香港六合彩即时开奖

ring carved on the Great ball court of Chichen Itza

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Gran Juego de Pelota

Chich茅n Itz谩


The great ball court, the largest and most impressive in Mexico, is only one of the city鈥檚 eight courts, indicative of the importance the games held here. The court, to the left of the visitors center, is flanked by temples at either end and is bounded by towering parallel walls with stone rings cemented up high. Along the walls of the ball court are stone reliefs, including scenes of decapitations of players.

There is evidence that the ball game may have changed over the years. Some carvings show players with padding on their elbows and knees, and it is thought that they played a soccer-like game with a hard rubber ball, with the use of hands forbidden. Other carvings show players wielding bats; it appears that if a player hit the ball through one of the stone hoops, his team was declared the winner. It may be that during the Toltec period, the losing captain, and perhaps his teammates as well, were sacrificed.

The court exhibits some interesting acoustics: a conversation at one end can be heard 135m away at the other, and a clap produces multiple loud echoes.


香港六合彩即时开奖's must-see attractions

Nearby Chich茅n Itz谩 attractions

1. Plataforma de los Cr谩neos

0.05 MILES

The Platform of Skulls (Tzompantli in N谩huatl, a Maya dialect) is between the Templo de los Jaguares y Escudos and El Castillo. You can鈥檛 mistake it,鈥

2. Templo de los Jaguares y Escudos

0.05 MILES

The Temple of the Jaguars and Shields, built atop the southeast corner of the ball court鈥檚 wall, has some columns with carved rattlesnakes and tablets鈥

3. Templo del Barbado

0.05 MILES

The structure at the ball court's north end, called the Temple of the Bearded Man after a carving inside it, has finely sculpted pillars and reliefs of鈥

5. Plataforma de Venus

0.11 MILES

This ceremonial site directly in front of the El Castillo is most notable for its huge, ornate and superbly preserved plumed serpent heads extending on鈥

6. El Castillo

0.13 MILES

Upon entering Chich茅n Itz谩, El Castillo (aka the Pyramid of Kukulc谩n) rises before you in all its grandeur. The first temple here was pre-Toltec, built鈥

7. Chich茅n Itz谩

0.17 MILES

Chich茅n Itz谩, meaning 'mouth of the well of the Itz谩es' in Mayan, is a stunning ruin well worth visiting for its spectacular, iconic structures and鈥

8. Visitors Center Museum

0.18 MILES

The visitors center has a small museum with exhibits providing explanations in Spanish, English and French.