As a toy, marbles are among the world’s oldest games, dating back about 3,000 years. Ancient Romans and Egyptians played marbles. Native Americans enjoyed marble games, too. Medieval folks in England and German got down on their bellies to shoot little ceramic or carved stone balls.

In 1503, the town council of Nuremberg, Germany limited the playing of marble games to a meadow outside the town. It is unknown where marbles were first manufactured. A German glassblower invented marble scissors, a device for making marbles, in 1846. Ceramic marbles entered inexpensive mass production in the 1870s.

The antecedent of the marble was probably the nut, polished by youngsters in ancient times into a smooth surface for playing games. Both Greek and Roman youths played games with small balls made from clay, and marbles were discovered in the tomb of the young Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamen.

Ollies – marbles – a total mystery where this word came from – possibly an adaptation from the verb to roll (rollies) with a shift in pronunciation.

Marbles is a game that involves rolling marbles on a sidewalk, inside a marked circle. Players shoot or flick their marbles with their thumbs, aiming “shooters,” larger marbles, at the smaller ones, and trying to keep their own marbles inside the circle while hitting other players’ marbles out of it.

Other slang names for bigger marbles include boulder, masher, popper, bumbo, bumboozer, bowler, tonk, godfather and giant.

The earliest known marbles were made of stone, marble or clay. Colored glass marbles were used in 15th-century Germany. China and pottery marbles were used in the 1800’s. Varieties of blown glass marbles were available from 1870 to 1890 in many colors and patterns.

Put 5 to 10 other marbles in the centre of the ring to play. When it’s your turn, kneel outside the ring and flick your shooter marble out of your fist with your thumb, trying to hit as many marbles out of the ring. If you knock any marbles out of the ring, keep them and have another turn.

intransitive verb. : to become filled with surprise, wonder, or amazed curiosity marveled at the magician’s skill. transitive verb. : to feel astonishment or perplexity at or about marveled that they had escaped. Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More About marvel.

Hold the marbles up to the light and look for subtle flaws or marks that indicate the age. Older marbles will have certain bubbles or flaws caused by the glass-blowing process. Compare the colors of one type of marble to another.

So, it seems that peoples throughout the ancient world were using marbles for fun just as we do today. The names of games are legion. Bombies, Elephant Stomps, Knuckle Down, Bunny Hole, Kunchey, Leaning Tops, and Grids are just a few of the hundreds of games played.

How to Play Marbles: Draw a circle 3 feet (90cm) wide on a pavement in chalk, or make one out of string if you’re playing indoors on carpet. Choose your shooter marble- this should be bigger than any of your other marbles. Put 5 to 10 other marbles in the centre of the ring to play.

Play Bulls Eye marbles. Draw four circles, each within the next one, and assign each circle a points amount. Give each player an allotted amount of marbles, and take turns shooting them into the ring. Once everyone has shot their marbles, count up your scores to determine a winner.