In the early 17th century, when the city of Falun was among the largest cities in Sweden due to its important copper mine, Gisle Jacobson, a local mining clerk, became the author of a small book which was published in Stockholm in 1613, entitled Ett litet Tidh- fördriff/ Der medh man kan fördröye Tidhen (A small pastime, wherewith one can delay time). A small pastime is a moral-didactic oracle book intended to be used while playing dice, and is based on the so-called “dobbel”, a game of dice the miners in Falun used to play on New Year’s Day to settle the mining order and to sha- re the ore among them. Reports suggest that this ritual was con- ducted annually at the Copper mine ever since the Middle Ages. Besides moral advice and various rules for how the miners should conduct their lives, Gisle Jacobson’s book also includes a short section where the senior miners’ special way of playing the game of “dobbel” is described. In my paper I will describe the miners’ way of using and playing the game of “dobble”, its function in relation to Gisle Jacobson’s book and give an insight into how this game was used to make important decision concerning the inner organization of the mine.