The secrets of ancient Rome are becoming fewer and fewer, but they continue to bring us joy from time to time in the form of discoveries. An example of this is concrete, which was used thousands of years ago and continues to withstand harsh weather conditions. Another is the dozens of Roman forts found by Cold War spy satellites. Elements such as coins also allow us to see the steps of the Romans around the world. When something new is found, its usefulness is more or less obvious, except for one particular object: dodecahedra.

We have dozens of them, they continue to be found from time to time and remain a secret.

like new. The first of these dodecahedra were found in 1739, and since then about 130 have been found in various parts of Europe. It is typically found in countries such as France, Germany, Hungary, the United Kingdom, and most examples are in Gallo-Roman regions. The interesting thing is that they come in various sizes and are usually dodecahedra (figures with 12 faces) as well as an icosahedron (20 faces) with a perfect aesthetic condition: they do not show wear and do not have inscriptions consisting of letters or numbers. This icosahedron was found in Germany, by the way.

golden dodecahedra. The composition of these objects, mostly made of copper, is quite interesting. X-ray fluorescence analysis of one of them revealed that it consisted of 75% copper, 18% lead and 7% tin, and ranged in size from 4 to 11 centimeters. Although they have similar shapes and have protrusions and holes of different diameters on their faces, there do not appear to be standardized measurements or a single composition.

On the other hand, slightly smaller dodecahedrons with the same physical properties but made of gold have also been found. They appear to date from the same period and were found along the Maritime Silk Road. This can give us a few clues: Either the Romans were trading with them and so took the most valuable (gold) to Southeast Asia, or they were of great personal value to them.

Norton Disney. The last of these mysterious objects was found in the town of Norton Disney, near the British county of Lincolnshire, and is ranked 33rd among those found in Great Britain, taking the cake in terms of the number of such objects. Again, as its discoverers pointed out, it is completely intact and shows no signs of wear.

This dodecahedron weighs approximately 245 grams and is 8 centimeters wide. Since it was found in an area containing ceramic pieces dating from the Iron Age to the Roman period, it is currently being investigated whether it has other features that could give us clues about the period in which it is dated. And the idea is to return to the dig this summer.

No historical record. The fascinating thing about these objects is that we found more than 100 of them, but curiously we have no idea what they were used for. For the most part, they’re in pretty good shape, but there are elements that confuse researchers. One of these is that since they do not have a standard size, it is unlikely that they were used as a measurement element on banners or as military decoration. And their shapes are not the same because the holes on the faces are different sizes.

Moreover, and this is most important, no reference to these dodecahedra can be found in Roman documents, which may indicate that they were not an object of value to them, although another find other than gold dodecahedra could refute this: some of them were found in coin deposits, so either their owners valued them found or their use was related to coins. Maybe to control the diameters and thus the different sizes of the holes in the dodecahedron?

We can only theory. This is all speculation, but due to the lack of documentation and records, that’s all researchers can do. We have already noted that there are some theories that are not valid, but others may be quite plausible. For example, the possible use of dodecahedra in games has been theorized, although their good condition precludes this. These could have been weapons, but more would have been discovered and the absence of any markings would rule that out.

Another theory suggests that they were used as religious artifacts or to perform rituals, and a simpler explanation is that they may have been part of an exam that goldsmiths had to pass to enter a guild. Another interesting theory is that they were a tool for measuring the light or position of the Sun to calculate important dates.

Ultimately, what is clear is that these are objects that require great mastery of metal, but not all of these theories can be both true and untrue at the same time. Until a record is found, we can only guess what these interesting objects were used for. What is known is that they date from the 2nd to the 4th centuries AD, but unless we can find an instruction manual telling us what they are for 1,700 years, it seems unlikely that we will ever find the key.

Image | Kleon3

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