Ancient Gem Arenas And Their Uses

Title
 Author
 Previous

## Summary

This theory explores the reasons why ancient Homeworld Gems built arenas on their colonies.

## Ancient Gem Arenas

Among the different structures that ancient Homeworld Gems built on Earth were a series of arenas. The first one we see was during the episode "Steven the Sword Fighter" where Pearl introduces Steven to her training area known as "Pearl's Arena".

Pearl's Arena (With A Rose Quartz To The Left Of Pearl)Steven Universe (With A Statue of a Rose Quartz to the right of him)Pearl's ArenaA Close-Up Of Pearl's Arena
Not much remains of the arena's original structure, apart from a flight of steps, part of the courtyard and a series of statues depicting various Gems holing weapons such as lances and swords. Each of the statues stands in front of an oblisk which has ancient Gem writing carved upon it.

The second arena we were introduced to was the Ancient Sky Arena during "Sworn to the Sword". In this episode Pearl mentions that some of the earliest battles for Earth took place within this arena during the Crystal Gems' rebellion against Gem Homeworld, as well as it was where she first understood the concept of chivalry and what it means to be a knight; to be completely dedicated to a person and a cause.

An Elite JasperThe Ancient Sky ArenaOne of Yellow Diamond's Elite WarriorsThe Ancient Sky Arena From AboveA Close Up of the Yellow Diamond StatueThe Statues of the Ancient Sky ArenaA Map of the Ancient Sky Arena
More of this structure had managed to survive than Pearl's Arena. What we can see from the schematics that were available in the Diamonds' Moon Base in "It Could've Been Great" is the arena sitting on top of a large complex. There are similar statues with Gem carvings to the ones seen in Pearl's Arena although these Gems are completely different to the other arena's. One statue in particular has an uncanny resemblance for Yellow Diamond, the statue may be of Yellow Diamond or perhaps a Gem inspired by Yellow Diamond's fashion, which was not uncommon with Blue Diamond and her elite (The Answer). The ancient symbol of Homeworld can be seen here with the pink diamond part broken.

The Answer introduces us to the largest and grandest yet of these arenas, the Cloud Arena. Even though it was displayed in silhouette form, there is more of the lower section of the arena visible. It appears that the arenas sit on top of what is basically an upside-down palace structure. There were oblisks in the Cloud Arena that were very similar to the ones displayed in the other two arenas, but not enough details within the images to show if there were statues of Gems at their bases.

Blue Diamond's Cloud Arena/PalaceOn Top Of Blue Diamond's Cloud ArenaBlue Diamond's Court Being Held At The Cloud Arena
## Ancient Arena Uses

### Chilvary and Knighthood

Pearl mentioned that it was in the Ancient Sky Arena where she learned the concept of chivalry and knighthood, and it is clear from the statues of armed Gems that these arenas were a gathering place for warrior Gems, but they were also a place where Diamonds, or at least Blue Diamond held her court with her elite Gem followers.

### Palaces

#### Blue Diamond's Arena

The most interesting part of these arenas is not what lies on the top of them, but what lies underneath. Both the Ancient Sky Arena and the Cloud Arena have elaborate complexes, like an inverted palace. Among the murals in the Diamonds' Moon Base, it is Blue Diamond who is pictured with Earth and its's Solar System which suggests that she was in control of this part of the Homeworld empire. Out of the three arena complexs, it is the one which Blue Diamond holds her court in that is the biggest and most flamboyant structure. It is extremely likely that the Cloud Arena was dedicated solely for Blue Diamond and that any oblsiks/statues built on it were of her and her elite Gems, most likely her elite warriors.

#### Yellow Diamond's Arena

Now if we take a closer look at the Ancient Sky Arena, or more specifically the statues within the arena, we have a statue of Yellow Diamond among them despite the actual Yellow Diamond being several times bigger than a Pearl. It is likely that all of the statues in these arenas are of a uniform height, probably for asthetic purposes, which would allow for differences in heights between elite warrior Gems, for example the statue of the Gem with the mace could easily be a small Corundum Gem just as she could have been a Quartz. The main issue is that there is a statue of Yellow Diamond in this arena which suggests that this smaller arena was built in honor of Yellow Diamond.

As Earth was a Blue Diamond colony, it is likely that smaller palaces/arenas were built for the other Diamonds in case of state visits. The Ancient Sky Arena is most likely to have been Yellow Diamond's, which means all of the statues within that arena are probably of Yellow Diamond's top military elite (One of those statues is almost certainly a Jasper). The palace may have housed visiting dignitaries from Yellow Diamond's colony as well.

#### Pink Diamond's Arena

Pearl's Arena is the most intriguing as there are several very similar Gems, each holding different weapons and are often cited as "Rose Quartz" or "Pink Diamond". It is likely the ones in dresses are Rose Quartzes, and just like the statues in the Yellow Diamond/Sky Arena, some liberities have been taken with the proportions of the statues' figures. Could the Crystal Gems' Rose Quartz be among these statues? Answer: It is possible.

    The Ancient Gem warriors are not pictured with their summoned weapons, they are depicted with their chosen weapons (I am not entirely sure if Gems could summon weapons prior to the Gem Wars as none of the Gems in The Answer attempted to summon anything, not even Rose Quartz), so if the Crystal Gems' Rose Quartz was among these statues, she would be depicted without her shield. Essentially, Pearl's Arena was originally Pink Diamond's Arena which may explain why only a tiny section of it remains.

#### A Missing Arena

If this theory is true then a fourth arena should have been made or was planned however Peridot only brough up the plans for one of the arenas whilst she was at the Moon Base in "It Could've Been Great", but there was information pointing towards at least two structures not yet shown in the series.

Also, if Earth is a template for other ancient Gem colonies, the lead Diamond of each colony should have the grandest of arenas dedicated to her on her planet. There may be one exception: White Diamond. It is uncertain if all Diamonds are considered as equals or if White Diamond is the lead matriarch (her depiction in the Diamonds' Moon Base hints to the latter). If White Diamond is the lead matriarch then it could be expected that the arena/palace that is dedicated to her will always be the largest on any colony.

## Conclusion

The Ancient Gem Arenas are not just places for Gems to engage combat in, they are places where Diamonds meet with their elite to discuss matters of state. The lower part of the arenas are likely to be palaces or an embassy of sorts, used to house visiting Diamonds, their elite Gems and probably their entourages. Each Diamond has an arena/palace/embassy dedicated to her and her faction on Earth (and possibly on the main planet of each of the other Diamond colonies). The upper part of these structures, the arenas themselves are decorated with the statues of each Diamond and their elite warriors (however these statues are not in proportion to the real Gems' figures as they have been altered so all of the statues are indentical in height).