Especially before the Second World War it was quite usual for museums to share their well-known or famous objects by having extremely fine copies made, in plaster for instance. An example of this category of objects is the Mesoamerican Pre-Columbian art, i. e. from parts of Mexico and parts of adjacent Central America. Our copies are of objects that are kept in museums in the US, Germany and other countries.
The copies in the showcase were made in Germany and became part of our collections in 1910. They are copies of Pre-Columbian objects from the region of Veracruz in Mexico, part of the Mesoamerican cultural area.
One of many specific Mesoamerican characteristics was the ritual and ceremonial ball game that took place in wide fields that were a part of the grand architecture of the Pre-Columbian cultic sites and cities.
The ball game is associated with human sacrifices. The ball game fields, particularly those of Veracruz, seem to have been greatly respected by the contemporary (c 250-900 AD) Mesoamerican Indian peoples. The showcase contains very well made copies of typical ball game items from the Veracruz region.