Costa Rica’s odd stone spheres examined
Many people remember the large spherical stone that the seminal Harrison Ford character Indiana Jones had to elude in the beginning of the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark, and they are representative of genuine phenomena that exists in Costa Rica. In real life, there are approximately three hundred of these stone balls that are know to be in existence, and they are of variable sizes but the biggest weigh about 32,000 pounds and are some eight feet around. A number of them are still sitting exactly were they were originally discovered in perfect condition (little wonder considering their weight), and others
have suffered various forms of damage either naturally or otherwise.
John Hoopes is an anthropologist from the University of Kansas, and he’s spent a lot of time investigating these unique and intriguing artifacts.
“The earliest reports of the stones come from the late 19th century, but they weren’t really reported scientifically until the 1930s — so they’re a relatively recent discovery. They remained unknown until the United Fruit Company began clearing land for banana plantations in southern Costa Rica,” said Hoopes.
Many people have speculated that these stone spheres may have had their origins on the “lost continent” of Atlantis that Plato describes in his writings, and others speculate about some extraterrestrial connection.
Hoopes had more to say:
“We really don’t know why they were made. The people who made them didn’t leave any written records. We’re left to archeological data to try to reconstruct the context. The culture of the people who made them became extinct shortly after the Spanish conquest. So, there are no myths or legends or other stories that are told by the indigenous people of Costa Rica about why they made these spheres.”
You can read more about these intriguing artifacts here: