games-msg - 2/13/08
Medieval board games. Rules. References.
NOTE: See also the files: games-cards-msg, games-SCA-msg, golf-msg, sports-msg, cloved-fruit-msg, darts-msg, Tarot-Crd-Ruls-art, T-H-Dreidel-art.
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Stefan at florilegium.org
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From: jmike at asylum.SF.CA.US (J. Michael Hammond)
Date: 29 May 90 16:18:40 GMT
Organization: The Asylum; Belmont, CA
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Greetings to milady Awilda and all others interested in organizing
celebrations of the King of Games! I crave your indulgence as I throw
in my two farthings' worth from my perspective as a certified
tournament director in the United States Chess Federation.
The first important question to resolve is what *exact* versions of
period chess do you want to support? I have seen articles and spoken
with players who have some somewhat suspect opinions as to valid forms
of the game. I recommend the source "A History of Chess" by Murray.
It is a great big 900-pager, copyright 1913, and is still available
through U.S. Chess. Their catalog number is C905MH, their price is
$39.95 (but well worth it), and their phone number is (800) 388-KING.
I believe the book is also available through other mail-order houses
but do not have any other information at hand. {I hope I'm not
breaking netiquette with this endorsement; I make no kickback
thereby.}
Damiano della Greccia
From: mfy at sli.com (Mike Yoder)
Date: 1 Jun 90 16:07:44 GMT
Organization: Software Leverage, Inc., Arlington, MA
Llwyd ap Tentor of Myrkdfaellin asks:
>Interesting.... I wonder what real chess pieces were made out of at first??
Some existing chess sets from period with descriptions follow. The heights
given are those of the Kings unless otherwise stated. These are all from
_Chess Sets_ by F. Lanier Graham.
Arabic, 8th-9th C. bone, 1 9/16".
Persian (Nishapur), early 9th C. ivory, some stained green, 1 3/8".
Arabic, 9th-10th C. wood turned on a lathe.
Nordic, 9th-10th C. ivory, 2 5/16".
Spanish-Arabic(?), 10th C.(?) carved and plain rock crystal, 2 3/4".
Anglo-Saxon bishop, 10th C. whalebone, 4 1/8".
Nordic bishop, 10th-11th C. hartshorn, 3 1/8".
German bishop (Cologne), 12th C. ivory, 1 3/4".
Southern Italian, c.1100 ivory, 2 11/16".
French(?) queen, 11th-12th C. ivory, 3 7/16".
Scandinavian or Anglo-Saxon, c.1200 walrus bone, 4".
Southern Italian vizier (queen), late 11th C. ivory painted red, 4 13/16".
Southern Italian pawn, late 11th C. gilded ivory, 3".
Danish(?) rook (guard), 12th C. hartshorn, 1 5/8".
Arabic, 13th C.(?) rock crystal and smoky topaz with gold foil setting.
Danish or German bishop, 13th C. walrus bone, 2 1/4".
Nordic bishop and knight, 13th C. bone, 1 7/16".
German knight, 14th C. ivory or hartshorn, 3 11/16".
Scandinavian, 14th C. bone turned on lathe, 2 15/16". The design of the set
was almost entirely based on the physical requirements of lathe turning.
Burgundian, late 14th-early 15th C. rock crystal and smoky quartz with silver
gilt setting, 2 5/16".
German bishop(?), early 16th C. limewood, 4 1/8".
--
Franz Joder von Joderhuebel (Michael F. Yoder) [...uunet!sli!mfy]
From: karplus at TURTLE.UCSC.EDU (Kevin Karplus)
Date: 19 Jun 90 00:17:10 GMT
Organization: Society for Creative Anachronism
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Some evidence for dice chess:
From "A Short History of Chess" by Harold J. R. Murray (written 1917,
copyright 1963, Oxford University Press). This is not an abridgement
of his 900-page "history of Chess", but a separate work. I'll have to
look up the longer work later.
p29.
