Chinchilla asks UNESCO to recognize Costa Rica’s stone spheres

President Laura Chinchilla met with the head of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) last Friday to ask the group to include Costa Rica’s stone spheres of Diquís, located in the south Pacific, on its World Heritage List.

During her European tour, Chinchilla met with UNESCO Director-General Irina Bakova in Paris. The World Heritage List includes 936 items, both natural and cultural, that are deemed to have “outstanding universal value.” Costa Rica has been trying to put the huge stone spheres on the list for a decade.

During the meeting, Chinchilla was accompanied by Jorge Jiménez, an archeologist and sphere expert. Chinchilla asked Bakova for advice on having the spheres approved for the list.

Costa Rica must present a proposal in September on why the artifacts deserve to be recognized as a world heritage site. If approved by next February, the stones would be added to the list.

While in Paris, Chinchilla and Jiménez visited the Quai Branly Museum, where a pre-Columbian stone sphere was on display – a gift from Costa Costa Rica’s National Museum.