original description of the spheres. However, according to his wife - who accompanied in the field him as he took the measurements - he was unable to excavate many of the larger spheres, and thus had to estimate. <ref name="myst" /> | |||
* They exaggerate the size and weight of the spheres, claiming that some weigh more than 30 tons with diameters of three meters. In fact, the largest known sphere weighs only 16 tons and has a diameter of around 2.5 meters. <ref name="gold" /> | |||
* ( More here, but I don't want to lean to much on <ref name="hoopes" /> until I can find a hard copy of Zapp & Erikon's <ref name="zapp"/> book. ) | |||
==Indana Jones== | |||
At the beginning of the classic Indiana Jones film ''Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Arc'', the hero Indiana Jones flees from a tomb or temple while being chassed by a large stone sphere. <ref name="lostarc" /> This scene was inspired in part by the Costa Rican Stone Spheres. <ref name="indanajones" /> | |||
<ref name="quilter">Quilter, Jeffrey, and Aida Blanco Vargas. “Monumental Architecture and Social Organization at the Rivas Site, Costa Rica.” Journal of Field Archaeology, vol. 22, no. 2, 1995, pp. 203–221. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/530322.</ref> | <ref name="quilter">Quilter, Jeffrey, and Aida Blanco Vargas. “Monumental Architecture and Social Organization at the Rivas Site, Costa Rica.” Journal of Field Archaeology, vol. 22, no. 2, 1995, pp. 203–221. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/530322.</ref> | ||
<ref name="indanajones">https://daily.jstor.org/objects-wonder-costa-ricas-stone-spheres/</ref> | <ref name="lostarc">Indiana Jones and the raiders of the lost arc. (1981). Hollywood, CA: Paramount.</ref> | ||
The | <ref name="indanajones">https://daily.jstor.org/objects-wonder-costa-ricas-stone-spheres/</ref> | ||
<ref name="atlantipedia">http://atlantipedia.ie/samples/tag/john-w-hoopes/</ref> | |||
<ref name="zapp">Zapp, Ivar, and George Erikson. Atlantis In America: Navigators Of The Ancient World. Adventures Unlimited Press, 1998. </ref> | |||
<ref name="hoopes">https://web.archive.org/web/20130323062800/http://web.ku.edu/~hoopes/balls/errors.htm</ref> | |||
<ref name="myst">http://www.naturalhistorymag.com/picks-from-the-past/191353/prehistoric-stone-balls-a-mystery</ref> | |||
=References= | =References= | ||
Revision as of 03:58, 3 November 2017
[[[ TODO: Summary Here ]]]
What are the Stone Spheres?
Each stone sphere is carved from a hard igneous rock. Most of the spheres have diameters ranging from 60 and 120 centimetres. However, some are significantly larger, with diameters of 170 centimetres, and the largest known sphere has a diameter of 257 centimetres and weighs 15 tons [1].
Discovery
The stone spheres were first described by Samuel Lothrop (I think). However, he was not the first person to discover them. Instead, he learned of their existence through an acquaintance whey the spheres where uncovered at a banana plantation in the Diquis delta. By the time he began to study the area it had already been significantly disturbed by the banana plantation's operations, and by the activities of treasure hunters. Indeed, many of the balls were severely damaged by people who hopped to find gold inside them, sometimes even blasting the spheres with dynamite. [2]
Context
The spheres have generally been found in preserved static settlements. It appears that the spheres were often placed in public places, such as plazas, for display. These settlements were fairly well developed. They are characterized by paved roads and homes with stone foundations. While some spheres are free standing, many were placed in geometric patterns. [1]
The Diquis Delta is not the only area in the region with monumental architecture, however. [1] Another pair of sites in the nearby San Jose Province are known to contain significant monumental constructions dating to the Chiriqui archaeological phase. These sites are characterized by large stone structures in which houses were surrounded by large rings of paving stones. [3]
The location in which the spheres were discovered has received relatively little study. The lack of study is due in part to the inaccessibility of some parts of the region, and also to the general disruption caused by the banana plantation and other commercial projects [1].
What is the pseudoarchaeological narrative associated with the Stone Spheres?
Atlantis In America by Ivar Zapp and George Erikson
Ivar Zapp and George Erikson are responsible for most of the pseudoarchaeological interest in the spheres. They believe that the spheres represent evidence of Atlantian influence in South America [4] [5]. Their argument centres on several points: [5]
- They claim it would have been impossible for local population to manufacture the "perfect" spheres. Although they claim that the spheres are perfectly spherical, this is not the case. The spheres are known to be imperfect, and in any case erosion has damaged many of the spheres too much to be meaningfully measured. This claim appears to come from Lothrop's original description of the spheres. However, according to his wife - who accompanied in the field him as he took the measurements - he was unable to excavate many of the larger spheres, and thus had to estimate. [2]
- They exaggerate the size and weight of the spheres, claiming that some weigh more than 30 tons with diameters of three meters. In fact, the largest known sphere weighs only 16 tons and has a diameter of around 2.5 meters. [1]
- ( More here, but I don't want to lean to much on [5] until I can find a hard copy of Zapp & Erikon's [6] book. )
Indana Jones
At the beginning of the classic Indiana Jones film Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Arc, the hero Indiana Jones flees from a tomb or temple while being chassed by a large stone sphere. [7] This scene was inspired in part by the Costa Rican Stone Spheres. [8]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=JOKITNcYZUIC&oi=fnd&pg=PA205&dq=The+Granite+Spheres+of+Ca%C3%B1o+Island+and+the+Diquis+Delta&ots=I-lXbf43Q6&sig=tZWmCn6vNdntD64aGx_-12UdtvU#v=onepage&q&f=false
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 http://www.naturalhistorymag.com/picks-from-the-past/191353/prehistoric-stone-balls-a-mystery
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Quilter, Jeffrey, and Aida Blanco Vargas. “Monumental Architecture and Social Organization at the Rivas Site, Costa Rica.” Journal of Field Archaeology, vol. 22, no. 2, 1995, pp. 203–221. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/530322.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 http://atlantipedia.ie/samples/tag/john-w-hoopes/
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 https://web.archive.org/web/20130323062800/http://web.ku.edu/~hoopes/balls/errors.htm
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Zapp, Ivar, and George Erikson. Atlantis In America: Navigators Of The Ancient World. Adventures Unlimited Press, 1998.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Indiana Jones and the raiders of the lost arc. (1981). Hollywood, CA: Paramount.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 https://daily.jstor.org/objects-wonder-costa-ricas-stone-spheres/