this post was submitted on 22 Jun 2023
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[–] livus@kbin.social 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Very cool. Iirc, in those ancient ball games, it was really hard to get the ball through the hoop and if you did you won a lot of riches.

[–] Naminreb@kbin.social 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Actually, captain of the winning team got sacrificed and met the gods.

[–] proprioception@kbin.social 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The captain maybe, but if someone actually made the ball go through the hole the game was stopped and that person was given all the wagered loot, and was also able to take things from the audience or whoever he wanted too.

Thing is, it was really difficult to make the shot. So a very rare occurrence.

Also the audience got really into betting, some of them lost it all, and some even gambled themselves into slavery.

Fun game!

[–] Naminreb@kbin.social 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

And Michael Jordan took it personally…

[–] proprioception@kbin.social 2 points 1 year ago

But instead of Airs he used Ass.

[–] livus@kbin.social 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

The more I hear about these games, the less fun they sound. I think it was just the person who literally puts it through the hoop that gets the riches, though, not the captain?

I have a hazy memory of some Mayan leader called Bird Jaguar The Great actually putting their political opponents inside a ball and kicking it down the steps, but that sounds like a fever dream.

[–] proprioception@kbin.social 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

Bird Jaguar the great likely used his hips or buttocks to send the victim's remains, encased in a large rubber ball down a long flight of stone steps.

Ball skills!

[–] livus@kbin.social 2 points 1 year ago

That doesn't sound as bad, I was imagining a live captive like in a hamster ball.

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