Ancient Stone Game Boards Unearthed in Libya's Ptolemais Ruins

A Game Carved in Stone
Ptolemais was no small settlement. Founded in the late 4th or 3rd century BCE, it stood as one of the largest ancient Greek cities in a region layered with Greek, Roman, and Libyan influences. It remained a living city until the Arab conquest in the 7th century CE. The game boards, however, are thought to have been carved after the city had already ceased to function — likely by herders who used the elevated ruins as vantage points to watch their animals.

The boards come in a variety of formats — three-by-three, five-by-five, six-by-six, and seven-by-seven grids, along with rectangular layouts. Archaeologist Zofia Kowarska of the University of Warsaw, who has been cataloguing the boards, links them to seega, or sija, a traditional game with versions played across Africa and the Middle East. The exact rules remain unknown, though the game bears a loose resemblance to checkers or tic-tac-toe. What makes the discovery particularly touching is that some residents of the nearby modern town of Tolmeita still recall playing similar games, though that living memory is slowly disappearing as mobile phones and modern entertainment take over.

Returning After 13 Years
The University of Warsaw team first began working at Ptolemais in 2001, but conflict forced them to abandon the site around a decade later. The Libyan civil war kept them away for 13 years. They finally returned in December 2024, resuming work on the city's acropolis and surrounding structures.

This time, the team is using 3D modelling to map buildings and plan future excavations more precisely. The game board catalogue is just one thread in what promises to be a much richer rediscovery of a city that witnessed centuries of human life, change, and — as it turns out — play.