Ībout 2,000 years ago, in the Roman Empire, a similar game evolved between Roman legionaries entailing the tossing of stone objects as close as possible to other stone objects, which eventually evolved into Italian Bocce, or outdoor bowling.
Bowling games of different forms are also noted by Herodotus as an invention of the Lydians in Asia Minor. Some of these resemble the modern-day jack used in target bowl games. Other balls made of porcelain have also been found, indicating that these were rolled along the ground rather than thrown due to their size and weight. īalls were made using the husks of grains, covered in a material such as leather, and bound with string. What is thought to be a child's game involving porphyry (stone) balls, a miniature trilithon, and nine breccia-veined alabaster vase-shaped figures-thought to resemble the more modern game of skittles-was found in Naqada, Egypt in 1895. Remnants of bowling balls were found among artifacts in ancient Egypt going back to the Egyptian protodynastic period in 3200 BC. The earliest known forms of bowling date back to ancient Egypt, with wall drawings depicting bowling being found in a royal Egyptian tomb dated to 5200 BC and miniature pins and balls in an Egyptian child's grave about 5200 BC. The archeologist conjectured as to the particular arrangement of the items found. (Ex: Bocce Ball, an Italian lawn game)Īrcheologist's drawing of items found in 1895 in an ancient tomb in Naqada, Egypt, thought to resemble the more modern game of skittles. At outdoor bowling, the players throw a ball, which is sometimes eccentrically weighted, in an attempt to put it closest to a designated point or slot in the bowling arena. Five-pin bowling: tall, between duckpins and candlepins in diameter with a rubber girdle, bowled with a handheld ball, mostly found in Canada.Īnother form of bowling is usually played outdoors on a lawn.Duckpin bowling: short, squat, and bowled with a handheld ball.Candlepin bowling: tallest pins (at 40 cm or 16 in), thin with matching ends, bowled with the smallest and lightest (at 1.1 kg or 2.4 lb) handheld ball of any bowling sport, and the only form with no fallen pins removed during a frame.Nine-pin bowling: uses a small ball without finger holes.Ten-pin bowling: largest and heaviest pins, and bowled with a large ball with three finger holes.Curling is also related to bowls.īowling is played by 120 million people in more than 90 countries (including 70 million in the United States alone), and is the subject of video games.įive main variations are found in North America, with ten-pin being the most common but others being practiced in the eastern U.S. Lawn bowls, bocce, carpet bowls, pétanque, and boules may have both indoor and outdoor varieties. The surface in target bowling may be grass, gravel, or synthetic. In target bowling, the aim is usually to get the ball as close to a mark as possible. The historical game skittles is the forerunner of modern pin bowling. Common types of pin bowling include ten-pin, candlepin, duckpin, nine-pin, and five-pin. A strike is achieved when all the pins are knocked down on the first roll, and a spare is achieved if all the pins are knocked over on a second roll. Lanes have a wood or synthetic surface onto which protective lubricating oil is applied in different specified oil patterns that affect ball motion. In pin bowling, the goal is to knock over pins on a long playing surface known as a lane. The term bowling usually refers to pin bowling (most commonly ten-pin bowling), though in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth countries, bowling could also refer to target bowling, such as lawn bowls.
If this data is unavailable or inaccurate and you own or represent this business, click here for more information on how you may be able to correct it.Playing bowls at Tiverton West End Bowling Club, United Kingdomīowling is a target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a ball toward pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). VIEW ADDITIONAL DATA Select from over 115 networks below to view available data about this business.