In Morocco, archaeologists may have uncovered evidence of a 1,200-year-old strategy game whose board was carved into a bathhouse.
After examining a stone step in a medieval bathhouse in Walīla, archaeologists concluded that carvings on the step were a tāb, or sīg, board used to play the strategy game still enjoyed today across the Middle East and North Africa, according to research from Cambridge University.
Researchers say the holes in the step of the bathhouse could mark North Africa's oldest known evidence of the strategy game. The carving was identified in an Idrisid-era bathhouse, which was built sometime between 700 and 800 C.E.
They say it was cut into the upper step beside a cold-water pool, where people entering or leaving the water could easily see it, per Archaeology Magazine.
The find is unusual in part because it can be dated with relative confidence. Carved game boards found on long-used buildings or paving are often difficult to date because those surfaces may have remained in use for centuries.
At Walīla, however, the bathhouse in question had fallen out of use by the 10th or 11th century. Coins, pottery, other artifacts, and radiocarbon evidence helped researchers establish that timeline.
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The simple pattern of holes cut into stone shows how people spent their downtime, what forms of entertainment they enjoyed, and how communal spaces were used.
After the researchers published their findings, they underscored their importance by saying "the board's design… makes it the earliest known evidence of this game in North Africa. This case study sheds light on how games intersected with communal life and public spaces in early medieval North Africa."
Because the game of tāb showed up in writings many years later, finds like this help researchers trace both its spread and how long it has endured.
Beyond identifying the game, the discovery offers a window into everyday life more than 1,200 years ago. Medieval bathhouses were gathering places in addition to places to wash, suggesting that people may have prioritized socializing at these spaces and played games in front of others.
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