How Did the Ancient Greeks Vote in the Assembly?

The Ancient Greeks used tokens to vote in their Assembly, just like you might use rocks or pebbles to count your favorite toys.

Imagine you and your friends are playing a game, and you need to decide who gets to be the leader. Instead of raising your hands, each person grabs a small object, maybe a rock or a shell, and puts it in a big bowl. The more rocks in the bowl, the more people chose that leader!

In the Ancient Greek Assembly, people used smooth pebbles as their tokens. If they supported a law or decision, they put a pebble in one bowl; if they didn’t, they put it in another. A person called a keeper would count the pebbles to see who won.

This was like a big group vote, but instead of paper and pencils, they used rocks, just like you might use toys or snacks when you're deciding what game to play next!