Archaeologists in China unearth 2,400-year-old Polo Sticks and Balls

The invention of the ancient sport of polo, called the King of Sports and the Sport of Kings, had been dated to the 6^th century B.C. in Persia, but that may be changing soon.

Archaeologists have excavated three leather balls and eight long-handled polo sticks from the Yanghai Tombs in Turpan, China, dated to between 2,400 and 2,800 years old. If they are as old as 2,800 years, they predate the previous estimated date for the invention of polo.

According to Yibada.com, the balls and mallets predate the earliest known record of Polo in China. The archaeological team leader, Lyu Guo’en, said that the first historical reference of Chinese Polo can be traced back to the Han Dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD). However, the latest discovery dates to the Spring and Autumn Warring States period (770 BC – 221 BC).