LOT 0197

Romano-British Bronze Military 'Caister Fort' Gaming Dice with Mystical Symbols

CIRCA 1ST CENTURY A.D.

3/8 in. (4.5 grams, 8.7 mm).

Cuboid die with five sides bearing incised symbols: ring-and-dot (or theta Θ), 'IV' (for 'four'), saltire (or 'X' for 'ten'), frond with four spurs to each side, similar with one spur to each side. [No Reserve]

Found by the Roman fort at Caister, east of Norwich, Norfolk, UK, prior to 1998.
Acquired from Richard Gladdle, 9th June 1998.
From the important private collection of dice and gaming pieces of Colin Narbeth, London, UK, collection no.42.

Accompanied by a Colin Narbeth catalogue identification card.
Accompanied by a copy of the relevant Celtic & Roman Artefacts book pages where this object is published.

Mills, N., Celtic & Roman Artefacts, Witham, 2000, p.114, item no.RB357.

Cf. Spasić Durić, D., Град Виминацијум-The city of Viminacium, (in Serbian), Pozarevac, 2015, fig.166, for similar.

The conventional Roman dice were made in bone or lead, with dots representing numbers from 1 to 6. Roman dice from the Romano-British settlements are often poorly made and often had opposite sides that do not add up to 7. This dice is unique in the panorama of the Romano-British dice, because the symbols probably represent an alternative to the simple numerical dimples which appear on most dices.