Have you seen a stone sphere since you’ve been in Costa Rica? They can be seen used as lawn ornaments in the yards of important people, or in front of some government office buildings, or at the National Museum in San Jose — but in 2014 UNESCO declared the “Pre-Columbian Chiefdom Settlements with stone spheres of the Diquis” a World Heritage Site – and that’s a huge deal. A museum was established in the southern zone near where many of the spheres were found, and that museum closed for a few renovations but will reopen this Friday, June 21st, at 9AM. It is well worth a visit, especially now that Costa Rica is in the Veranillo de San Juan, the two week sunny break before the heaviest part of rainy season.

The stone spheres, sometimes known as “Las Bolas”, are petrospheres made of sedimentary rock, crafted into almost perfect spheres. They were first discovered in the 1930s by workers of the United Fruit Company on a 10-hectare jungle property being cleared for a banana plantation. Workers moved the spheres out of their way recklessly, damaging some spheres in the process, and negating the research value of studying the spheres in situ, or where they were found.

Here’s the most intriguing detail of the stone spheres: they were made somewhere between 300B.C – 800A.D., long before there were metal tools sophisticated enough to make such almost-perfect spheres, of a stone substance found nowhere near the stone sphere discovery site, and transported vast distances long before the wheel had come to Costa Rica, and beasts of burden were introduced by the Spaniards, in the early 16th century. The spheres are an enigma.

The National Museum’s Archeologist, Francisco Corrales, stated about the UNESCO sphere site and museum, “These spheres are an exceptional example of the extraordinary artistic and technical capacity of the pre-Columbian Cacique societies.” He and other pre-Columbian scholars believe that the spheres were indeed made by the natives of the Diquis, from gabbro (a type of basalt), limestone or sandstone, made by hammering large boulders with smaller stones, and finishing the spheres off with a sand polish.
Other scholars, and even some scientists, believe the mystery of the stone spheres is not that simple. Many have proposed indigenous magic potions, early Herculean craftsmen, and even aliens delivering the spheres and arranging them in a line pointing back to their home planet. The spheres inspire the imagination of everyone who sees, or is lucky enough to touch one.
Museo Finca 6 is located on Av. 11, Provincia de Puntarenas, Palmar Norte, in the southern zone. Their phone number is 506.2100.6000, and they are open Tu.-Su, 8-4. Tourists pay $6.00, Nationals pay c1,000, seniors and kids free. The museum includes an informational video and historical exhibits, in both English and Spanish, illuminating the lifestyle of early Costa Rican people through their sculptures, pottery and tools. More information can be found at: www.diquis.go.cr/es/.

In 2017 the United States Embassy donated $38,500 to help maintain and preserve the stone spheres. The donation was made through the Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Preservation Program.

Visitors are invited to tour the grounds, looking and touching stone spheres ranging from perfect condition to slightly damaged balls, from a few centimeters to 16 tons. It’s easy to see how Ticos view them as a status symbol, representing the history of a powerful, lost civilization, and celebrating the Costa Rica people’s early ancestors. The spheres remain a Costa Rican unsolved mystery for the ages.

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