<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>A late 5th century BC funerary altar from the necropolis of Krannon (Central Greece) depicts a bearded man and a boy on either side of a board with five lines carved on a block. The fact that the man is seated and the horizontal position of the board reveal important information about Greek education and the history of Greek numeracy. This paper analyses the iconography of the relief, the link between the <italic>Five Lines</italic> game (<italic>Pente grammai</italic>) and abaci, examines the possible identification of the man as a “pebble arithmetician”, of the boy as a student, and suggests a new reconstruction of the reckoning system operated on an abacus composed of five horizontal lines. A special practical function is proposed for the half-circle at one end of the abacus. This five lines pattern and the related material, especially counters, are considered from a wider perspective, a system of cultural practices associated with boards and counters throughout the Greek world.</p>
</abstract>

A late 5th century BC funerary altar from the necropolis of Krannon (Central Greece) depicts a bearded man and a boy on either side of a board with five lines carved on a block. The fact that the man is seated and the horizontal position of the board reveal important information about Greek education and the history of Greek numeracy. This paper analyses the iconography of the relief, the link between the Five Lines game (Pente grammai) and abaci, examines the possible identification of the man as a “pebble arithmetician”, of the boy as a student, and suggests a new reconstruction of the reckoning system operated on an abacus composed of five horizontal lines. A special practical function is proposed for the half-circle at one end of the abacus. This five lines pattern and the related material, especially counters, are considered from a wider perspective, a system of cultural practices associated with boards and counters throughout the Greek world.

Game Board or Abacus? Greek Counter Culture Revisited

Board Game Studies Journal

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

{"article-title":"Game Board or Abacus? Greek Counter Culture Revisited"}

A late 5th century BC funerary altar from the necropolis of Krannon (Central Greece) depicts a bearded man and a boy on either side of a board with five lines...

Game Board or Abacus? Greek Counter Culture Revisited

Published Online: Apr 26, 2022

Page range: 251 - 307

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/bgs-2022-0009

Keywords
Abacus, arithmetics, boardgame, tombstone, numeracy, Achilles and Ajax

© 2022 Véronique Dasen et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Game Board or Abacus? Greek Counter Culture Revisited

Published Online: Apr 26, 2022

Page range: 251 - 307

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/bgs-2022-0009

KeywordsAbacus, arithmetics, boardgame, tombstone, numeracy, Achilles and Ajax

© 2022 Véronique Dasen et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Keywords
Abacus, arithmetics, boardgame, tombstone, numeracy, Achilles and Ajax