{{for|the historical novel by Steven Saylor|The Venus Throw}} {{Short description|Highest roll in the Ancient Roman gambling game of tali}}
The '''Venus Throw''' was the highest roll in the Ancient Roman gambling game of ''tali'' (knucklebones). The game was played with four 4-sided rectangular dice numbered I, III, IV and VI, usually made from sheep's or goat's knucklebones. In a Venus Throw, each ''talus'' landed on a different side, yielding as a score of 14. A gambler would either throw the ''tali'' from his or her hand, or from a small box, (called a ''fritillus''). Thirty-five different throws were possible (found by sending 4 and 4 to the combination with repetitions formula). While the Venus throw was the highest, the Vulture throw (all aces)—also known as the Dog throw —was the lowest.{{clarify|reason=need more clarity on scoring. I,I,I,I is the lowest, so why is I,III,IV,VI the highest and not VI,VI,VI,VI? how do the other combinations compare?|date=September 2025}} The Venus throw could be used to designate the master of the revels.
==References== * Smith, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, p. 1095 {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20051109082347/http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/1102.html]}} * Charlton T. Lewis; Charles Short A Latin Dictionary, p. 782 {{Dice-game-stub}} Category:Culture of ancient Rome Category:Gambling terminology