We need to throw out the western version of history and start over. But this will not happen because of too many egos, to much money, and too many reputations will be on the line.

Although these board game designs may be of considerable antiquity, firm evidence is sparse. For cruciform boards, the monumental Pachisi or Chaupat boards of the Moghul ruler Akbar (1542–1605), designed to accommodate humans as playing pieces, "still represent the earliest secure evidence for the existence of the game in India."[1] Culin found evidence for a Nyout-like game existing in China in the 3rd century AD,[2] though this does not seem to be accepted by Murray.[3] Mayan cross and circle boards have been found on stones from the 7th century AD.[4] Although frequently encountered among the native tribes of North America (particularly as a "quartered circle" design) these boards were not made of durable materials, so generally the writings and collections of European-Americans constitute their earliest attestations.

Text For the past 100 years, scientists have been trying to establish the route which Polynesians used to enter the Central Pacific, which according to geneticists such as Kayser, Bing Su and Mark Stoneking, their time of arrival was about 2,200 years ago into an isolated Pacific archepelago where rapid population expansion occurred, (possibly Hawai'i - Polynesians do assert that their homeland was Hawai'i - maybe we should have listened to them in the first place). These geneticists also determined that Polynesians departed from East Asia (Taiwan, Japan and China) about 6,000 years ago, before Mongoloid expansion in East Asia 5,000 years ago. Linguists also confirm that the time of separation of the Polynesian language from East Asia was about 6,000 years ago. The absence of similarities between Polynesian and Indonesian/Phillippine/Micronesian/Melanesian genes do not suggest that any of these island Archipelagos were interim homelands for Polynesians during this time. Their wherabouts for 3,800 years is therefore a mystery, unless of course the West Coast of America is considered as their interim homeland. There is a great deal of cultural, artefact and genetic evidence that seems to suggest that this possibility has not been given the consideration it deserves. For example; Polynesians used calabashes made from a Native American species of Gourd instead of pottery; they used mats for trade exchange - similar to native tribes of the Canadian coast; they made polished tanged adzes, stone pounders, two piece fish hooks and harpoon heads - none of which have ever been found at Lapita sites, but instead are characteristic of cultures along the West Coast of Canada and North America. It is no coincidence that the people of New Zealand and Coastal Canada share the same unusual custom of rubbing noses together as a form of greeting. Despite this, Canada has never been seriously considered as an interim homeland for Polynesians after leaving Taiwan 6,000 years ago. The map below shows the mtDNA of the Pacific region. It appears that Polynesian females have more in common with Native Americans than any other group on the Pacific rim.

Spondylus was traded by the people of coastal ecuador to the people of further south along the coast to Peru. Spondylus trade is also associated with the obsidian trade in the eastern med. The obsidian trade in the med is also associated with the maritime traders the beaker folk. The beaker folk are associated with Mediterranean megaliths and the beaker culture replaces earlier British cultures and unified Britain around the time of the starting of the henges. Beaker pottery is very similar to the pottery of the lapita people of melanesia. A lapita pot

The lapita people were also obsidian traders and buried thier dead in large burial urns as did the Urnfield culture of Europe, which was a precursor to the beaker culture. The lapita made coil built sand tempered pottery as did the ecuadorians that traded Spondylus shells with the Peruvians that erected that standing stone.

Originally posted by Julie Washington
This is all very interesting, nice thread.

I found a website that explains the game quite thoroughly and has lots of photos. You might check it out.

The ancient Chinese game of Liùbó 六博 or 六簙 (Old Chinese *lĭə̆uk *păk — but see Amritas for more modern reconstructions of these characters), meaning 'six sticks', was immensely popular during the latter part of the Warring States period (476–221 BCE) and throughout the Han dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE), but later faded into oblivion.

However in recent years there have been a considerable number of archaeological discoveries of the remains of Liubo boards and game equipment in tombs dating to the Warring States and Han dynasty periods, as well as a number of funerary statuettes of Liubo players, and very many depictions of Liubo players in tomb decorations from these periods.

I am going to present this archaeological evidence in a series of five (or maybe more) posts :

•Part 1 : Funerary Statuettes of Liubo Players
•Part 2 : Pictures of People playing Liubo
•Part 3 : Pictures of Immortals playing Liubo
•Part 4 : Liubo Boards and Game Equipment
•Part 5 : Liubo Divination
•Part 6 : Liubo Patterns on Mirrors and Coins
•Appendix : Eighteen-Sided Dice
:

Source