Title
Game pieces in the form of acorns
Year/Period
Tang dynasty, around 830s
Region
Unknown
Material
Dimension
Object Size: 2005.1.00546.001 2.9 x 2.3 x 2.5 cm,
Object Size: 2005.1.00546.004 2.9 x 2.5 x 2.4 cm,
Object Size: 2005.1.00546.003 2.4 x 2.4 x 2.4 cm,
Object Size: 2005.1.00546.002 2.9 x 1.6 x 2.6 cm
Object Size: 2005.1.00546.004 2.9 x 2.5 x 2.4 cm,
Object Size: 2005.1.00546.003 2.4 x 2.4 x 2.4 cm,
Object Size: 2005.1.00546.002 2.9 x 1.6 x 2.6 cm
Accession No.
2005.1-00546
Collection of
Credit Line
The Tang Shipwreck was acquired through the generous donation of the Estate of Khoo Teck Puat.
A few items recovered from the Tang Shipwreck provide tantalizing glimpses of life on board. In the long intervals spent waiting for the monsoons to pass or the winds to change, the crew might have played games and gambled. These four acorn-shaped ivory pieces could be from a game such as pachisi (a board game that originated in India). The Tang Shipwreck is a 9th century vessel that was en route from China back to the Middle East when it sank off the coast of Belitung Island in the Java Sea.
