A Roman dodecahedron or Gallo-Roman dodecahedron is a small hollow object made of copper alloy which has been

cast Cast may refer to: Music * Cast (band), an English alternative rock band * Cast (Mexican band), a progressive Mexican rock band * The Cast, a Scottish musical duo: Mairi Campbell and Dave Francis * ''Cast'', a 2012 album by Trespassers William ...

into a regular dodecahedral shape: twelve flat pentagonal faces, each face having a circular hole of varying diameter in the middle, the holes connecting to the hollow center.

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

dodecahedra date from the 2nd to 4th centuries AD and their purpose remains unknown.

History

2018 Rheinisches Landesmuseum Bonn, Dodekaeder & Ikosaeder

The first dodecahedron was found in 1739. Since then, at least 116 similar objects have been found in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Hungary, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Ranging from in size. A Roman icosahedron has also been discovered after having long been misclassified as a dodecahedron. This icosahedron was excavated near Arloff in Germany and is currently on display in the Rheinisches Landesmuseum in Bonn.

Purpose

No mention of dodecahedrons has been found in contemporary accounts or pictures of the time. Speculative uses include as survey instruments for estimating distances to (or sizes of) distant objects, or devices for determining the optimal sowing date for winter grain. Several dodecahedra were found in coin hoards, providing evidence that their owners either considered them valuable objects, or believed their only use was connected with coins. It has also been suggested that they may have been religious artifacts, or even fortune-telling devices. This latter speculation is based on the fact that most of the examples have been found in

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, language, morals and way of life in a uniquely Gaulish context ...

sites. Smaller dodecahedra with the same features (holes and knobs) and made from gold have been found in South-East Asia along the

Maritime Silk Road The Maritime Silk Road or Maritime Silk Route is the Maritime history, maritime section of the historic Silk Road that connected Southeast Asia, China, the Indian subcontinent, the Arabian peninsula, Somalia, Egypt and Europe. It began by the 2n ...

. They have been used for decorative purposes and the earliest items appear to be from the Roman epoch. Examples include those uncovered in

Óc Eo Óc Eo ( Vietnamese) is an archaeological site in modern-day Óc Eo commune of Thoại Sơn District in An Giang Province of southern Vietnam. Located in the Mekong Delta, Óc Eo was a busy port of the kingdom of Funan between the 2nd century BC ...

Louis Malleret Louis Malleret (1901–1970) was a French archaeologist. Malleret together with Paul Levy are credited with first reporting the archeological site An Son in Southern Vietnam. References 1901 births 1970 deaths French archaeologists Pe ...

, who concluded that the objects represented Mediterranean influence on Funan by trade. Similar decorative gold dodecahedrons have been found in the

Pyu city-states , conventional_long_name = Pyu city-states , common_name = Pyu City States , era = Classical antiquity , status = City , event_start = Earliest Pyu presence in Upper Burma , year_start = c. 2nd century BCE , date_start = , event_en ...

and Khao Sam Kaeo.

References

External links

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"History Mystery: Ancient Dodecahedron's Purpose Remains Secret"
by Alexandria Hein, Fox News, June 10, 2011 Archaeological artefact types

Dodecahedron In geometry, a dodecahedron (Greek , from ''dōdeka'' "twelve" + ''hédra'' "base", "seat" or "face") or duodecahedron is any polyhedron with twelve flat faces. The most familiar dodecahedron is the regular dodecahedron with regular pentagon ...

Platonic solids 1739 archaeological discoveries