In England, amateur archaeologists discovered a metal object buried in a field near the village of Norton Disney in Lincolnshire in 2023, Vice reports. In reality it is a Roman dodecahedron (a geometric figure with twelve faces). These small forms are generally made of bronze or stone and date from the 2nd to 4th centuries AD, and each of their faces has a circular hole in the center. They have been discovered by specialists all over Europe for more than 300 years.
Would you like to see Norton Disney's Dodecahedron? Drop by @civilwarcentre in Newark. https://t.co/mnrrdsqaKU pic.twitter.com/vwhqy5LvXr
— Norton Disney History + Archeology Group (@ndhags) January 11, 2024
However, no one can understand what these objects were used for. They bear no trace of text or numbers that could provide clues to their use. Most dodecahedra were unearthed in ancient Gaul, the area that today includes northern Italy, France, Belgium, Germany and the south of the Netherlands. The Norton Disney discovery is the first in this region of England, the Midlands.
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The mystery remains unsolved…for now
According to archaeologist Michael Guggenberger, this twelve-sided shape played an important role in Greek and Roman culture for centuries. “The regular pentagonal dodecahedron is one of the five Platonic solids that represents the cosmos, the universe as a whole,” explains Vice. Richard Parker, secretary of Norton Disney's history and archeology group, suspects that dodecahedrons were used for religious or ritual practices. According to the media, researchers have put forward almost fifty different theories about the use of this polyhedron. It could be a weapon, a toy or even a candle holder.
“Based on the number of pieces found, the quality of the materials and the expensive manufacturing process, it is clear that these dodecahedrons were neither used items that could be bought on every street corner nor extremely rare objects,” explains Michael Guggenberger. Richard Parker is optimistic that the Norton Disney website has a lot to offer. The latter is full of archaeological artifacts that have yet to be discovered and that will certainly provide new answers to the topic of dodecahedrons.