Knucklebones

Knucklebones are small ankle bones, the astragali, usually from sheep or goats, used since antiquity both as a game of skill and as a divination tool. Each of their four differently shaped sides was given a value, making them the ancestors of dice. In Greece and Rome, some oracles worked by casting astragali, each combination pointing to a written answer. Today they are made of metal or plastic as a children’s game.