Official bowling balls were made of hard rubber in the 1960's, polyester in the 70's, and now are made of urethane. The pins are made of maple and coated with plastic.
The lanes have been grass, planks and even church aisles throughout history.
Precursors have been called nine-pins, kegels and candlepins; now its other name is tenpins.
The modern game of bowling has a family tree of sorts. Its first known relative was played in Ancient Egypt and there are records showing like games during medieval times, the middle ages and early American history. Some forms of the game have been favored by kings, used in religious rituals, declared illegal or banned at one time or another.
Imagine, a game that has been popular since the the time of the Great Pyramids!