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Learn how the invention of the rubber ball in ancient Mexico inspired the world’s most popular sport. In this talk, Curator Joanne Baron will explore the origins of the bouncing ball that we use in modern sports, in celebration of this summer’s soccer world championship.
Around 3,600 years ago, the Indigenous people of ancient Mexico began using tree sap to make rubber, creating balls for a sport that would come to be known by the Aztecs as ullamalitzli. As in soccer today, players were forbidden to use their hands, striking the ball only with their hips and knees. After the talk, head to the Art of the Ancient Americas galleries to see objects from the Museum’s collections related to this ancient Mesoamerican ballgame.
Presented in collaboration with the Consulate of Mexico in New Brunswick.
This event is free and open to the public.
Learn more: https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/exhibitions-events/events/2026/ballgame-ancient-mexico-2026-06-12
Image: Late Comala, Early Classic Period, Colima, Mexico, "Standing ballplayer," 200–400 CE. Princeton University Art Museum. Museum purchase, Fowler McCormick, Class of 1921, Fund
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Event Venue
Princeton University Art Museum, Princeton, NJ, United States, New Jersey 08544
Tickets
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