knees and formed the largest contiguous
empire in history. Marching to invasions far
from home, Khan’s elite horseback archers
found themselves bored at night, and began
flicking pieces of horn at small sheep bones
to maintain the dexterity of their bow fingers.
The practice caught on in camp, and over
time rules were laid out, creating one of the
country’s best sources of entertainment:
knucklebone shooting.
Today, players use a domino-like ivory
tablet in a wooden bracket to knock down a
stack of 30 animal knucklebones on a wooden
platform five metres away. The fallen bones
clatter down into a hole and are counted –
the more bones, the better – while half the
watching crowd roars in approval, and the
other yells in disappointment.
Such a sight is common throughout
Mongolia, and everyone from children to
adults participates. Elderly players are allowed
to shoot with a crossbow-like instrument,
called a havchaakhai, to put them on an even
footing with fitter competitors. Accompanying
the game are the communal borjigon chants:
Much like football cheers, the style and tone of
these differ based on the outcome of the shot.WHEN
Mid-July, during the
Naadam FestivalWHERE
National Sports Stadium
in UlaanbaatarHOW
From Chinggis Khaan
International Airport, take
a bus to the stadiumEXPERIENCE
KNUCKLEBONE
SHOOTINGUlaanbaatar
MONGOLIAfar left A Bactrian
camel rests in front of
its owner’s yurttop A young woman in
traditional dress during
the Naadam Festival in
Ulaanbaatarleft Children play with
animal knucklebonesPHOTO © WIKICOMMONS
PHOTO © 123RF