Introduction
Here at Wildcard Curiosities we have a large client base for vintage board games. It is exciting when we purchase the board games as they have to be checked to see if they are complete. That means a little bit of family fun time. It is so satisfying to put down our electronic devises and switch off from the world. For the adults this may be a trip down memory lane. For children this is a whole new insight into a magical world before technology evolved.
Historical Insight Into Board Games
The history of board games falls into various different categories, from luck, strategy, skill etc. Board games are world renowned and it is not known exactly when and where the first board game of any sort came into existence. It is also worth noting that as board games have travelled around different countries. Down the generations, these games have been adapted and modernised accordingly. My research has provided me with an insight into games personally I have not encountered before. Therefore for this blog I have chosen to provide some historical information on more well known games.
Ancient Board Games
Backgammon is believed to date back over 5,000 years ago. It is possible that Backgammon originated in present day Iraq (previously Mesopotamia). In the 1920’s game pieces were found which resembled those used in Backgammon and Dice made from human bone.
Artefacts dating back to around 760 (possibly older) found in Uzbekistan show Chess pieces made of ivory. The oldest know Chess manual was written in Arabic around 840 by Al-Adli Ar-Rumi who was a well know Chess player of the time. The book was called The Book Of Chess (Kitab ash-shatranj)
Antique Board Game
Monopoly has a very interesting history. The game dates back to 1903. Lizzie Magie (an American) invented the game to try and explain the single tax idea of Henry George. Ms Magie who was an anti-monopolist, took out a patent for this game in 1904.
Vintage Board Game
Mousetrap is such a fun game to play with little children. The game was designed by Hank Kramer who worked for Ideal Toys in 1963. The original game had a very temperamental crank system. The maze in which a small ball rolled down to activate the mousetrap was rather tricky to operate. If the player at the maze was successful; the other player at the trap would have their playing piece captured. The more modern version of this game, changed the crank system to a simple pull back and let go rubber band device. This allowed more accuracy with the maze and nearly all the time the opponent would be captured.
For A Future Blog
There is so much research to be done to break down each company of board game makers. To understand the history of specific board games and to understand the concept of them. I think this is something here at Wildcard Curiosities we will look to create blogs on in the future.
Where To Find Us
Wildcard Curiosities is based in Freemen’s Common Antique Centre, 8 Counting House Road, Leicester, LE2 7LT.
The centre is open from Tuesday – Saturday 10am-5pm and Sunday 10am-4pm.
There is a café and toilets on site
We also have an online shop