History of one of the oldest games ever - dice
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The game of dice has come a long way. According to Greek poet Sophocles the game was an invention of the Greek in 400 BC. But, some historians claim that the earliest dice were from Iraq and Iran dating from around 3000 BC. The game has remained a favorite among gamblers from the ancient days to the crypto gambling era. In the past, the dice were squared off knucklebones. There is evidence of that in the Egyptian tombs that date back to 2000 BC.
It Was Not A Game Initially
The ancient cultures used dice a lot but not as a gaming device. On many occasions, the throwing of dice was not to check an outcome due to chance; it involved a skill that would result in a specific prediction. In short, it was used for fortune-telling. The Romans believed that high rolls were associated with fortune and compassion.
The Dice Did Not Have Numbers
The ancient dice and modern ones all have spots representing numbers because dice were invented long before numbers. The arrangement of numbers around dice changed after about 1100 AD. Initially, the arrangement was called sevens, where each set of sides adds up to seven. Here, one and six, three and four and five and two are on opposite sides.
After that, the dice now uses an arrangement called primes, where the numbers in the different sets add up to a different prime number. For example, one and two, three and four and five and six are opposite.
Moreover, the dice also got smaller about the same time. It was probably to make it easier to hide them from influential religious authorities. The Chinese played the game by throwing dice into pottery bowls, while in India, cubed ice appeared in the Harappan era at around 2000 BC.
The Greeks and Romans were also adept dice players. The Romans went to great lengths to ensure that the game was exclusively a game of chance. Therefore, they constructed dice towers which were bone structures with several ramps standing 7 inches tall. They believed that as players tossed the dice into the open top of the tower, the gods would ensure fairness as the dice rolled down.
Dice in Gambling
Later on, people started using dice to gamble to get things or money. This led to some players being crafty by modifying the design of the dice to skew outcomes. For instance, archaeologists at the Roman city of Pompeii found dice that had been weighted on one side with miniature bits of lead. This made them to come up more often on a particular number.
Bitcoin Dice
Fast forward to 2021, the game of dice has undergone tremendous changes. Nowadays, fans can enjoy the game of dice online on specific online casinos. Bitcoin dice is regarded as one of the purest forms of crypto casino games. It comes with simple rules and is easy to learn. However, the game requires players to have winning strategies to avoid losing cash. The primary focus remains player selections and the amount you choose to wager in each bet.
Bottom Line
The game of dice has a rich history. Even if it was not a game at first, it has developed into one of the most popular games worldwide. It is played both for fun and to gamble.