History of Games

Games are an integral aspect of human culture and history.  The role of games in culture is comparable to art and music and appear to have developed at the same point in our history.  Also, like art and music, games have often been associated with supernatural and religious observations.  In this class we will trace the archaeology and history of games from the earliest evidence in antiquity to the present.  Special emphasis will be given to the origins of modern classics (chess, backgammon, playing cards, etc.) in ancient China, Mesopotamia, India, and Egypt, although we will also investigate games of African and European origin.