The ancient game of 58 holes

[Imperial Dave]

https://www.iflscience.com/one-of-the-worlds-oldest-games-may-have-not-been-invented-in-ancient-egypt-after-all-74511

Does it have dice.....?

[Ian61]

It seems to need something along the dice line. I must admit the description given suggests a more complex game than I had imagined, but as it says may have been played with different rules in different places - to this day my wife refuses to play backgammon with me because I play the rule book as opposed to the variation she was taught by her grandparents.

[Justin Swanton]

It looks very similar to the Royal Game of Ur which was also a race game and used D4.

Backgammon incidentally is a descendant of the Ur game.

[Erpingham]

I had some difficulty with the geography on this one.  To me, South-west Asia makes me think Arabian penninsular.

[Keraunos]

I don't think many people would equate the Southern Caucasus with Southwestern Asia, a term I have never encountered before.

[Justin Swanton]

I don't think many people would equate the Southern Caucasus with Southwestern Asia, a term I have never encountered before.

Strictly-speaking southwestern Asia is the Arabian peninsula.

[Duncan Head]

I don't think many people would equate the Southern Caucasus with Southwestern Asia, a term I have never encountered before.

It's not that rare a usage.

[Erpingham]

Thanks Duncan.  A very enlightening pair of links.