History of Craps

Series Summary

We've all seen an intense game of craps, whether it was in a movie or in an actual casino. It may seen like one of the most intimidating games in the casino, but as you learn it you will get more and more comfortable at the table. Craps is a very old game that may even predate the crusades. The "shooter," or person rolling the die, is the most important person at the table. In fact, he is really the only one playing at any given time. The rest of the table is betting on what he or she will cast as the die fall. It is easily one of the most lucrative games in any casino but, as with any gambling game, play with caution!

Have you always wanted to know how to play craps? Well, our expert is here to show you exactly how to play this fun game. He will walk you through all of the details and rules of the game, the positions at the table, how to bet, what all the numbers mean, how to cover your bets and even some nifty tips on how to win. Don't go to another table without watching these videos. They're free and could even win you some money. So in a sense we're paying YOU to watch them!

Video Transcript

"Hi, I'm Joseph Hickerson, pit manager in a local casino and on behalf of Expert Village, I am going to give the introduction on how to play casino style craps. The dice are the oldest form of gambling tools. Dice and games associated with dice can be found all over the ancient world. The origin of dice can be traced to pre-historic times when medicine men used bones, sticks and stones, arrow heads to predict the future for their tribes, by throwing them to the ground and reading the outcome. American Indians used four sided knuckle bones to create their dice games. In the Arabic language, the word for knuckle bone and dice means the same thing. This goes to show that dice were popular in the Arab world for longer than anybody can remember. Maybe that's where we get the term throwing the bones. Modern looking square dice were found in Egypt and dated back to 600 BC. In Greek and Roman civilizations, the dice were made of more expensive materials like ivory, precious stones, gold, silver and porcelain. Roman Emperors Augustus and Nero were devout dice players. They even tried to cheat at the game. The material for modern casino dice is made of hard cellulose. The cellulose is transparent to avoid dice loading and sometimes called perfect dice. The history of dice and dice games is a few thousand years old but the history of modern day craps is a lot shorter. The direct predecessor of modern day craps was an English game called Hazard. There is evidence that Hazard was played by the soldiers in the twelfth century during the third crusade. Today it's believed that the first English settlers on the Mayflower brought the game to America. English Hazard became really popular in New Orleans around 1800 where the French called it craps. After that, the rules and the odds changed many times. One variation became especially popular in gaming houses at the end of the 19th century. At that time, casino tables had a simple layout. Players could only bet with the dice or against the house. Finally, John H Winn revolutionized the game and made it possible for craps players to bet right and wrong. He improved the layout, drew a space for the don't pass bets and in 1931, gambling was legalized in the state of Nevada, and casino craps, Las Vegas style, became popular all over the world."