Crown and anchor
dice game
Crown and anchor is a simple dice game, traditionally played for gambling purposes by sailors in the Royal Navy as well as those in the British merchant and fishing fleets.
It is typically played as a game between two parties, either between two people or a house or casino and a player. Three special dice are used in crown and anchor. The dice are equal in size and shape to standard dice, but instead of one through six pips, they are marked with six symbols: crown, anchor, diamond, spade, club and heart, the last four matching the French suits, common playing card suits in English.
History
The game originated in the 18th century.
It is still popular in the Channel Islands and Bermuda, but is strictly controlled and may be played legally only on certain occasions, such as the Channel Islands' agricultural shows or annual Liberation Day celebrations or Bermuda's annual Cup Match cricket game.
Rules of play
The game is played between a player and a banker. A canvas or felt mat marked with the six symbols is used for play.
The player places bets on one or more symbols and then throws the three dice. If there is a bet on any symbol which comes up on one or more of the dice, the banker returns the player's stake on that symbol, and additionally pays out the value of that stake for each die showing that symbol: even money if one, 2:1 if two, and 3:1 if three.
The public source identifies “Crown and anchor” as dice game. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Crown, anchor and dice.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Crown and anchor”, the useful work is to connect “dice game” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 3, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5189478. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Crown and anchor”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Crown and anchor primary sources, Crown and anchor archive and Crown research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Crown and anchor”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Crown and anchor” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.