GAMES. - A game is an activity of the higher forms of biological-psychic life in man, which manifests itself both as an outlet for natural physical energies (most evident in children's games) and as a means of expressing the religious and social cohesion of the group, even becoming a spontaneous means of interrupting work life and restoring the physiological and psychic equilibrium of the individual. For this reason, games are found in all civilizations, from the most primitive to the most advanced.
Among primitive peoples, games have their roots in the sacred-magical motive, present in all primitive human groups, which seeks to revitalize the forces of nature through the energy generated by dance, running, or athletic competitions, especially during critical moments of vegetation.
To this animistic motive must be added the social one, in that the cohesion of the group is strengthened by participation in the same ceremony; and in the case of votive games celebrated after a victory, the vital principle of the group is exalted and its vigor renewed.
Setting aside the elegance of games as presented by various religions, we shall mention those used in the classical religions of Rome and Greece.
I. Rome
In Rome, games from the beginning were of an agrarian type, in honor of deities of vegetation, and were celebrated at fixed times, directed by the aediles. Alongside these, there were votive games on the occasion of extraordinary events, directed by the dictator or the consul.As for their type, Roman games were *circenses*, based on gymnastic exercises and races, celebrated in circuses; *munera*, gladiatorial shows on the occasion of funeral honors; *scaenici*, theatrical performances given to placate and honor the gods.
The religious value of the games is evident not only from the assertion of ancient writers—"the first beginning of games was given for the purpose of religious observances" (Livy, VII, 3)—but also from their ceremonial. The great procession (*pompa*) that opened the circenses was led by images or symbols of the gods carried on litters (*fercula*) and began with a sacrifice (Dionysius of Halicarnassus, VII, 70); any error or omission required the repetition of the spectacle (Cicero, *De har. resp.*, 11).
The principal Roman games, listed in chronological order, are: 1) *Ludi Romani* (or *Magni*, or *Maximi*), celebrated from September 4 to 19 in the Circus Maximus in honor of the Capitoline triad (Livy, I, 35). 2) *Ludi Florales*, instituted in 238 B.C. in honor of the goddess Flora; they lasted from April 28 to May 6 and had a free character, intended to stimulate fertility (Ovid, *Fasti*, III, 575 ff.). 3) *Ludi Apollinares*, instituted during the Second Punic War to seek the aid of Apollo, Diana, and Latona, from July 6 to 13; they were entirely of Greek rite and of a scenic nature (Livy, XXV, 12). 4) *Ludi plebeii*, in honor of Jupiter Optimus Maximus, first mentioned in 216 B.C. (id., XXIII, 30) but of more ancient origin. 5) *Ludi Ceriales*, in honor of Ceres as the producer and nurturer of vegetation; they were directed by the plebeian aediles and fell on April 19 (Ovid, *Fasti*, IV, 679 ff.). 6) *Ludi Megalenses*. They began in 194 B.C. on the occasion of the dedication of the temple of Cybele, the Magna Mater, on the Palatine. They were scenic in nature and lasted from April 4 to 10.
Toward the end of the Republic and during the Empire, other games were added: the *Ludi Victoriae Sullanae*, founded by Sulla in 82 B.C.; the *Ludi Victoriae Caesaris*, founded by Caesar in 46 B.C.; and the *Ludi Augustales*, founded by Octavian in 11 B.C.
Special mention must be made of the secular games, the *Ludi saeculares*, an ancient cathartic ceremony to be performed every century, intended to purify the people from physical or spiritual miasmas. This ceremony was renewed by Augustus in 17 B.C., almost as a consecration of the new era of religious and political peace he inaugurated after the civil war. The festival was preceded by three days (May 26, 27, 28) of purifying fumigations (*suffimenta*), the gathering of cereals (*fruges*), and took place from June 11 to 3, with nighttime sacrifices to the *Novensiles*, the *Ilithiae*, and the Earth; and daytime joyous ceremonies dedicated to Jupiter (June 1), Juno (June 2), Apollo and Diana (June 3). Horace composed the carmen that 27 boys and an equal number of girls sang to close the rite.