It is probable that the first Italian players often played
chess with the help of the dice, an evil habit that lasted
in Europe into the thirteenth century.
(Note the bias of a modern chess player against games of chance.)
No indication is given in this source of HOW dice were used in chess.
Knud Kaukinen Kevin Karplus
inactive in the West teaching at UC Santa Cruz
karplus at ce.ucsc.edu
From: BOYDJ at QUCDN.QUEENSU.CA (Jeff Boyd)
Date: 27 Nov 90 18:46:00 GMT
Responding to Matt Stum's questions ...
There are several (very similar) variants to this game, the most common
name being "Tablut". Board sizes range from 9x9 to 25x25 (of the ones
I've seen or read about). Some answers to your questions:
1) In some variants, the game is OVER when the king reaches the edge of
the board :-). The more challenging version has the king needing to
reach a corner, and in this case trapping against the edge is a win.
This is sufficient, the sole objective is to trap the king; the
king's protectors may still be running rampant.
2) You can't capture more than one warrior at once. Adjacent warriors of
the same colour are thus safe from capture (adjacency is either
vertical or horizontal, not diagonal).
Goffrid the Obtuse
Greyfells, Barony of Skraeling Althing, Midrealm
Jeff Boyd, BOYDJ at QUCDN.QueensU.CA
Department of Mathematics and Statistics
Queen's University (Northern Center for Studies in Pretentiousness)
Canada
From: zebee at ucs.adelaide.edu.au (Zebee Johnstone)
Date: 16 Nov 91 00:07:25 GMT
Organization: Information Technology Division, The University of Adelaide, AUSTRALIA
grm+ at andrew.cmu.edu (Gretchen Miller) writes:
>I've recently started looking into period games, both atheletic and
>otherwise. Unfortunately, aside from "The Compleat Gamester", which is
>about 20 years out of period, and a few mentions of football, bowling,
>tennis, and various card and dice games, I have been able to find very
>little.
I have a translation of a Hungarian book.
Fun and Games in Old Europe, by W.Endrei and L.Zolnay.
published by Corvina.
ISBN 963 13 2386 2
C 1986
printed in Hungary 1988.
Back flap has "orders to
Kultura
Budapest 62
P.O.B 149
H-1389
I found it remaindered by who knows what devious route!
Selfran
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Zebee Johnstone |
Adelaide City Council | Motorcycles are like peanuts -
zebee at itd.adelaide.edu.au | who can stop at just one?
From: rkister at lonestar.utsa.edu (Robert F. Kister)
Date: 18 Nov 91 22:56:43 GMT
Organization: University of Texas at San Antonio
Heilsa! Greetings come from Gunnora Hallakarva, writing in the Barony of
Bjornsborg, Ansteorra, to Margaret Macdubhsidhe.
At the risk of starting to look like the "Viking Answer Lady", I've been
doing some games research in preparation for constructing a series of Tafl
games. My bibliography includes some listings that will be of help to you.
As a suggestion, look for books on games in public libraries, or college
libraries only if they have a Child Development of Education department. In
general, the public library (and/or InterLibrary Loan) is your best bet.
Murray, H.J.R. _A History of Board-Games Other than Chess_. Oxford. 1952;
New York: Hacker Art Books. 1978.
Murray, H.J.R. "The Medieval Games of Tables." _Medium Aevum_. 10:2 (1941)
pp. 57-69.
Bell, R.C. _Board and Table Games from Many Civilizations_. 2 vols. London:
Oxford U.P. 1960, 1969.
Botermans, Jack, Tony Burrett, Pieter van Delft and Carla van Splunterer.
_The World of Games_. New York: Facts on File. 1989.
Murray's books are absolutely exhaustive, and give copious historical notes.
Bell is very similar, although not so comprehensive, while Botermans et. al.
is illustrated with great color photos of reconstructed game boards.
Gunnora Hallakarva
c/o Christie Ward
From: mfy at sli.com (Mike Yoder)
Date: 18 Nov 91 19:11:38 GMT
Organization: Software Leverage, Inc., Arlington, Ma.
