The oldest of all known dice is made of clay. It was found in Pakistan and dated to 2000 B.C. Its marking is random. Roman dice are made of ivory, bone or wood, and have many different shapes: square, oblong, top-shaped. Some are solid; some, made of bone, are hollow. The marking, by means of circled dots, is often such that the sum of two opposed sides is 7. In the 13^th to 14^th centuries, in France and the Netherlands, the markings are paired in a different way: 1-2, 3-4, 5-6 or 1-3, 2-4, 5-6.

 

dimensions: 15 x 8 x 8 mm

provenance: York (UK)

date: 10^th – 14^th century AD