There are countless games and games that spanned the centuries and still exist today. Although we do not know the origins of games, we ended up learning through a family member who teaches us how to play. This happens, most of the time, orally, with an older person telling a child how to play or play. The same can be said of the pebbles game.
The game of pebbles has several other names around the world, being also known as "five marias", "bone game", “onente”, “bato”, “arriós”, “roofs”, “cuttlefish”, “necara”, “Chinas y Chinos”, “Knucklebones”, “Osselet” or “bugalhos”. The game consists of throwing one of the five objects that make it up by hand and picking up the others that were left on the ground.
According to Brazilian folklorist Câmara Cascudo, the game of stones has more than twenty centuries! Its origin is not known for sure. The Greeks called the game very devastating, and the Romans, of Pentalia, for being played with five goals.
Officially in the Roman Empire it was known as game of bones, for using bones. This indicates that the game can be performed with different materials, such as bones, stones, metals or, as is common in Brazil, with small bags filled with sand or rice.
The fact that the soldiers of the Legions of the Roman army have spread to different locations around the world may explain the expansion of the game to various locations. In Brazil, the joke possibly came with the Portuguese during the colonization period. This may also explain the name of five marys, since the Portuguese were Catholic.
One of the ways to play is as follows:
1st Phase
- Throw the five pebbles on the floor;
- Choose one of them, which will be thrown into the air, while taking one of the four, without touching the others. Wait for the one on top to fall into the same hand as well. Repeat with all others on the floor.
2ªPhase
- Throw the five pebbles and take one of them again;
- Throw the pebbles in the air and take the others two by two.
3ªPhase
- Throw the five pebbles on the ground and take one of them;
- Throw the pebbles in the air and pick up first one and then three at once.
4ªPhase
- Throw the five pebbles and take one of them;
- Throw it into the air and, while it comes back, catch all four at once, quickly trimming the first one as well.
This is one way to play, but there are several others. It depends on your creativity to change the game! What do you think about calling other children to join you in the game?
By Tales Pinto
Master in History
