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Published on: April 5, 2026, 03:51h.
Updated on: April 5, 2026, 03:51h.
- Evidence shows humans engaged in gambling 12,000 years ago, far earlier than once thought.
- Artifacts from the Ice Age illustrate early Native American games of luck.
- Research reexamines museum items as some of the earliest known dice.
A recent study published in American Antiquity indicates that human gambling practices date back at least 12,000 years, significantly earlier than once believed.
The study’s authors have uncovered evidence of “dice” that were used by Ice Age hunter-gatherer societies in the Great Plains, hinting that ancient Native Americans participated in probability games millennia before similar practices emerged in the Old World.
Historically, the oldest known dice were believed to date back to around 5,500 years ago, primarily found in regions like Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley.
“Historians have often regarded dice and the concept of probability as innovations from the Old World,” stated Alexandre Madden, the doctoral researcher who led the investigation. “However, the archaeological evidence illustrates that early Native American cultures were intentionally crafting items to generate random results, utilizing these results in organized games far earlier than previously recognized.”
Did Prehistoric People Play Craps?
Madden didn’t need to excavate new artifacts; instead, he reassessed existing items in museum collections.
His research began with an extensive documentation of Native American dice gathered in the early 1900s by anthropologist Stewart Culin, which offered insight into the appearance and use of actual dice. Using that information, he developed a checklist focusing on aspects such as shape, markings, and the presence of two distinct sides intended to create random outcomes.
Applying this checklist to numerous artifacts from various archaeological sites throughout the western United States, he identified over 600 items that matched the criteria for dice.
This research revealed that archaeologists have been uncovering these items for years, but lacked a method to classify them as gaming tools. They often appear quite different from the conventional numbered dice.
They often include split animal bones, intricately carved sticks, or uneven pieces with markings on one side. The critical aspect is that they are designed to yield unpredictable outcomes, according to Madden.
Belief and Chance
Within numerous Indigenous North American cultures, games of chance often served as focal points for social interaction, storytelling, and shared beliefs concerning luck or destiny. The results of throws may not have been perceived as arbitrary but rather influenced by unseen forces.
“Games of chance and gambling established neutral, structured environments for early Native Americans,” Madden explained. “They provided opportunities for individuals from diverse groups to come together, share resources and information, forge alliances, and cope with uncertainty. In this way, they acted as significant social tools.”