Carved Awari Game

The Awari game is played all across Africa under many different names, including oware, mankala, or ojo.

It is played in part of Indonesia and Asia as well. The Awari game is essentially a game of capture. It is played on a board with 48 stones.

Made in the Ivory Coast of wood, Awari is one of the oldest games on the planet. It has been played for 4,000 years. This piece is hand-carved from a single block of wood, and is a work of art as well as a game board. Board and small river stones included. Size is 23″ long x 6″ wide x 5-1/2″ high.

There are twelve holes on the board, the six nearest a player are his or her “territory.” Game play proceeds with the distribution of pieces, usually made out of dried gray ma vine fruit, or pebbles. The winner is the player who has captured the most pieces at the end of the game, which occurs when one side of the board has been cleared of pieces.