Make and Play Senat

      An Egyptian Board Game

History of the Game...

Long, long ago, Egyptians played the board game Senat to relax.  The word Senat means "passing".  This game is considered the great-great-great-great-great grandfather of the popular game checkers. 

Nobody is sure exactly how the game Senat was played, but we know the object of the game was the same as checkers - to capture the other player's pieces.

In Senat, the actual playing pieces are called kelb, and the squares are often called ooyen, or eyes.  The ancient Egyptians sat on the floor, playing the game on a low table.

What You Will Need...

1.  A square piece of stiff cardboard/tagboard

HINT:  We suggest you cut a board 20cm by 20cm

2.  A ruler (capable of measuring centimeters)

3.  Black marker or felt tip pen

4.  Two sets of checkers or smooth pebbles to be the kelb.  (You can purchase stones of different colors at the Dollar Store for this!)

Rules of the Game...

1.  Kelb may be moved one space forward, backward or sideways.  They cannot jump or move diagonally.

2.  Kelb are captured and removed when the other player traps you between two of his or her pieces.  NOTE:  If you voluntarily move between two of your opponents pieces, your kelb cannot be taken.

3.  If you capture a kelb, take another turn and keep on taking turns as long as you capture kelb.

4.  If you cannot move, you lose your turn.  However, the other player has to open up a space for your next move.

5.  To begin, the youngest player moves a kelb into the middle X space.

6.  The game is over when a player cannot move or has no kelb left.   The winner is the player with the most captured kelb.

To Make the Board...

Draw 25 squares on the tagobard by drawing 4 lines in both directions (if you used the 20cm by 20cm board, you would draw a line every 4 cm).  Mark an X in the center square.  The 25 spaces are the ooyen.

Click here to see an example of a finished board

Click here to see kids making the board!

To Set the Board...

The youngest player goes first, placing two kelb (or pieces) on the board except for in the middle ooyen, which is left empty until the game begins.  Then the other player sets two kelb down, and both players take turns placing one piece on the board at a time until all the pieces are on the board. 

HINT:  Try to keep your kelb on the outer edges.