All The Games They Play
Mesopotamian Sports and Games
One of the things we discussed in class was about how a
society is distinguished as “civilized”. What I think about a civilized society
isn’t necessarily the armies and the government or the power structure but the
way people use their down time and socialize outside of the structure of their
leader. Such things as games of any type and when we look at ancient
civilizations we find that they all had some form of social aspect to their
society outside the functions of their leader. Be it the Coliseum of Rome where
grand spectacles were held to host fighting in the arena or the annually held
Olympics for the Greeks so men could show there athletic feats. To be a little
more relevant to what we have been talking about I’m going to discuss the
sports and games of the ancient Mesopotamian society.
Like most places in the world ancient Mesopotamia wasn’t an exception
for the love of sports and games. Most of these hunts were done for festivals
or holiday purposes. In most societies
hunting sport was also tied to a ritual. For the Mesopotamia's the lion was one
of the Kings favorite animals to hunt.
“Lions were put in wooden cages. Then, the lion was released to be attacked by dogs and beaters. The beaters would beat the lion with sticks and drive them to the king who killed it with a bow or spear. Religious ceremonies were conducted after the death of the lion. “
Like most places not just one animal was the target of these
sporting hunts. Not just the mighty lion but also the Elephant and the ostrich
were a adamant part of the sport.
There were also several types of dice and board games. The dice were made of bone, clay, stone or
even glass. A game that was said to be a favorite for palace guards was called ‘twenty
squares’. It is thought that most boards were made of clay or stone. Along with
those games there was the more physical sporting aside from hunting such as
disc and boxing. Equestrian games also
were prominent along with wrestling and rugby.
For children it is said that small figurines were made of
various materials. There we other toys that were more like sling shots or bows
but for the more home related.
“For role playing, kids used miniature furniture such as tables, beds, stools, dolls and small-sized animals. There were miniature vehicles like carts, wagons, chariots and ships.”
Looks like even the ancient civilizations understood keeping
their kids entertained was a big plus.
Below is an example of the board game twenty squares and a video of how the game was played. The man in the video takes awhile but he's very fun to listen to.
Sources:
Bhugra, Ankita, and
Thulasi K. Raj. “Ancient Mesopotamian Sports And Games.” Ancient Mesopotamians.com, Jan. 2017,
www.ancientmesopotamians.com/ancient-mesopotamian-sports-and-games.html.
For some reason I never considered that people back then had down time. I had seen my fair share of gladiator movies and parodies but for some reason I never really considered it as true. I think this is a really cool topic. It's not something a lot of people talk about when looking back at history.
ReplyDeleteI like that even the kids had what I imagine is dolls and accessories? Its really neat, when I think of ancient toys I always think of the doll in Mulan, the Disney movie. Not that the toy was actually old or ancient, just what I imagine.
If you don't know what doll I'm talking about:
http://eggabase.com/movies/mulan/lilo-doll/
This is such an interesting post because I’ve been thinking about how the civilizations of ancient Mesopotamia spent their down time. As soon as I began reading this I thought about my trip to Belize where I got to see an ancient Mayan ruin site. The Mayans played a primitive form of basketball called ‘Ball Game’ which was played with a rubber ball on a stone court with a hoop. It shows entertainment has been around for a long time. The hunting they they did on lions, elephants and ostrich seems a little bit cruel, but it can be compared to fox hunting today.
ReplyDeleteI would have never thought that back then they would have down time. With this topic I would have never imagined tying it to what type of games they played, I find it very interesting the way you went about this topic. Why was the lion the kings favorite animal to shoot? The video helped a lot on explaining the game, and he is very fun to listen to.It's also very interesting that they thought the boards were made out of either clay or stone, and that the dice were either made out of bone, clay, stone or even glass. The way they lived life and played games back then is still interesting to me, and makes me want to learn even more about it all.
ReplyDeleteIts very interesting to know that even way back in time that they played games and entertained themselves in different way because all we ever learn about in class is about what they go through to get to this point. We also always learn about competition in a negative way and not in a positive way, but it's very interesting to know they did satisfying thing on spare time and not just go through challenges.
ReplyDeleteIt's so weird to think how similar games still are today. You mentioned the Olympics where the men could show off their skills. This makes me think of wrestling or boxing. In both sports the goal is to gain the upper hand. You also said how the guards played board games around the palace. I think of chess and how much it involves strategic thinking. I believe that with every game that the Mesopotamians played, we somehow have a similar version of it.
ReplyDeleteI never would have thought that a board game from so long ago would be found and so well preserved. I wish the man in the video explained how to play the game, it seems very interesting. It is crazy to think that board games such as chess or checkers that are extremely old are still used today. I like how you not only talk about games, but also hunting because hunting was one of the things people did with their down time. It is very weird to think of people from so long ago to have "down time". When I think of Mesopotamian people I think of people that work their butts off from sunrise to sunset and then continue that routine, but then again people always need something to relax and enjoy and inventing games surely helped them.
ReplyDeleteI think there is a lot that can be learned about a culture from their games and hobbies. Even today, you can look at our sports, games, hobbies, and other seemingly menial activities and see what we value. It seems to me that humans have always had a pretty competitive nature, and games and sports have been a way to exercise that nature in a constructive way. I am glad that we have the sports we do today though, instead of beating and killing lions. I suppose that bullfighting in Spain is similar, but I would much rather play the sports we have today.
ReplyDeleteI think it is very interesting to know how people at that time were able to adapt to their environment and make of simple things fun games, like hunting the lion or other animals. Back in time it was only one of the few things they could entertain themselves with. It is also interesting to see how they built a strong sense of culture for sports and many other games today.
ReplyDelete