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Painted wooden six-dice game players

2018/4/9 16:10:24

Western Han Dynasty

Height of figurine 27.5 and 28.5cm, length of chessboard 29.2cm

Unearthed from Han Dynasty tomb at Mozuizi, Wuwei City

Preserved in Gansu Provincial Museum

Two six-dice game players are kneel sitting face-to-face with white color painted on their hands and face, black lines drawn the outline of face, grey belt-fasten long gown decorated with white strips all over and black bends at collar, sleeve opening and garment front opening. One of the players puts his right arm on the knee, left arm raises up to the chest and looks at the front horizontally seems to speak to the other : “You first, please.” ; the other player stretches out his right arm forward dice in hand seeming to place his dice onto the dice board. The dice board between the two players is painted black as its background, dice lattice in white line and a checkerboard under the dice board for casting dice in black color. Although the players are carved in very simple image, the intense atmosphere between them can be felt.

What these two elder players are playing is a six-dice game which is a quite popular in ancient China. The creation of this game can date back to at least the Shang Dynasty and becomes popular in the Warring States Period according to the historical records. The related records preserved in “Calling Back the Spirit of the Dead” from “The Songs of Chu” shows that the six-dice game has already been popular in Jingchu area (today`s Hubei Province) and spread widely in the Qin and Han Dynasties. A specific post was even established in the imperial court of the Western Han Dynasty for those who were good at playing this kind of game thus these people shared a very high status in social life.

This set of six-dice game players engraved by concise technique, in vivid posture and simple but elegant colors including black, white and grey which strengthening the stereo feeling reflects the rich content of daily life in the Hexi Corridor, the well-developed culture and the height of level of the woodcarving art in the Han Dynasty.

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