Ancient Greek Games

We've been learning about the different games that the Greeks played for entertainment and had the opportunity to have a go at some of them! As we played each one, we thought about the similarities with games that we play today.

Toy Soldiers
Each child sets up an army of toy soldiers. Players take turns trying to roll marbles into their opponents' armies. If a soldier falls to the ground, it is dead and removed from play. If it falls on another soldier, it is wounded and can continue for the next round.

Knucklebones

To play, a child places four knuckle bones on the ground, keeping one as the "jack." They toss the jack into the air and pick up one knuckle bone before the jack before hits the ground/or they catch it. Play continues in the same way until they have picked up all the knuckle bones or drop a bone. Other variations include trying to pick up groups of two or three knuckle bones or the whole set all at once.

Passé-Boule

One simple game involved trying to throw a ball, made of an inflated pig's bladder, through a hole set into the ground. We didn't want to make lots of holes in the field so we used hoops instead!

Ephedrismos
Two players face off, taking turns throwing a stones at an upright stone some distance away, attempting to knock it over. When a player does not knock over the stone with his throw, he must be given a forfeit. The unsuccessful player's eyes are covered as they attempt to run to the stone and knock it over. The round is over when the player touches the stone, and the throwing resumes.

Abarisa

Each team has a home base. One attacker and one defender from each team call, "Abarisa," before leaving their team's home base. The attackers cross into enemy territory and try to reach their home, while the defenders try to tag the attackers and send them to jail. To free a teammate, the jailed player's team must call tage them. The game is over when the team touches the opponent's home base and cries, "Abarisa!"