Ancient Egypt – A Source of Luck or an Overused Trope?

Casino gamers will probably be more familiar with Ancient Egypt and its various mythological ideas than they might realize. The civilization, which lasted for just over 3,000 years before the interference of the Roman Empire in 30BC, is one of the most common slots themes on the market today, with the average casino operator usually having five or more of these historical games to play.

Featuring the god Ra, Nefertiti, scarabs, pyramids, and pharaohs (but not mummies, oddly enough), Egypt-based slots are arguably second only to slots based on the luck of the Irish, leprechauns, pots of gold, and the like – at least in terms of their abundance online. The Canadian operator www.superseven.com has almost fifty slots based on Ancient Egypt, including Jungle Jim and the Lost Sphinx, John Hunter and the Tomb of the Scarab Queen, and Wings of Ra.

Of course, these games exist because their concepts are familiar to just about everybody but Egyptian society also had many associations with riches. The tomb of Tutankhamun, which was exhumed in 1922 by British archaeologists, contained 5,000 items either belonging to or dedicated to the deceased king. While festooned in precious metals, just the gold associated with King Tut’s final resting place is believed to be worth around US$2m. State funerals have certainly changed over the centuries.

Scarab Beetle

Much like modern-day society, the Ancient Egyptians had an understanding of luck and good fortune. The symbol of the ankh, which was used in hieroglyphics to denote the word ‘live’, was frequently worn as a good luck charm, along with the scarab and the Wedjat Eye or Eye of Horus. The scarab and the Wedjat Eye were worn as amulets of power and protection, respectively.

Games like Jewel Scarabs and Wild Scarabs depict an Egyptian icon – the scarab beetle, which is probably a simple dung beetle – how it was originally intended to be, as a harmless talisman. The perception of the scarab beetle as a flesh-eating swarm seems to be a typical Hollywood invention, though it certainly increased the drama of each and every scene featuring the critters in the Mummy series of movies (1999 – ).

Oddly enough, Ancient Egyptians were avid gamers yet the pastimes they preferred seem to have died out altogether. The games of Senet, Aseb, Hounds & Jackals, and Mehen, while prominent in the archaeological record, aren’t found in modern casinos. These games relied heavily on luck, which is something the Egyptians felt brought them close to their various deities and otherworldly figures.

Based on the fact that Egyptian ideas of luck have survived the past 2,000 years without falling to the passage of time, it’s unlikely that Cleopatra and co. are going to stop appearing in modern casino games any time soon. With the number of slots that represent other periods of history out there, such as the time of the Vikings, there may be more history buffs in the online casino space than many of us expected.