The History of The Humble Dice
The humble dice has forever been associated with gambling, but do you know when the first die were produced and how they evolved? You may be surprised how old the concept is and when the first discoveries date back to.
The term “dice” comes from the old Latin term datum which translates to “something given or played”, and while the actual item has changed over the years the concept is still the same. Usually cubic in shape each side of the dice is numbered , or perhaps holds different symbols, which makes the simple dice so perfect for gambling.
Those of you who regularly frequent casino and betting venues will be aware that die usually come in pairs, another way to increase the chances of a potential out come and make the result as random as possible. Gambling is effectively a game of chance and the higher the odds against wining, the higher the potential pot and the more attractive to the average gambler.
The first discoveries of dice go back over 5000 thousand years with the first ones actually made from the ankle bone of animals, which were multi sided, giving a number of potential out comes when thrown. The materials then progressed to bone, ivory, wood, metal and stone and quickly became a major part of the gambling community.
History also shows that gambling was a way of life in the Far East many thousands of years ago, and the Roman’s also enjoyed to gamble, confirmed by the discovery of die during a number of excavations. As you would expect with a product associated so heavily with the gambling industry, there have been many attempts to “tamper” with the makeup of die, effectively increasing the probability of certain results, i.e. fixing the game.
Thankfully, in the current gambling industry the casino dice are provided by the establishment, and they are perfectly balanced in their structure to ensure a fair game - leaving the result to probability and chance.