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Play Workshop Production Ceremony AI Reconstruction Charity Exhibition Facts

The Shahr-i Sokhta Board Game © ™
A Game That World Must Know About
Under The Game Intelligence publication rights
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The Shahr-i Sokat Game

The Discovery
with scholarly rulesets

So far, more than 100 of these types of ancient intellectual games have been discovered in the Middle East with different patterns, shapes and materials such as wood, clay and stone. In the ancient times, intellectual games of twenty houses were of interest to everyone and they played this game in every culture and it was not specific to one culture.

The Oldest Complete Board Game
In the ancient cemetery of Shahr-i Sokhta in Sistan, a remarkable discovery was made within grave number 731, an ancient game that represents the oldest complete collection of its kind found to date. While it's important to note that this isn't the world's first or oldest board game, it stands as the oldest complete board game ever discovered so far, meaning that it includes a set with all known pieces and dice, dating back approximately 4,600 to 4,700 years. Some historians believe that the El-Mahasna game set from Egypt, dating back to 3500 BCE, could be the oldest, though the set doesn't have dice, and we're unsure of the exact type of game, whether it's complete, or if it's even a game at all. However, there are only two game sets that we know for sure are complete: The Royal Game of Ur and the Shahr-i Sokhta board game. Both of these have strong historical evidence backing them. The Shahr-i Sokhta game is probably 100-200 years older than the Royal Game of Ur, as it was more localised. On the other hand, the Royal Game of Ur was found in a royal tomb, meaning it was not as localised. We know that the game was introduced from the east (southeast Iran or India) to the west. Still, both games come from the same general time period.

A New History
What sets the Shahr-i Sokhta game apart is being the earliest known example of a 20-square game with a complete set. This makes it an invaluable resource in understanding the history and evolution of board games and it has the potential to reshape the history of board games. This is the only board game in history before chess where each piece has its own meaning. It is considered to be the ancestor of chess and backgammon. For the first time, the game board was reconstructed and introduced with scholarly rulesets that likely they have been played during that era. The scientific paper was written by Sam Jelveh from the University of Essex, School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering and Dr. Hossein Moradi, Supervisor of residential area excavation at Shahr i Sokhta.

Credit: Video by Mohammad Reza Rokni (Artist)

Official Ceremony

On November 6th, 2023, an official ceremony was held at the National Museum of Iran to unveil the Shahr-i Sokhta game. In that ceremony, the decoding and reconstruction of the ancient game of Shahr-i Sokhta was discussed.

The Shahr-i Sokat Game

The Game With Barcode
 The Game Set
The Shahr-i Sokhta board game is housed in the National Museum of Iran, within the Museum of Ancient Iran department. Visitors can either scan the game to play it digitally or play the physical game in the museum's workshop. The complete set of 27 pieces in their current condition.


Credit: Photos taken by Dr Rohama Bordbar

The scientific paper & AI

A Cambridge-based company, The Game Intelligence, uses a scientific paper about the Shahr-i Sokhta board game to help AI understand ancient board games in general. The DeepTGi application employs a machine learning model to uniquely identify, analyse, and simulate ancient rules. The model is trained with unique and rare data that can accurately identify any fraction and also uses complex iconography for game pieces, enabling further analysis of the objects. The application is simple to use, with its main and only focus being ancient board games, and the results are straightforward and to the point.

As the game wasn't culturally specific, we can never know how it was first introduced and played. The most important aspect is to understand the game pieces and the game in general. We should not limit ourselves to one rule; many rules can be introduced based on scientific research that identifies meanings behind the game pieces. AI can introduce suggested rules, but again, these are not necessarily the rules the game was played with in ancient times, as it's impossible to find the exact rule, and with AI, we are not introducing revolutionary ideas. You can also suggest ancient rules in a traditional way, such as the Royal Game of Ur rules and the Shahr-i Sokhta board game rules with scholarly rulesets, as both methods (AI and traditional) achieve the same goal. When introducing ancient rules, we should consider both historical evidence and the game’s playability. AI should concentrate more on understanding the ancient game in general rather than focusing on how ancient games were played, as we already have a good understanding.

Exhibition

Exhibition - When Myth Becomes History (In Italy)
The Game of 20 (Il Gioco dei 20)

The Game of 20 Italy

The latest research from the UNESCO Bronze Age site is featured in a premier Italian photographic exhibition. The exhibition was open to the public from July 13 to 28, 2024, at the Monastery of the Olivetani in Lecce, titled "Shahr-i Sokhta: When Myth Becomes History." With 141 photos, explanatory panels, and a detailed reconstruction of the latest scientific evidence, the exhibition retraces, in an Italian premiere, the stages of the studies conducted on the UNESCO site. The Game of 20 was also one of the 141 scientific research panels displayed. Panel number 42 briefly describes the type of game, the meaning of each piece, and the ancient rules.

