Researchers have proposed a possible set of rules for an ancient board game that dates back more than 4,000 years ago, ranking as one of the oldest in the world.
A paper accepted for publication in the Journal of the British Institute of Persian Studies examines a game board discovered in a grave at the Bronze Age site of Shahr-i Sokhta (SiS) in Sistan, southeastern Iran.
The site preserves the remains of a significant urban settlement whose occupation extended from the second half of the 4th millennium B.C. to the mid-3rd millennium B.C. It is thought to have been one of the most prominent settlements in the region during this time period.
During investigations in 1977, an Italian archaeological mission uncovered the wooden game board by the head of the person in a grave. Nearby, a basket held the carved pieces—which came to a total of 27—and dice. It is assumed that the game pieces are complete.
Radiocarbon work has indicated that the game dates to about the period 2600-2400 B.C. This makes it a contemporary of one example of the Royal Game of Ur held in the British Museum, which originates from Mesopotamia (an historical region centered on modern-day Iraq) and is considered to be one of the earliest game boards in the world.
More than 100 game boards like these of partially similar types, crafted from various materials such as wood, stone and clay, have been found in the Near East, spanning a period of two millennia. This highlights their enduring popularity and widespread use throughout different eras.
While bearing similarities to each other, the boards feature different designs and exhibit many variations. Archaeologists generally refer to this type of game as the "Game of 20 Squares" or the "Game of 20." The original name for this class of games remains unclear, and various cultures likely referred to them using different terms.
The earliest models resemble the Ur game, having eight squares/spaces in the middle section of the board. But later versions feature 12 squares in the middle. Among all the examples, the Ur game shares close similarities to the one found at SiS in terms of board design, and complete sets are known in both cases.
For the latest study, the researchers reconstructed a complete set of the SiS board game in order to analyze the board and each piece thoroughly. The board is almost identical to that of the Ur game, although the pattern of the SiS example differs slightly while also featuring more pieces, indicating potential variations in gameplay.
The SiS board's motif is a serpent biting or resting its head on its tail. The body creates a coiling pattern, demarcating 20 squares or spaces.
"The head and tail of the snake are of particular interest as they may hold symbolic meanings such as ending point or direction of the end of the board," the study authors wrote in the paper.
While the exact rules of the Game of 20 generally remain unknown, researchers have previously proposed some hypothetical rules for one variant—the Ur game.
"Scholars assume that the basic Game of Ur is a racing game, where each player has seven pieces all with the same value. The main goal of the game is for players to advance all their pieces along a certain path around and off the board to gain scores," the authors wrote.
"The first player who scores using all their pieces wins the game. However, the constructed rules for playing the Game of Ur vary among different researchers.
The SiS game appears to be generally consistent with this class of game, which combines elements of luck and strategy. But no attempt had previously been made to come up with a set of rules for the SiS variant.
In the latest study, the researchers reconstructed how the SiS game might have been played in antiquity by adapting the hypothesized rules for the Game of Ur, with the help of artificial intelligence. They concluded that the SiS variant appears to be a slightly more complex version of the Ur game.
Test surveys conducted with real players comparing the SiS game against the Ur game indicated that the latter might have been quicker to learn and may have involved less instances of early elimination.
By contrast, the SiS game seemed to offer a better balance, given that luck played a less prominent role than in the Ur game.
"It is a more strategic game, which makes it less repetitive and brings more tension and a sense of achievement to players," the authors said.
"Moreover, in the SiS game, the three parts of the game become more meaningful. Overall, the SiS game is slightly more advanced than the Ur game, but the Ur game is simpler and can be more easily spread within a community than the SiS game."
The latest study has the potential to reshape our understanding of ancient board games from the Near East and opens new avenues for future discussions, but many questions persist.
"Overall, our understanding of any ancient board games, even the Game of 20 squares, remains incomplete," the authors wrote.
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