On the last day of our journey we packed up our belongings and headed out to my daughter’s apartment for lunch. After lunch we said our goodbyes and headed to downtown San Jose. 

[image error]There is a strong colonial influence in the architecture of ,San Jose.



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[image error]The front of the National Museum in San Jose, where you can find artifacts from 12,000 years BCE up into the Spanish Arrival of 1500 CE to present day.



[image error]Side view near the back of the museum. Originally used as a military barracks built in 1887, specifically used during the 1948 civil war in which Costa Rica abolished its military and is now celebrating 70 years without a military.



[image error]Back Alley of the Museum



[image error]Back courtyard inside the museum



[image error]A beautiful patina has developed on the fort.



[image error]Picture of the Bellevista Fortress in 1922.



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[image error]A gun hole from inside the fortress



[image error]Just outside the front entrance of the museum one of the mysterious balls known as Las Bolos that literally translates to, The Balls.



[image error]The Jaguar played an important role in PreColumbian history.



[image error]Unfortunately, no one has spotted a jaguar in Costa Rica in many years and it seems they have vanished from the area.



[image error]Ceiling tile in the fortress.



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[image error]Could the birds on the side of this be a way that the primitive people were trying to show flight?



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[image error]Interesting that this person has something over their face and a pack at the waistline as if it might be a breathing apparatus.



[image error]In this picture, the person is upside down and it clearly looks like they are wearing a helmet.

Unfortunately, most of the Pre Columbian culture is lost as there is no written record.

Obviously, I am a fan of the show, Ancient Aliens, having read Von Daniken’s, Chariots of the Gods, when I was 14 years old. I discovered the mysterious spheres on one of the episodes and was looking forward to seeing them while in Costa Rica.

There are over 300 stone spheres located in Diquis Delta and on the Isla Del Cano from the Aguas Buenas peroid 300 – 800 CE and the Chiriqui Period from 800 – 1500 CE. The culture that created them disappeared during the Spanish Conquest.

The size of the spheres range from a few centimetres to over 2 metres in diameter and weigh up to 15 tons sculpted from grabbro, a phaneretic (coarse grain) bassalt, mafic intrusive igneous rock consisting of magnesium and iron, or volcanic rock. 

One might think that the spheres were naturally occuring, but there are unfinished spheres in the hills where they were created. The spheres are made of different materials, a dozen from shell rich limestone, a dozen from sandstone and others are made of volcanic rock. 

The archaeological site of Palmar Sur is located in the southwestern portion of Costa Rica known as the Diquis Delta, the sourthern most point of Puntarenas Province. 

The spheres were first discovered in the 1930s while clearing the land for banana plantations.  Unfortunately, the spheres were bulldozed during the excavation and some of the workmen believed they might be filled with gold.  They used drills and dynamite to discover what was inside them. Some of the dynamited spheres were reassembled and brought to the National Museum.

The first scientific studies of the spheres were conducted by Doris Stone, the daughter of one of the United Fruit Companies excutives and published in 1943 in American Antiquity, attracting the attention of Samuel Kirkland Lothrop of the Peabody Museum at Harvard University. In 1948, he and his wife attempted to delve further, but were thwarted by the civil unrest. They later worked with Doris Stone and Lothrop published Archaelogy of the Diquis Delta, Costa Rica 1963.

For the next fifty years nothing was done until the 1990s when Claude Baudez and a team of researchers set out to establish a ceramic chronology of the region.

Later, Ifigenia Quintanilla researched the environmental impact of the banana plantations from 1991-1996 under a project titled “Man and Environment in Sierpe-Terraba,” focusing on settlement patterns, occupational sequences and resources utilized in the region.

In 2002,  Corrales and Badilla produced a booklet entitled, El Paisaje cultural del Delta, which provides a quick overview of the history of the Diquis Delta and the United Fruit Company, the natural environment, archaeological sites and the importance of the Diquis region. 

In June 2014, the Precolumbian Chiefdom Settlements with Stone Spheres of the Diquis was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.

[image error]After over 1000 years the huge spheres are barely noticeable in the landscape, one can imagine the farmers clearing the land for the banana plantations, destroying the alignment and significance of that alignment. One wonders with a little more digging what else might be found in this region.



[image error]Petroglyph on a sphere



[image error]Notice the black spot in the middle of the sphere.



[image error]Somehow, a black stone is embedded in the sphere.



[image error]Museum Display of the stone spheres.



[image error]In the courtyard of the National Museum.



[image error]Giving an idea of the size and shape of the spheres.

We walked through the entire museum, but of course there is still so much to discover. After the museum, we walked around the downtown area and visited some of the shops. We decided to check out the Hard Rock Cafe located near the hotel and airport. On the drive we were greeted by a rainbow. 

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[image error]The Hard Rock Cafe in San Jose, Stevie Nick’s dress on the right.

I am still in the throes of research for Rituals Lost, and in the process of making my previously published Electric and About Series into paperback.

In keeping with the travel blog, I have decided to write about my little town of Lombard, IL for next months issue. Until next time, Pura Vida!

Special prayers out to the people of Sri Lanka; May they find peace in light of the recent devastation. 

About the Author:

[image error]Carly Compass has a Bachelor’s Degree in Writing and English from Elmhurst College. She is an avid reader, reviewer on Goodreads and Amazon, as well as a member in good standing of Phi Theta Kappa and Sigma Tau Delta International Honors Societies. 

Find her poetry and prose published in: The Prairie Light Review, Black Widows, Web of Poetry, and the Middle Western Voice.

Her first series, Electric, published in the fall of 2014 received critical acclaim and five star reviews across the board for all three books. 

She became a best-selling author on Amazon when Book 4 came out to the waiting arms of her readers in April of 2015. 

Electric, The Beginning Book 1 is available for a free download.  

Books 1, 2, 3  and books 4, 5 & 6 are also available in a discounted combination set. All books read well as stand alone, but you’ll want to read every word and leave no page unturned. 

New in 2018: About Life, About Love, About Family, A Collection of Short Stories and coming soon, Rituals Lost, A Pagan/Wiccan tale, Books 1, 2, and 3!

Pick up your free copy today and let the world know what you think by leaving a review! 

Carly loves hearing from her readers, feel free to connect across the board on all social media.