Gambling through the ages

Pastime of the gods

According to legend the gods Poseidon, Zeus and Hades threw a dice before splitting the universe and sharing sea, hell and heaven. However, when it comes to men of flesh and bone the history of gambling and games of chance goes back 40000 years according to archeological evidence. Of all the recorded pursuits of humanity, gambling is probably one of the oldest and it is quite possible that poker and live blackjack evolved from one of those ancient gambling practices. Objects that looks like dice and which has been made out of animal bones was discovered, which is supposed to be at least 40000 years old. Further proof of the widespread occurrence of gambling in ancient times is cave drawings. Several dice-like objects have been uncovered in the ruins of Pompeii and even more, interestingly it seems that some of them have been rigged to favor certain numbers. With such an early start it is not surprising that live poker and live blackjack is so popular on online casino sites.

The Chinese contribution

Archeological evidence suggests that as far back as 2300 B.C. the Chinese used tiles to play some type of gambling game. There is also some proof of Greek gambling taking place as early as 1200 B.C. This happened mostly among the Greek military although gambling was illegal at that time. It is clear that modern gambling practices such as roulette and live blackjack have come a long way. Another very ancient culture Egypt also were known to be early gamblers as far back as 1500 B.C. because ivory dice were found in Thebes which dates back to that time. Most other ancient cultures also deserve to be mentioned in relation to gambling such as India, Rome, China and Japan. With such an early start it is not surprising that modern gambling has become such a widespread enterprise with especially online casinos which is growing in popularity. Live poker and live blackjack continue to attract millions of gamblers each year. The modern day gambling industry has grown into a billion dollar a year industry.

Claudius and gambling

According to history one of the rulers of Rome, Claudius has actually redesigned his carriage so that there would be more place for him to throw dice. This must be one of the oldest recorded instances of mobile gambling, something which Claudius could engage in wherever he traveled. It just proofs that gamblers were always innovative and likewise emerging technologies makes gambling increasingly accessible. Especially live casino with games such as live roulette and live blackjack is often played on mobile devices. There was another ruler Caligula who accumulated huge gambling debts but his solution was to simply confiscate his knight’s property to cover those gambling debts. It is clear that there was no gambling regulation in those days, unlike today where there are very strict regulations in place. This also applies to online casinos and the live dealer casinos where games such as live blackjack and live poker are played.