Roman dice - tesserae

Roman dice (tesserae) were commonly six-sided, roughly cubic, and crafted from bone, antler, or bronze. While often visually asymmetrical or lopsided, they typically followed the same numbering convention as modern dice (opposite sides add to seven).

Romans also used tali, or knucklebones with four usable sides, often for gambling. Romans played a gambling game called Tali using the natural ankle bones (astragali) of sheep or goats. Tali was a common game in Ancient Rome. It originated in Greece and Egypt and was played with four tali.

Largely lost to time, what is known was that all combinations were split into three categories and one sub group. The highest value cast was 'Venus: 6,4,3,1'. Then 'Senio: 6,#,#,#' (Six and any combination of numbers.) then 'Vultures: 6,6,6,6 / 4,4,4,4 / 3,3,3,3'. Lowest roll was 'Canis: 1,1,1,1 (Lowest value Vulture.) Anyone who cast Canis (Dogs) or Senio put 4 coins in the pot, the first player to roll a Venus would take the pot. Despite strict laws, gambling was a popular pastime in ancient Rome, enjoyed by everyone from slaves to emperors. Romans were hard core gamblers on dice, board games, and sporting events like chariot races and gladiator contests.