II. Greece
In Greece, games (*agōnes hieroi*) held great religious-national significance because through them the Hellenic race affirmed its unity despite the political fragmentation of the various city-states. They also served to excite in the Greeks qualities such as strength, courage, and youthful vigor. Games (races and wrestling) always opened with religious ceremonies, included competitions in poetry and eloquence, and awarded as the most coveted prize—of moral significance—a crown of branches from sacred plants.The most important games, all dating back to the first half of the 6th century B.C., toward the close of the Hellenic Middle Ages, are: 1) The Pythian Games, in honor of Apollo, traditionally dating back to the third year of the 49th Olympiad (582 B.C.). They were held in the plain of Crissa, beneath Delphi, initially every nine years, then every four (penteteric), and their essential element was the recitation of the *typikós nómos*, which narrated and represented Apollo’s victory over the serpent Python, the first possessor of the site; later, gymnastic competitions and races were added, modeled on the Olympic Games. The prize for the victors was a laurel branch from Parnassus (Pindar, *Pyth.*, 8, 28). 2) The Nemean Games, in honor of Zeus, traditionally dating back to the fourth year of the 51st Olympiad (573 B.C.), were held in the Valley of Nemea, near the city of Cleonae, and had a funerary character as they commemorated the death of the child Opheltes (Archemorus). They were triterytic and were celebrated in the second and fourth years of each Olympiad. The prize for the victors was a crown of celery (*selinon*; Pindar, *Nem.*, 4, 153). 3) The Isthmian Games, in honor of Poseidon, traditionally dating back to the fourth year of the 49th Olympiad (581 B.C.). The god was said to have instituted them for the death of his son Melicertes. They were held at Scheneus in the Gulf of Corinth, under the presidency of the Corinthians. The Athenians had a special place there, while the Eleans were excluded, perhaps due to commercial rivalry between Elea and Corinth. They were triterytic, meaning they were celebrated in the second and fourth years of each Olympiad. The prize for the victor was a crown of celery.
4) The Olympic Games. These were the oldest and most important, celebrated every four years in the plain of Olympia (penteteric) in honor of the hero-founder Pelops (Pausanias, V, 8, 2), eponymous of the Peloponnese, whose myth intertwines solar motifs (the wheel, a clear solar symbol) and funerary themes (the hero’s tomb existing within the sanctuary of the games).
The traditional historical year in which the Olympic Games were first celebrated dates back to 776 B.C.; this date was established at the close of the 5th century B.C. by the sophist Hippias of Elis, who, in systematically reorganizing the list of Olympic victors, was able to trace back to the first recorded victor of the first Olympic contest: Koroibos. Hippias’s work, somewhat revised and completed by Aristotle and his school, became, about a century later, the basis of chronological systems (*Temata*) and a constant element for dating until 393 A.D., the year in which Theodosius suppressed the Olympic Games.
Five days were devoted to them (Pindar, *O.* V, 6), and they took place around the full moon of the month Parthenios (or Apollonios, if it was an intercalary year) according to the Aeolian-Dorian calendar, corresponding to the month Hekatombion in the Athenian calendar, i.e., July-August.
Nicola Turchi
Regarding the political importance of the Olympic Games, it is worth noting that, according to tradition, from the very first Olympiad, when messengers (στραβώδης) were sent from Olympia to announce the next Olympic Games, a "sacred truce" (ἐκχειρίας) was established among the Greek cities. This truce lasted throughout the duration of the celebrations. During the same period, the area of Olympia, where the sanctuary of Zeus was located, was inviolable to any armed person, and very severe penalties were imposed on transgressors.
At the Olympic Games, while men of all ages and conditions could attend freely, only unmarried girls were admitted among women, as married women were strictly excluded (those who transgressed were thrown from Mount Tymaiion). The only exception was the priestess of Demeter Chamyne, who had her seat facing the Hellanodikai (the judges of the games).
As for the uncertain and much-debated distribution of the various competitions, it is worth briefly noting that on the first day the judges selected the various competitors: men, boys, and horses. Then, before the statue of the formidable Zeus Horkios, the athletes swore an oath of loyalty on the still-smoldering flesh of a sacrificed pig. This same day (which perhaps coincided with the eleventh of the lunar month) was first dedicated to various sacrifices of oxen (βουθυρία) before the great altar of Zeus and, in later centuries, to sacrifices to the twelve major deities (see the list in Herodorus of Heraclea, frg. 29; these were rather to be recognized as the twelve months of the year) erected by Heracles (cf. Herodorus and Pindar, O. V, 6). Then, after a competition of trumpet players, there were "bloody libations" (ἀμυχουρία) at the tomb of Pelops.
The actual competitions (ἀγωνίσματα) began on the second day with the gymnastic contests for boys; on the third day, there were various foot races (στάδιον, δίσκλος, σάκχος) and perhaps also the pentathlon events: long jump (ἀλμα), discus throw (δισχιοβολία), javelin throw (ἀκουστίματα), running (δρόμος), and wrestling (πάλη). At the end of this day, the victors (καλλιθύριοι), not numerous, would ascend to the temple of Zeus and sacrifice their palms and crowns to the god.
On the fourth day, the most beautiful and impressive competitions of the Olympic Games were held: the equestrian events (chariots, quadrigae, and, in later times, mule carts), at the end of which the owners of the horses were solemnly awarded.
