Mayan board game with unique mosaic design discovered in Guatemala

The mosaic from the famous Patolli game was embedded in the floor, which allowed scientists to date it with greater precision.

Archaeologists working in the ancient Mayan city of Naachtun, in present-day Guatemala, have discovered a rare Patolli board built directly into the floor of a 5th century structure.

The discovery, reported in a publication in the magazine Latin American Antiquity, reveals a mosaic of almost 500 ceramic pieces in shades of red and orange, meticulously arranged to form the Patolli’s characteristic cross pattern.

Patolli, a game of strategy and chance that dates back to at least 200 BC, was widely played in Mesoamerica by the Mayans, Aztecs, Toltecs and other cultures with players betting on goods and valuables. The game’s prominence is well documented in colonial-era codices and writings, and archaeological remains of Patolli boards are common in palaces, temples, and elite Mayan residences.

However, most previously discovered panels were engraved or painted onto pre-existing plaster surfaces. As these marks could have been added at any time, determining their age often proved difficult. The newly discovered panel in Naachtun stands out for having been designed as part of the original construction of the building. By incorporating hundreds of pottery shards into the mortar, the builders created a durable and purposeful play space, a sign that it played a prominent and possibly even ceremonial role.

The excavated structure appears to have belonged to an elite family or to a small local administrative center. The panel itself, reconstructed from the surviving fragments, probably measured about 80 by 110 centimeters. This size exceeds that of typical Patolli panels, which generally range between 40 and 70 centimeters on a side, suggesting a variant built for a larger group or a more formal setting, reports .

Researchers estimate that the construction of the mosaic dates back to between 400 and 550 AD, during the Early Classic period. Because the board was an integral part of the construction rather than being added later, archaeologists can safely associate the game with the structure’s earliest inhabitants.

By studying the context of the Naachtun mosaic and the surrounding architecture, researchers hope to learn more about how games influenced both daily life and ceremonial traditions in the ancient Mayan world.