ARCHAEOLOGISTS GIVE NEW INSIGHTS INTO MYSTERIOUS STONE SPHERES
ARCHAEOLOGISTS FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOL HAVE SUGGESTED THAT MYSTERIOUS STONE SPHERES FOUND AT SITES ACROSS THE AEGEAN AND MEDITERRANEAN COULD BE ANCIENT GAMING PIECES FROM EARLY BOARD GAMES.
Previous studies indicate that the spheres varied in size within specific clusters and collections of spheres, which they now have explored the potential patterning within the concentrations to give new insights into their purpose.
Spheres have been found at sites in Santorini, Crete, Cyprus, and other Greek Islands, with academics speculating that they could be sling stones, tossing balls, pieces from a counting/record-keeping system or as counters/pawns.
The spheres are generally smaller than a modern golf ball and vary in colour and different materials. In sites across the Aegean and Akrotiri, there are stone slabs with shallow cup marks where the spheres could have sat or been placed.
Dr Ferneé said: “The most important finding of the study is that the spheres fit two major clusters (one of smaller and one of larger stones). This supports the hypothesis that they were used as counters for a board game with the spheres most possibly have been collected to fit these clusters rather than a counting system for which you would expect more groupings.”
If these spheres are in-fact part of a board game, they will be one of the earliest examples, along with similar examples from the Levant and Egypt, such as the Egyptian Mehen and Senet.
The next stage of the research is to apply a similar methodology to the slabs to see if there is clustering in the cup marks and trying to associate the spheres and slabs together. The team also hope to use artificial intelligence techniques to determine how the game was actually played.
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Archaeologists give new insights into mysterious stone spheres - HeritageDaily - Archaeology News