AI Unlocks 1,800-Year-Old Roman Board Game Mystery from a Carved Rock

• A strange carved rock, previously thought to be decoration or weather damage, has been identified as an 1,800-year-old Roman board game.
• The stone, found in a region linked to Roman activity, resembles popular strategy games like tabula or ludus latrunculorum, similar to modern chess.
• Interdisciplinary teams of archaeologists and physicists, highlighted in New Scientist, led the identification.
• Artificial intelligence (AI) was crucial, comparing thousands of historical game boards and simulating player movements to match the rock's markings.
• Scientists believe many similar carvings may exist, with AI now being used to re-examine old archaeological records and museum artifacts.