Mahjong 101: The Tiles

The modern American Mahjong set has 152 tiles. 

The tiles consist of:

CRAKS (also called Characters) – Numbers 1 through 9 – Four (4) each.

BAMS (also called Bamboos) –  Numbers 1 through 9 – Four (4) each.

DOTS (also called Circles) – Numbers 1 through 9 – Four (4) each.

Four (4) red DRAGONS
Four (4) green DRAGONS
Four (4) white DRAGONS (“soaps”)

Four (4) WINDS for each direction: North, East , South and West for a total of sixteen (16) Winds

 Eight (8) FLOWERS

Eight (8) JOKERS

The tiles are mixed, turned face down, and each player makes a wall in front of their rack – nineteen tiles long and two tiles deep.

Back to Mahjong 101: The Rules