TEFAF - Ancient Art

Seventeen bone disc-shaped tokens carved with scenes in low relief. The obverses show a variety of images including portraits, caricatures, deities, actors, buildings, a ship and a basket with pinecones. The reverses of thirteen counters are inscribed with Greek names and Roman numerals, whilst the others bear no inscription. The reverses also have collection labels, many dating back to the 19th century, and some more recent. General chips to edges in particular, four counters recomposed with some restoration.

This is an exceptional set of bone tokens, both in terms of size of the collection and the variety of iconography on display. 

The function of these circular tokens has long been a subject for speculation, and they were favourite collectors’ items in the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century. The prevailing modern opinion is that these tokens served as game counters or entrance tickets to the theatre or the games, as opposed to a function such as regulating the distribution of goods (grain etc.), or as money to the poorer members of the population. One theory, put forward by Susan Walker, states that the counters which were numbered on the reverse I-XV were used for a game that originated in post-Roman Alexandria, c.30 BC and were made until the reign of Nero (54-68 AD). These tokens have been found throughout the Roman Empire, all the way up to the Rhine frontier, however the rules of the game are still unknown. Even though the question of their actual purpose is not yet answered, they still constitute a fascinating aspect of the minor arts in the ancient world.