Gaming Piece, probably a die10th-11th century

Not on view

Title: Gaming Piece, probably a die
Place Made: Syria
Date Made: 10th-11th century
Period: Greater Syria, 10th-11th century
Medium: Bone, carved, drilled and stained
Dimensions: Length: 4 3/16 in. (10.63 cm)
Credit Line: The Madina Collection of Islamic Art, gift of Camilla Chandler Frost
Accession Number: M.2002.1.527
Classification: Organic Materials
Collecting Area: Art of the Middle East: Islamic
Curatorial Notes: Carved from bone and decorated with circular carvings on all sides, these rectangular objects (also see M.2002.1.524 and M.2002.1.526) were likely a form of dice used to play backgammon and other games of chance and skill. Such games often entailed an element of gambling, which was forbidden by Islamic law but continued to be enjoyed by all levels of society in the medieval Islamic world. The use of dice in gaming seems to date to the fifth millennium BC, with the earliest surviving example coming from Syria.
Selected Bibliography: Lo Terrenal y lo Divino: Arte Islámico siglos VII al XIX Colección del Museo de Arte del Condado de Los Ángeles. Santiago: Centro Cultural La Moneda, 2015.

Not on view

Title: Gaming Piece, probably a die
Place Made: Syria
Date Made: 10th-11th century
Period: Greater Syria, 10th-11th century
Medium: Bone, carved, drilled and stained
Dimensions: Length: 4 3/16 in. (10.63 cm)
Credit Line: The Madina Collection of Islamic Art, gift of Camilla Chandler Frost
Accession Number: M.2002.1.527
Classification: Organic Materials
Collecting Area: Art of the Middle East: Islamic
Curatorial Notes: Carved from bone and decorated with circular carvings on all sides, these rectangular objects (also see M.2002.1.524 and M.2002.1.526) were likely a form of dice used to play backgammon and other games of chance and skill. Such games often entailed an element of gambling, which was forbidden by Islamic law but continued to be enjoyed by all levels of society in the medieval Islamic world. The use of dice in gaming seems to date to the fifth millennium BC, with the earliest surviving example coming from Syria.
Selected Bibliography: Lo Terrenal y lo Divino: Arte Islámico siglos VII al XIX Colección del Museo de Arte del Condado de Los Ángeles. Santiago: Centro Cultural La Moneda, 2015.