Yoke

Large, heavy U-shaped stone believed to be a ritual copy of a wooden protector worn by players of the Mesoamerican ball game during the Classic period. It was worn on the hips and decorated with carved designs with double-edge scrolls. The term is also used for the wooden crosspiece fastened over the necks of a pair of oxen or horses and attached to the plow, cart, or wagon to be drawn.

(1) The wooden crosspiece fastened over the necks of a pair of oxen or horses and attached to the plough, cart or wagon to be drawn. Remains of yokes are sometimes found in archaeological contexts, for example in Hallstatt graves in eastern Europe. (2) In American archaeology, a U-shaped stone, often elaborately carved, and thought to be in imitation of protective belts worn by the participants in the ball game. The yoke is a commonly occurring artefact in Mesoamerican assemblages and has been found at sites in the Caribbean as well as in North and South America.