Sämann ("sowing man") was invented by the Austrian math teacher Michael Engel who lives in Mödling near Vienna. He described this mancala game in a book about solitaire games published in 2005. A Sämann is a common theme in paintings and sculptures, e.g. Le Semeur (Jean-François Millet, 1850), Der Sämann (Vincent van Gogh, 1888), Sämann und Teufel ("sowing man and devil"; Albin Egger-Lienz, 1921) and Säman (Wilhelm Wandschneider, 1934-35).