Ballgame Thin Stone Head (Hacha)

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 <em>hachas </em>(Spanish for “axe”) because they often taper to a thin edge at the front, giving them the appearance of axe heads.