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Those in Puerto Rico and Hispaniola were the largest and those in the Bahamas were the smallest. In the center of a typical village was a central plaza, used for various social activities, such as games, festivals, religious rituals, and public ceremonies. These plazas had many shapes, including oval, rectangular, narrow, and elongated.
Batéy was the name given to a special plaza around which the Caribbean Taino built their settlements. It was usually a rectangular area surrounded by stones with carved symbols (petroglyphs). The batey was the area in which batey events (e.g. ceremonies, the ball game, etc.) took place.
The Caguana Ceremonial Ball Courts Site (often referred to as Caguana Site) is an archaeological site located in Caguana, Utuado in Puerto Rico, considered to be one of the largest and most important Pre-Columbian sites in the West Indies. [4]
The main feature of the site is the nearly quadrangular enclosure which has been called a plaza. It is bounded on two sides by a walk paved with flat stones while the other two sides are defined with flat slabs. Many of the stones surrounding the plaza bear petroglyphs. The terrain within the ball courts and plaza have been artificially modified.
According to researchers, multiple layers of occupation have given way to the development of a very large village about 1300 ACE old; centered by a cobblestone-paved plaza surrounding by public buildings. [6] Another notable Taino site is Chacuey, found on the northwestern side of the island along the Chacuey River. [6]
When the Spanish first arrived in Puerto Rico, they noted that the native Taino’s architectural structures were susceptible to decay. Subsequently (among other aspects of their society), Tainos were viewed as naive and inferior, and Spanish depictions of their structures tended to give them a more Neoclassical look (which was the basis of European architecture).
The games were often played on courts in the village's center plaza and are believed to have been used for conflict resolution between communities. The most elaborate ball courts are found at chiefdoms' boundaries. [4] Often, chiefs made wagers on the possible outcome of a game. [5] Taino spoke an Arawakan language and did not
Agüeybaná El Bravo (English: Agüeybaná The Brave) [c. 1470 – 1511], also known as Agüeybaná II, was one of the two principal and most powerful caciques of the Taíno people in "Borikén" when the Spaniards first arrived in Puerto Rico on 19 November 1493.