Handgame

The "raw" or "uncooked" counting sticks will be divided evenly between both opposing teams.

Since each hider holds one plain and one striped bone in each hand, there are initially four possibilities: both to the left, both to the right, both inside, or both outside.

The side continues hiding and singing until both pairs of bones have been guessed and surrendered.

Historical documentation states that games were once played for land use and female companionship, and later on for horses and cattle.

Today, handgame is played during traditional gatherings, powwows, tribal celebrations, and more recently in tournaments hosted by individual tribes or Indian organizations.

More recent versions of handgame played by tribes in the Northwest added an extra stick, or "kickstick"; this variation was promulgated by the Paiute medicine man Wovoka when he traveled to the Northwest to teach the Ghost Dance.