From dice games in Ancient Mesopotamia to modern casinos, humans have long been attracted to the thrill of risking something of value for a chance at more. Over time, casino have changed in response to cultural shifts and technological innovations.
Italy saw its inaugural modern-style casino established during the 17th century when Venice’s Ridotto opened for business to provide a safe gambling environment.
Ancient China
Chinese gambling dates back thousands of years with records showing primitive games and betting on animal fights. Furthermore, Chinese were responsible for inventing paper as well as creating cards featuring kings and queens on each face – precursors to modern playing cards with faces featuring kings and queens on them.
Gambling quickly gained worldwide acceptance and took on increasingly structured forms. Ancient Greeks played “Kubos,” an exciting dice-throwing game using square boards with numbers on them; Romans enjoyed tabula.
Venice experienced the first casinos during the 17th century, featuring regulated gambling houses that offered games like basset, faro and baccarat regulated to limit illegal street and carnival gambling while drawing wealthy patrons with membership fees and dress codes.
Ancient Rome
Romans were known for their fondness for games of chance. They enjoyed poker, baccarat, and roulette – as well as wagering on gladiatorial battles at the Colosseum!
However, gambling was considered illegal under Roman law and so gamblers devised clever methods of circumventing it – gambling chips.
Clay tokens could be used in place of actual denarii or sesterces to enable gamblers to avoid paying four times their wager in fines – and keep players playing longer too! This was the start of what we now refer to as casino gaming; its roots date back millennia! 888casino’s story began in 1997 but its roots reach further back.
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt, with its Pharaohs and mystifying rituals, saw gambling become part of everyday life. From dice games to betting on chariot races and gladiator fights, gambling was interwoven with social norms and offered participants a glimpse into their passions, dreams, and ambitions.
Egypt remains alluring today through casino games like Egyptian-themed slot machines that transport players back in time, immersing them into an ancient era filled with pyramids and hieroglyphics. Egyptians were familiar with senet, one of the earliest board games that combined elements of chance and strategy – it even played an integral part in ancient Egyptian funeral rituals! A pair of dice and gaming boards have even been discovered from ancient tombs!
Medieval Europe
Long before Las Vegas made headlines for being the neon capital of casino gaming, Europe reigned supreme as an arena for gambling. Although European societies generally viewed gambling with mistrust and moral condemnation, card games had already found their way over from China into Britain by the 15th century and were immensely popular there.
Taverns were places where men would frequently gamble away their clothing and valuables in games of chance, which gave rise to widespread use of pawnbrokers as a means of providing security against these losses.
Medieval Britain saw Parliament pass laws to prevent apprentices, agricultural workers, labourers, and craft workers from gambling; however this wasn’t enforced against royalty such as King Henry VII who often gambled and ran up large debts as a result!
Modern Day
As casinos gradually became part of a legitimate industry, they gradually established rules and formalized the experience. The first regulated gambling house emerged in 17th-century Italy – Ridotto establishments played an instrumental role in changing people’s perception of gambling; placing it alongside other leisure activities.
As America experienced economic distress in the early 20th century, several states legalized gambling as a form of relief – opening up opportunities for modern casinos like Nevada’s famed Las Vegas Strip to emerge.
As human society evolves, casino games will likely reflect this diversity and rich history of human society. Human beings are drawn to testing our luck for potential rewards!