Finally, on the fifth day, a solemn procession composed of victors, magistrates, ambassadors from Greek cities, and a huge crowd would go to the Altis, where sacrifices were made at the great altar of Zeus and funeral sacrifices at the tombs of the mythical heroes (Scholia to Pindar, O. V, 11, 33 b, c). On the evening of this solemn day, magistrates and victors would conclude the Olympics with a great banquet in the Prytaneum (Pausanias, V, 15, 12).
### III. Christian Archaeology
It is natural that Christian children generally possessed the same toys and enjoyed the same pastimes as their pagan peers.
In the tombs of children in the underground cemeteries of Rome, articulated dolls made of bone and ivory were found as early as the time of M. A. Boldetti (*Osservazioni sopra i cimiteri*, Rome 1720, pp. 496-97); two were discovered in the cemetery beneath the Viale Regina Margherita (E. Josi, *Cimitero alla sinistra della Via Tiburtina al Viale Regina Margherita*, in *Riv. d'arch. crist.*, 11 [1934], p. 32, fig. 53; p. 213, fig. 74). Bells, bronze bells, were also found as early as Boldetti’s time (op. cit., p. 498), as well as in more recent times affixed to children’s loculi (E. Josi, *Il cimitero di Panfilo*, in *Riv. d'arch. crist.*, 12 [1926], p. 114, fig. 34). In a sarcophagus discovered in a mausoleum of the *Cimitero di Domitilla* were found ivory discs with horses. Boldetti also found small ivory masks in Roman cemeteries (op. cit., p. 504). The great passion that the Romans had for gambling is well known. Even the followers of the new faith were not exempt from it, as is evident from Christian writers. The pamphlet *De aleatoribus* (v.), now dated between 260 and 300, shows that gambling was widespread among Roman faithful at that time. The Council of Elvira, around the year 300, imposed a one-year excommunication on faithful who had gambled with dice for money. In the pseudo-Apostolic canons of the following century, gambling was forbidden to all ecclesiastics. Among Christian antiquities, particular interest is aroused by marble gaming boards, *tabulae lusoriae*, of which a large number have been found almost exclusively in the catacombs and other Christian burials of Rome; these boards, when cut appropriately, served to close the openings of loculi. Each board, divided into two equal sections, bears thirty-six squares, usually marked by letters arranged six by six to form words and phrases often referring to the game itself. The rules of this game are not known with precision. It was undoubtedly a game of dice and counters, involving both chance and skill. Most of these boards date back to the 3rd and 4th centuries, the period when burials in the catacombs were practiced. Moreover, there are not a few examples that bear signs and inscriptions indicating they were made by Christian craftsmen. It must therefore be admitted that these gaming boards, before being used as tomb closures, actually belonged to Christian families.
### IV. In the Middle Ages
Few details have come down to us about the games played in the Middle Ages: generally, chroniclers limit themselves to recording those of a military nature that accompanied some extraordinary event. Others were more closely connected with religious customs, such as the Roman festival of the “chronomania” (v.). In the 13th century, in Padua and Treviso, on the occasion of Pentecost, a popular game called the “diet of honesty” (enclosed in a wooden tower) was organized in the presence of the clergy, with the participation of representatives and banners from neighboring cities. From the 12th to the 16th century, in Venice, a singular symbolic and competitive rite was celebrated, in which high dignitaries of the state participated, commemorating the anniversary of the victory obtained in 1162 over the Patriarch of Aquileia. Many games, even secular ones, traditionally took place in churches and lasted until the Counter-Reformation (for example, the games of May 10 sponsored by the Colonna family in the church of the SS. Apostoli in Rome, attended in 1523 by Pope Clement VII; the fire of Pentecost in the cathedral of Orvieto, etc.).
During the communal period, the taste for gymnastic games revived, to whose educational importance distinguished humanists such as Guarino Veronese and Vittorino da Feltre then turned their attention. Games of chance, deception, and society are repeatedly mentioned in municipal statutes; but those preferred by conventicles and private individuals were, par excellence, dice and tarot (invented by the Arabs and spread in Europe by the Spanish from the 14th century onward). The game of chess also enjoyed great popularity, to which allegorical and astrological meanings were attributed. No mention is made here of the “banned courts” and “courts of love”; yet one cannot omit recalling how the passion for jester-like games was then transmitted to the courts of the Renaissance, including the papal court, down to Leo X and Clement VII.
The medieval games that survived are mostly connected with the festivals of the patrons of individual cities. Others, characteristic of Italian civic custom, such as the Palio of Siena, arose later and enjoyed great success.
For the term “game,” understood as amusement, V. DIVERTIMENTI; understood as gymnastics, V. GINNASTICA; understood as gambling or stock-market games, V. SCOMMESSE E GIOCHI D'AZZARDO.