Pok-A-Tok: The Mayan Ball Game
What Is Pok-A-Tok?
Pok-A-Tok is a fast-paced ball game played by the Maya of Central America. It is their most famous game, which is thought to have been invented around 2000 BCE. Pok-A-Tok was played in teams of one or two players in every major Mayan city. If there were two players in a team, they assisted each other.
The objective of the game was to get a ball through a narrow stone hoop placed on the court wall, often as high up as 20 feet from the ground. Players were not allowed to use their hands or feet—only their head, shoulders, elbows, wrists, and hips.
How Was Pok-A-Tok played in Mayan times?
For the Maya, Pok-A-Tok was more than just a challenging game. It symbolized the struggle of life over death, and war and hunting. Pok-A-Tok was often played by prisoners of war, and the members of the losing team were offered as sacrificed to the gods.
Pok-A-Tok games would go on without interruption for long periods of time, often for days. Scoring was so difficult that when a player managed to finally get the ball through the ring located high up on the wall, the game usually ended.
This is not to say that the Maya didn't play the game just for fun. They did. Players would wear protective padding around their waists, and on one shin and forearm. Otherwise the hard, solid-rubber ball could have severely injured or even killed them. The balls were made from rubber from cau-uchu trees, and depictions of Pok-A-Tok show that the ball was as big as a basketball is today.
The padding, called yokes, was made of cotton stuffed into wooden frames. One of these yokes was found in a tomb at Tikal. However, even in games played for fun, the members of the losing team, or at least the captain, were killed in sacrifice to the gods. Who would want to actually play Pok-A-Tok for fun given those odds?
The ruins of Chichén Itzá in Mexico’s Yucatán peninsula has the biggest Pok-A-Tok court of all Mesoamerica. It is 545 feet long and 225 feet wide. The Great Ballcourt of Chichén Itzá has its walls covered with carved depictions of sacrifices made to the gods at the game’s end. Near the court, there is a stone platform decorated with hundreds of carved skulls.
Mayan Ballgame Video
Cau-uchu Trees and Rubber Harvest
Mesoamerican people used rubber by 1600 BCE. It was grown in the rainforest of the lowlands and then transferred by merchants to surrounding areas.
Making balls wasn't the only purpose of rubber. It was also used to attach stones to wooden handles, to seal bags that carried water, to water-proof clothing, and to make drumsticks for wooden drums. The Maya even coated their feet with layers of rubber to make shoes. Shaman-priests used rubber to treat lip and ear wounds.
During harvest, the Maya made diagonal cuts in the bark of cau-uchu trees to start the flow of latex down a central vertical channel and into their containers. The rubber was mixed with the juice of the morning glory vine to make it tough, strong, and very elastic—perfect for bouncing. It hardened within minutes, but before that would happen, the Maya shaped the rubber into different sizes of balls.
How to Make Your Own Rubber Ball
Do this in a ventilated area! You will need a jar of rubber cement and a brush.
- Spread a thin layer of rubber cement on a flat surface. Let it dry for a few minutes.
- Start pushing your fingers around on the tacky rubber cement. It will peel off and gradually stick together. Roll it around into a ball.
- Spread another layer of rubber cement on your work surface. After a few minutes, roll your ball around on the new layer. It will peel up and stick to your ball.
- Keep rolling it around, and all the rubber cement will gradually form into a bigger ball.
- Repeat this process as many times as you like, building up your rubber ball.
How to Play Pok-A-Tok at Home?
You can do this alone or in teams. You will need two pieces of paper, a pen, tape, a ball.
- Draw a circle about 5 inches in diameter onto each piece of paper. If you are playing by yourself, you will only need one piece of paper.
- Tape or tack a piece of paper on opposite walls slightly above your head to start. The higher the target, the more challenging the game will be.
- Divide into two equal teams and choose your targets. Working as a team, try to hit the center of the circle on your team’s target with the rubber ball without using your hands. The other team will try to take the ball away from you to hit their target, but they also cannot use their hands.
- The first team to hit the target wins a point. When both teams have scored a point on their target, move the target higher. Or make the game more challenging by only using your feet, legs, and head. Imagine trying to play Pok-A-Tok like the Maya did, with a heavy rubber ball and a 30-foot-high ring—and remember the penalty for losing in ancient Mayan culture was death!
© 2011 Haunty
Comments
needs more info!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
not very helpful:(
This is awesome!
I'm doing this for a prodgect
What do you need to play pok ta pok
I like the informative page. The mayans are good
I need help
Sick
I’m doing this for a project
IKR OMG oml wtf
Hey people how doing
this is super helpful (not) so sorry
-
-
Pok-a-tok was in the movie eldorodo movie by pixar
I think you should add why they played pok-a-tok
where do they piay at
who spend their time on this?
How did they make teams? I need this for a project.
this seriously did nooooooot help Me! so sooooory.
But where did they play pok a tok? I couldn’t find it in here, and i need to know where for a project. Sorry for complaining about this.
Mlg add fort nite is life I eat dogs
This has good info but i think it need more dic#### oh I mean spasas
wanna kees?
this cause cake boy
Y’all trash at fortnite
i izgood bec tis are gud
-
-
i am causing my group to fail a project with grace
This help with my work
good vid
One time someone threw deodorant at me.
Thanks this really helped me btw how did you find out about all those facts.
this was helpful
Thanks for the information!!!!!!!!!!
wow this helped a lot!!!!!
Booooo no help for my history test
this had very good information.
this helped aa lot
Sssss ssss ssss ssssss ss
Hisshhsjsjsjsjsjskohsjsjsnnsnsnshshsjshss
Siisj
My brother weird
Hi I’m life
great
I once slapped a dog and threw a ball at it
This will be in a new movie
i h8 fartnite
i love curry
fortnite old
thanks for the A
Didn’t the rubber balls have skulls in them to make it slightly hollow and bounce easier
im dum
i loved reading your lovely website
This was nice
me too
you dont say
this is really amazing
this really helped me
i am de one de one de one de one
well done sherlock
how many times a day did they play this game of pok a tok
Here in belize we have a pok a tok team mexico also has check it on youtube
dab
man liked a boss
teagen your mom
so satisfying
it was good to do for homework and it helped me to understand how it actually works
How did they move the ball around the court
I love
hahahahaha lie
thanks :) :) :) :) :) :) :)
Fortnite godd
Thanks this helped a lot on my 1,000 word project
I LIKE FORTNITE
Helped me in my question
hmmm i want to play this right now
wow facinating
how many players are there on each side
To Fel, it was indeed the losers that where sacrificed get ur facts right matr
its good for my projekt
b-b-b-boii, this has so much damn info it's ridiculous. what homework do you have that it needs more info than this? This is a high-key dope article that has so much info. BOI
The may didn't sacrifice it was the aztecks
this is one of the most amazing and facinating games i've seen!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Great!!!Very useful for my legacy project!!! :)
Good but I was wondering what happens if you whisper at the other end
How many people would.play as in numbers
Nice to know love
good
Absaloutly tereble do not use this website
the info was good more than i found on other cites
thx this will help me so much
My wife said that this page was really great for info she was right.:)
I Love this great info:)
hi guys
Hello my name is sebastian and i was born in 1991
this is the best
thanks
It was good but needs more info
It is not the losers that are sacrificed but the winners.
homework
cool
coooooool nice I'm doing homework on this
What would happen if you touched the ball with your hand?
Wow this so interesting thx whoever wrote this
this is great but more information!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
134