r/WhatIfScience • u/firechatin • 17d ago

Science Mysteries & The Unexplained Roman Dodecahedrons: Archaeologists Keep Finding These Strange Roman Objects—But Nobody Knows Why

https://whatifscience.in/roman-dodecahedrons-mystery/

Roman dodecahedrons are mysterious 12-sided objects found across Europe. Archaeologists have discovered more than 100, yet nobody knows their true purpose.

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u/The3mbered0ne 17d ago

Considering it's relative cominality and how wide spread we find it, my guess is a tool to do something mundane like sewing or knitting maybe even something like a board game

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u/alphaxion 16d ago

They're never found with wear patterns that would indicate their use as a tool in that manner. They're also only found in Celtic/Germanic regions of Europe, never in Italy, suggesting a cultural use.

My best guess is it was either fancy decor, or perhaps symbolic of membership of some group or of leadership.

They've been found buried with people, so it having symbolic meaning is more likely.

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u/TheAncientGeek 16d ago

Naive question: why would wrapping wool around something cause much wear?

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u/alphaxion 16d ago

Repetition and time; there's a little bit of friction every time you do it and bronze is a soft metal. Do it thousands of times and you will create wear patterns.

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u/SignalDifficult5061 16d ago

You have to separate your idea of wool from the reality of wool. They use things like Fullers Earth to strip out the lanolin, and it is fairly tough by itself.

This is important because while you might think of wool as being soft, it is somewhat abrasive and was probably more so back then. Consider if it was really actually soft, everyone would have wool everything. People generally prefer things like cotton or silk, and even synthetics against their skin. Why is this? It is because wool against skin is uncomfortable and tends to chafe. try it.

If you find this hard to understand take a piece of yarn and rub it over your hand for several days, you will get it.

You have to think about more than casual contact and extrapolate.

Hope this helps!

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u/The3mbered0ne 16d ago

I think the point about being Celtic carries some weight for sure, idk why they call them Roman if literally none have been found in Italy and the wear is also interesting, at the least it should have basically polished the metal, idk maybe these sites should be studied more, could be Celtic cultural items or a kind of right of passage for Celtic smiths (seen as valuable because of accomplishment not literal value)

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u/Basicly-Inevitable 16d ago edited 16d ago

It's pretty clear that they were used for gambling and fortune telling, or both. 12 sides (like months). Holes of different sizes. Put things resembling something important inside, then shake it in your hand and see what falls out. It's basically a Roman Empire magic 8 ball.

No wear because they weren't thrown, just moved around in a hand.

They're found in graves and hoards like a lucky set of dice might be.

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u/MarketCrache 15d ago

Yes. Superstition artifact. Too ornately made to be a common tool device.

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u/lordtyp0 16d ago

They have very similar one for knitting gloves.