Sophocles (496 - 406 BC), the Greek poet and tragedian, claimed that dice were invented by the Greek, Palamedes, during the siege of Troy. Herodotus (b. 484 BC?), historian and acquaintance of Sophocles, said they were invented by the Lydians of Asia Minor. But dice date back further than this. Egyptian tombs, dated to 2000 BC, have been found containing dice and dice reputedly dated to 6000 BC have been uncovered in archaeological excavations.  Dice were developed independently by many ancient cultures all over the world and did not simply  originate and spread from any one place.  

In ancient times the throw of a dice was not just considered to be luck, the outcome was believed to be controlled by the gods and casting dice was a way of dividing inheritances, choosing rulers and as a method of prediction. The Roman goddess, Fortuna, daughter of Zeus (known to gamblers as Lady Luck), was believed to determine the outcome of a throw.

Before standard cubical dice became common, ancient peoples would use fruit stones, sets of flat sticks, sea shells, nut shells and pebbles to get random results for games.  These were probably adopted from witch doctors and shaman who would throw them to gain insight and knowledge...."

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