Roman Dodecahedron

History

The Gallo-Roman Dodecahedron: Objects of Roman Gaul

Key points

  • “Gallo-Roman” refers to Gaul (roughly modern France, Belgium and neighbours) under Roman rule; the objects are also called Gallo-Roman dodecahedra.[W]
  • They were mostly made in Gaul between the 2nd and 4th centuries AD.[W]
  • None has been found in Italy, the Roman heartland.[W][TC]

Where they cluster

Finds come from Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Hungary, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.[W] The Grand Curtius calls them a peculiarity of the north-western provinces “steeped in Celtic traditions”.[GC] Outliers include Deonica in Serbia and fragments in Slovakia, outside the empire's borders.[W][DRAG] See the finds map and list.

Find contexts

ContextNotes
MilitaryCommon where context is known[W]
FuneraryCommon; e.g. Bassenge and Krefeld[W][GC][MF]
Bathse.g. Jublains, France[W][GUIL]
Theatre, temple, houseListed by the Grand Curtius[GC]
Coin hoards, riverbedSeveral[W]

What the distribution suggests

Historian Tibor Grüll argues the absence from Italy, Spain, North Africa and the Middle East weighs against a military tool,[MF] and that the use may have been limited to the Gallo-Roman regions influenced by Gauls or Celts.[LS] This is an inference, not a proven link. For a classic description system see Duval (1981).[DUV]

Hollow bronze dodecahedron found in a house at Aventicum, Switzerland
Found in a house in the Gallo-Roman city of Aventicum (Avenches), Switzerland. Photo: Woudloper, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (resized).

FAQ

Why is it called a Gallo-Roman dodecahedron?

Because most were made in Gaul under Roman rule, in the 2nd–4th centuries AD.

Have any been found in Italy?

No.

Sources

  1. [W] Wikipedia, “Roman dodecahedron” (accessed Oct 2026)
  2. [GC] Grand Curtius, Liège, “Dodecahedron” (collection page)
  3. [TC] S. Tipper, “Beautifully crafted Roman dodecahedron discovered in Lincoln – but what were they for?”, The Conversation, 2 May 2024
  4. [MF] T. Metcalfe, “The Mysterious Bronze Objects That Have Baffled Archaeologists for Centuries”, Mental Floss, 6 Aug 2018
  5. [LS] T. Metcalfe, “Mysterious 12-sided Roman object found in Belgium may have been used for magical rituals,” Live Science, 26 Jan 2023
  6. [DRAG] P. Dragonidesová, “Mysterium Insolutum. Fragments of Roman Dodecahedrons from Hurbanovo and Chotín”, Študijné zvesti AÚ SAV, Suppl. 3, 2025
  7. [GUIL] G. Guillier, R. Delage & P.-A. Besombes, “Une fouille en bordure des thermes de Jublains (Mayenne) : enfin un dodécaèdre en contexte archéologique !”, Revue archéologique de l'Ouest 25, 2008
  8. [DUV] P.-M. Duval, “Comment décrire les dodécaèdres gallo-romains, en vue d'une étude comparée”, Gallia 39(2), 1981, via Persée

Ready to hold one? See our metal Roman dodecahedron replica, cast in solid brass or bronze.