ديكيس

تشتهر منطقة ديكيس بالكرات الحجرية ، والتي يشار إليها أحيانًا باسم كرات ديكيس، وهي عبارة عن مجموعة متنوعة تضم أكثر من ثلاثمائة كرة صخرية في كوستاريكا.

تُعدّ الكرات الحجرية أحجارًا ضخمة منحوتة من صخور الجابرو أو الجرانوديوريت ، ويعود تاريخها إلى ما بين 300 قبل الميلاد و300 ميلادي. وتُعتبر هذه الكرات أهمّ وأبرز تمثيل ثقافي لشعب ديكيس، فضلاً عن كونها أهمّ إرث ما قبل كولومبوس في كوستاريكا. تنتشر هذه الكرات بشكل رئيسي في وادي نهر غراندي دي تيرابا، في حوالي 34 موقعًا أثريًا، على الرغم من العثور عليها أيضًا في سهول المحيط الهادئ، في جزيرة ديل كانيو ، وموقع واحد في شبه جزيرة باباجايو، في مقاطعة غواناكاستي. يُعدّ وادي ديكيس المكان الوحيد الذي حُفظت فيه هذه الكرات في مواقعها الأصلية، في صفوف دائرية ونصف دائرية ومثلثة، بالقرب من مواقع المستوطنات الرئيسية، بجوار التماثيل ذات القاعدة المدببة، في المناطق المفتوحة والساحات الرئيسية للقرى.

يتراوح قطرها بين بضعة سنتيمترات و2.5 متر، ويتراوح وزنها بين بضعة كيلوغرامات و15 طنًا. لم يُعثر على المواد الخام التي نُحتت منها في مواقعها، لذا يُعتقد أنها إما جُلبت من مكان آخر، مثل سلسلة جبال برونكوينا، حيث توجد رواسب من هذه المواد، أو أنها نُحتت ونُقلت من تلك الأماكن.

Their meaning is also a matter of debate: it was initially postulated that they were symbols of rank, power and ethnic identity, given that their number, finish and size is greater near the villages. However, the discovery of solitary spheres has interpreted their use as a territorial marker. Their function as mnemonic artifacts has also been postulated, that is, as memory aids, in association with the study of celestial phenomena and natural, agricultural and calendar cycles, or their use as astronomical gardens that represent sidereal elements, such as constellations, although the alignments found could not be associated with any stellar grouping. They have been associated with the equinoxes and solstices, for which their arrangement would be modified depending on the sunrise, trajectory and setting of the sun.

The most recent hypothesis - raised by the Costa Rican architect Melissa Rudin through her research^[4] - is also based on mythical-religious aspects: the spheres are representations of Centers of the World; that is - within the worldview of the culture - they are considered beings that house universes within themselves and are charged with energy.^[4]

The stone spheres are considered a historical milestone of Costa Rica's pre-Hispanic past, since they are a formal synthesis that denotes a unique degree of plastic maturity. Their size and numbers in Costa Rica know no parallel in any other culture anywhere else in the world. Today, the stone spheres are the national symbol of Costa Rica and have been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

The elongated, flattened peg-base statues of men and women are representative of a distinct style associated with the Diquis region. The statues were made primarily from four types of material: gabbro, granodiorite, limestone, and sandstone. They varied in size from 50 cm to two meters. Lizard or feline masks are a major motif in the delta’s statuary and metallurgy, while geometric motifs are found in both the ceramics and statuary of the delta.^[3] The statues along with the stone spheres may have formed a group of public symbols. These in conjunction with the construction of mounds and public plazas point to established social structures that among the culture they were utilized in.^[3] Multiple sculptures have been found that portray individuals holding or wearing disembodied heads. Almost all of the statues are made of vesicular andesite, volcanic rock abundant in the area.^[5]