Good day to all, gentles. The following material is probably only of interest
to chess mavens; it describes the rules to be used for the chess matches in the Carolingian Challenge III (sometimes called Duello). It is the result of
research done at the behest of Danulf Donaldson (he, as the autocrat, asked me
to look into period chess rules).
One gentle spoke recently of investigating period games. In any such endeavor
it is probably best to divide games into chess and all others -- Murray opined
that the literature of chess probably exceeded that of all other games
combined, and it would be difficult to gainsay him. For chess itself, Murray's
massive tome contains extensive quotations from period sources (in various
languages), and problems from period collections. I have leaned on it heavily
in producing the following; a full bibliography is at the end.
PERIOD AND MODERN CHESS RULES
"Others may talk of the Round Table with its fifty knights, but I greatly
prefer the Square Table with only four knights." -- Fiske
Although it is often said that medieval chess and modern chess are very
different in character, this statement is somewhat misleading in the context of the Society because it creates the impression that modern chess rules are out of period. The statement is true, but "period" goes beyond the traditional end of the medieval era by some hundred and fifty years; what fails to be "medieval" may still be period.
Consider then the question, "What is the closest period equivalent to modern
chess?". The answer is, for all practical purposes, "modern chess."
There was, to be sure, much more variation in chess rules within period than
there is now; but the mainstream pretty rapidly converged to a set of rules
which has not changed significantly in more than four hundred years.
The transition from the old chess to the new was quick wherever the latter
sprang up: this can be measured by the rapidity with which terms to distinguish the two forms vanish. In all cases, the new game very quickly just becomes "chess" with no modifiers; during the transition period it is typically named by a term which translates as "queen's chess" or "chess of the furious queen." This refers to the fact that the queen in the old rules was a very weak piece, whereas the new queen "In a straight line spreads her destruction wide, / To left or right, behind, astride." (Hmm, reminds me of a lady I knew...)
The traditional date for the start of the transition from the old to the new
chess is 1475, but this is a rather arbitrary choice, and Murray thinks it too
early by about a decade. The oldest surviving book dealing with practical
play, Lucena's text of 1497 (probably), describes both forms. Luis Ramirez
Lucena was a young student in Salamanca at the time.
In any case, those of you who have worried that modern chess is out of period
can relax. For all practical purposes, modern chess is period.
*Timed* chess matches, on the other hand, aren't period as far as is known.
They are a practical necessity for completing large tournaments in less than a
day, however. Time limits were introduced about the middle of the 19th
century, but the penalty imposed was often a monetary fine rather than the loss of the game! Sandglasses were used initially, but in the 1880s were replaced by clocks.
Living chess is recorded as far back as the 15th century; frequently the moves
of the game are determined beforehand, but I do not know whether this occurred
in period. According to legend, such a game was played in 1454 in Marostica
(situated between Venice and Lake Garda) for the hand of a lady.
THE DUELLO RULES, AFTER RUY LOPEZ
These rules are the same as modern rules, except that (1) en passant capture is forbidden if it gives discovered check; (2) there is no "draw by 3 repetitions" rule; (3) there are no exceptions to the 50-move rule in which more than 50 moves are permitted before a draw can be claimed. (It may surprise some to learn that the 50-move rule is period. But it is derived from a 70-move rule used in its predecessor, Shatranj; and Lopez may be responsible for reducing the number, since he argues that 50 moves are sufficient.)
In addition, it is not true that white always moves first; in period it was
typical to choose lots both for move and for color, and at some point the black pieces came to be considered lucky. (I do not know if this was within period.) The modern custom came about from a suggestion by G. Walker in 1835 that the player who lost first move should get the black pieces as compensation. For the Duello I will use the rule that the person who has second move may choose their pieces' color.
ON RUY LOPEZ
Ruy Lopez de Segura (his last name is pronounced Lopeth) was a Spanish priest
from Zafra, Badajoz; he is commonly reputed to have become a bishop, but in
fact he merely sought this post without achieving it. His _Libro de la
invencion liberal y arte del juego del Axedrez_ (Alcala, 1561) was to prove of
great importance in the development of chess.
