Cleveland Museum of Art

Ballgame Thin Stone Head (Hacha)

Date

600–900

Medium

stone

Culture

Mesoamerica, Classic Veracruz style

Department

Art of the Americas

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

This enigmatic head is associated with an ancient ballgame played both for sport and ceremonial purposes on Mexico’s Gulf Coast, in present-day Veracruz. It may represent an elite ballplayer or ballgame patron—the forehead is incised with interlaced designs similar to the so-called mat motif, a Maya symbol for rulership. Such heads are known as hachas (Spanish for “axe”) because they often taper to a thin edge at the front, giving them the appearance of axe heads. The interlaced designs on this head’s forehead are similar to a Maya symbol for rulership.

The authoritative record is held by Cleveland Museum of Art. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.