Dakon-board

This Dakon-board is ± 120cm long and very heavy because a decorated beam (most likely of a pendopo) was taken to become the central part of the game-board. A mix of a dragon and a bird image at both ends, give the traditional outlook to this certainly Javanese object. Undoubtedly, this Dakon-game is an old piece of wood-carving and maybe composed with a few antique pieces of different origin. Giving an exact date about the making of this exceptional piece, is rather difficult. We think that it’s an end 19th cent. composition. It is a game that’s commonly called “Dakon”-“Congklak” (Java) or “Olinda” in Sri Lanka or “Mancala” in Arab countries. In Africa the Dakon-game has many names, a fact that supports the idea that the Dakon-game originated in central Africa. However the oldest known game of Dakon, was found in North Africa and was considered by archeologists to be 7000 years old. This game consisted of 3 rows of hollows, carved in a marble slab. Africans call the indigenous (Dakon) game, “the thinking game”. The various names given to this game in different countries, are the result of each country’s own culture, of the importance this game has in social life, in the various ways this game was played and in the kind of materials used as “movers” or set-pieces. Originally there were little stones, seeds and nuts in use. Later on were cowrie-shells in favor. Literature about Dakon, congklak is more than abundant today. But there are still riddles about the ancient Dakon-game and certainly about the games which are derived from or have a link to the Dakon. And as with so many toys and games of the past, Dakon seems to have been perceived as a game with a religious significance. To end with a small note, when you tell Indonesian youngsters that Dakon wasn’t an Indonesian invention but something that most probably came from Africa, make these youngsters look like they had been robbed off their cell-telephone.