Workshop In Cambridge, London and Tehran

Waterstones - Cambridge 2023

For the first time, the ancient game of the Shahr-i Sokhta was introduced and played in the famous library in the city of Cambridge.

The Shahr-i Sokat Game In Cambridge

Bergamot Cafe - London 2023

Introduced and played exclusively in London 2023.

The Shahr-i Sokat Game In London

National Museum of Iran - Tehran 2024

Introduced and played for 14 days

The Shahr-i Sokat Game In Tehran

Naroon - London 2024

Introduced and played exclusively in London 2024.

The Shahr-i Sokat Game In London

Credit: Photo taken by Elias Hakim

AI Deep Dive Podcast

Thanks to Ramón Torrente for this AI-generated podcast about the Shahr-i Sokhta board game based on The scientific research.

Credit: Photos in video taken by Elias Hakim

Setup and Gameplay Summary

The Very First Version

Only 6+1 copies were initially scientifically reconstructed by a British family business in England. The videos below show it being played on the very first scientific reconstruction of the game in the world for study. The size, look, and feel closely resemble the original copy from 4,700 years ago, and the entire set is made from Sissoo wood.

Setup

Gameplay Summary

Production

The physical copy available to order worldwide with the best quality, meeting museum standards. Please note that we are selling hand-made life-size game sets with ancient rules derived from recent scientific research. When you purchase it, Please look for the TGi ( The Game intelligence) Approval card inside the box, which indicates that the entire set, including the rules, is authentic and scientific.

The Shahr-i Sokat Game

New Batch Coming Soon

Digital Game

The Game of 20 Origin: The Shahr-i Sokhta board game is a strategic race game. The goal is to navigate all your pieces around and off the board before your opponent. You can also capture your opponent's pieces by landing on them. You can only play against AI.

The game helps you understand and guide the ancient rules and how the game might have been played 4700 years ago. It’s the oldest version, possibly the origin, of the game of twenty, with all complete sets, and each player has 12 pieces to race and fight in 12 spaces. The best way to understand the rules is to play them yourself.

Play | Rules

Help children and young adults

Our last workshop in London donated all profits to The Popli Khalatbari Charitable Foundation (PKCF) to help children in Sistan, a registered charity (UK Charity Registration No: 1067931). The mission of PKCF is to bring hope and opportunity to disadvantaged children and young adults through the provision of education, vocational training, healthcare, food, and emergency disaster relief. PKCF aim to provide youth with the opportunity to build bright, promising futures for themselves, their families, and their communities. Youth in Iran are at the heart of our mission.
Here at Persian Wonders, with every board game and workshop ticket sold, the profit will help children and young adults in Iran.
DONATION RECEIPT Number: 5827

Facts

  • The game is complete, comprising 27 pieces not 60 or 25. These pieces do not belong to any other board game. Interestingly, another board game was also discovered near Shahr-i Sokhta, sharing similarities in its pieces.

  • There is no evidence of any paint on the board. The pieces do not display a wide or bizarre variety of shapes but are instead distinguished by geometric forms that were recently analysed. Some pieces even appear on local pottery, unlike those found in Ur.

  • The ancient rules (Scholarly rulesets) proposed for the Shahr-i Sokhta game are very similar to those of the Royal Game of Ur but slightly more strategic due to the unique pieces. It is possible that the Royal Game of Ur is a simplified version of the Game of 20.

  • There is no way of knowing exactly how this game, or any other ancient board game, was played (with or without the help of AI), as the original rules have been lost to history forever. However, we now understand the meaning of each piece and have categorised them. When introducing ancient rules, we should consider both historical evidence and the game’s playability. The focus should not be on the movement of each piece, as thousands of ancient rules can be suggested, all of which can be correct and fun to play. It is impossible to determine exactly how the game was played. We should instead focus on the meaning of each piece and understand the game set in general.

  • This game is a two-player racing game with an average duration of 30–45 minutes.

  • This is the only board game in history before chess where each piece has its own meaning. It is considered to be the ancestor of chess and backgammon.

support and sold by

Ancient game of Shahr-i Sokhta with support of UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Shahr-i Sokhta, Institute of Cultural Heritage and Tourism and National Museum of Iran



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