Dice were connected with gambling and unsuitable for genteel homes, so games often used an ivory teetotum, or spinning top, to advance play. Despite the shape, they function similarly to dice; each of the ones in the collection has six faces with letters or numbers engraved or painted. Players were instructed to spin the teetotum to start the game, and the player with the highest number would go first – a tradition still alive today.
The topmost teetotum in this image is upside down. Unlike tops, these spin on small rounded ends rather than points.
Gift of Ellen Liman ‘57
