Italian archeologists have found in Egypt what may be the world's oldest indoor bowling alley. A spacious room, with a shallow lane running through into a pit and two heavy stone balls lying nearby, was found at an ancient site in the province of Al-Fayyum, 90 kilometers (56 miles) south of Cairo, and appears to be man's first attempt to create an area for a game that was to become the prototype for modern-day bowling.

The site dates back to the Ptolemaic era, which began in 332 B.C with Ptolemy I Soter declaring himself Pharaoh of Egypt following Alexander the Great's conquest, and ended with the Roman conquest in 30 B.C. The bowling room was apparently part of a residential building, with papyruses, pottery and copper utensils found at the site in abundance.

It's believed that two players would throw balls from the two ends of a lane. The one throwing a smaller ball aimed to get the ball in a hole, while one throwing a larger ball tried to block the other's shot. The lane is made from three pieces of joint marble.

Source : dsc.discovery.com