In ancient Egypt, there was a kind of entertainment chess that was popular for thousands of years, and the specific name can not be verified, but because it has 58 holes in the board, modern people vividly call it "58-hole chess". According to some historical records, the chess game is simple and suitable for all ages, but why is it suddenly lost and no one is playing it? Let's take a look at it with Xiaobian.
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Entertainment playing games is human instinct, we now have mobile phones, computers, e-sports, video games and other various ways of leisure and entertainment, which is ancient people can not think of. So in ancient times, how did people pass the boring time while hunting and working? To learn about these questions, you can see them in the museum's collections today.
The British Museum, also known as the British Museum, is located in Russell Square, north of New Oxford Street in London, England, and is the world's oldest and most magnificent comprehensive museum, and one of the world's largest and most famous four museums. It houses many cultural relics and book treasures from around the world, and the richness and variety of collections are rare in museums around the world.
There is such an exhibit in the "History of the World among the 100 Artifacts of the British Museum" called "Lewis Chess Pieces". Carved from sea ivory, the set of pieces includes kings and queens sitting precariously, bishops with scepters, knights on horseback, and soldiers with swords and shields.
Because the location where the chess pieces were found was located near Uig in the Lewis Islands of Scotland, it was named "Lewis Chess Pieces". Although some of the pieces have been lost, it can be seen from the composition of the pieces that they are in excellent condition overall, and even if they have been used, they do not seem to have been used several times.
According to modern chess rules, the length and width of the board needed to accommodate these pieces should be set to 82 centimeters. Records show that when the pieces were found, some of them were stained red. Therefore, it can be speculated that the chessboard at that time should be white and red, rather than the black and white used today.
There are 93 known lewis pieces, 11 in the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, and the remaining 82 in the British Museum.
Lewis chess pieces are not the earliest chess pieces found, it is said that 4,000 years ago, there is a more ancient chess, that is, the "58 hole chess" that we are going to introduce today.
The name "58 Holes" comes from the fact that there are 58 holes in the board used to play chess, and because most of the pieces used are carved into images such as hounds, jackals and monkeys, they are also called hounds, jackals, monkey races, shield games and palm tree games. Its specific gameplay has been lost, but it has been verified to be somewhat similar to the beast chess and checkers played by children today.
In the game, each player has five pieces. They start from the starting point by throwing dice, sticks or stones to determine the number of positions they can move. The pieces are then moved first to the center of the board and finally to their respective sides to the endpoints. The board is drawn with lines that represent "slides" or "ladders" that allow the player to move forward or backward quickly.
Archaeologists have found that most of the pieces in the "58-hole chess" are made of bronze, gold, silver or ivory. Of course, there are probably more materials, such as reeds or wood, but these materials are easy to decay and cannot be preserved for long.
Thousands of years ago, when the variety of entertainment items was relatively single, "58-hole chess" was all the rage. However, with the development and progress of human civilization and the emergence of more entertainment activities, the single game of "58-hole chess" has gradually been replaced by more complex chess. For example, the chess, Go, backgammon, beast chess, etc. that appeared in the later period are much more interesting than "58-hole chess". Therefore, it is reasonable that the leisure and entertainment chess category of "58-hole chess" has been eliminated by history.
Although the 58-hole chess piece has been lost, as a cultural relic, it has been collected in the museum, the purpose of which is to let modern people better understand the ancient and thick history and culture of ancient Egypt through this ancient chess, as well as their intelligent, optimistic and creative character, and their yearning for a better life.
Citation: Ancient Egyptian Civilization in Cultural Relics by Zhou Qidi Publisher: Business Press
Wenlan Hairun Studio Editor-in-Chief Wen Xiucai, this article is written: Special History Writer: Mei Lichang