In a tournament played in the court of Philip II of Spain in 1574-5, Ruy Lopez
and Alfonso Ceron (reputedly Lopez' equal) were defeated by Leonardo Di Bona da Cutri of Calabria and Giulio Cesare Polerio. (This is the first documented
chess competition.)
Reuben Fine calls Lopez' book "hardly worth much by modern standards" and makes a convincing case for this assessment.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
The following works, except for Chernev's _Companion_, each contain at least
some information on period chess or chessboards. The _Companion_ is the source for the quote from Fiske, who wrote on the history of chess, particularly in Iceland. Murray's work is virtually a necessity for anyone who would study the history of chess.
_The World's Great Chess Games_: Ed. by Reuben Fine; Crown Publishers, New
York, 1951.
Andy Soltis, _Chess to Enjoy_, Stein and Day, New York, 1978.
Alex Hammond, _The Book of Chessmen_, William Morrow and Company, New York.
Irving Chernev, _The Chess Companion_, Simon and Schuster.
F. Lanier Graham, _Chess Sets_, Studio Vista Ltd., London.
David Hooper and Kenneth Whyld, _The Oxford Companion to Chess_, Oxford
University Press.
H. J. R. Murray, _A History of Chess_, Benjamin Press, Northampton, Mass.
--
Franz Joder von Joderhuebel (Michael F. Yoder) [...uunet!sli!mfy]
From: rkister at lonestar.utsa.edu (Robert F. Kister)
Date: 26 Nov 91 01:37:17 GMT
Organization: University of Texas at San Antonio
Greetings to Fiacha from Gunnora Hallakarva:
Just as a note, Linnaeus was travelling in Finland, but the Tablut
game he describes belongs not to the Suominen, but to the Lapps. They still
play it even today.
Sources for this game:
The best is H.J.R. Murray's _Board Games Other than Chess_ (full bibliographic
info was given in my reply about board games). Murray discusses all the
"Tafl" group of games, including Tablut, Alea Evangelii/Hnefatafl,
Tawlbrwdd, etc.
Difficult (but possible) to obtain is D. Willard Fiske's Victorian treatise
on _Chess in the Icelandic Sagas_. It does contain amazing amounts of
information from the sagas which applies to hnefatafl, but incorrectly
assumes that the game so described is draughts or backgammon.
Alea evangelli: the complete description, in both Latin and in English
translation is to be found in Henry Armitage's _The Time of St. Dunstan_.
The Alea passage is a complex correspondence of the gospels, such as was
a favorite philosophical diversion of the clerical scholars of the day.
If you know the rules of hnefatafl already, it makes sense, but no one
could easily reconstruct the rules from the description as given.
Some of the other sources I listed in my board games note also describe
these games. I'm currently (among my other projects) working on a set with
the pieces carved of ivory nut (I'd use walrus ivory if I could amputate my
conscience).
::GUNNORA::
Subject: Period games and magic_
Date: 10 Feb 92
From: salley at niktow.canisius.edu (David Salley)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Organization: Canisius College, Buffalo NY. 14208
Margaret Macdubhsidhe writes:
> I've recently started looking into period games, both atheletic and
> otherwise. Unfortunately, aside from "The Compleat Gamester", which is
> about 20 years out of period, and a few mentions of football, bowling,
> tennis, and various card and dice games, I have been able to find very
> little. Besides Master Samalluh's (please pardon the mangled spelling) book,
> does anyone know of any good secondary or primary sources for games
> descriptions? Is anyone else researching card, dice and athletic games
> (outside of tourney/fencing/martial arts)? Want to share
> research/ideas/sources?
Duncan MacLeod writes:
> I am also looking for period sources for slight of hand magic, Both of these
> requests are for children who are trying their best to be patient, so
> swiftness of response would be much appreciated!
Actual period sources are rare, I only know of one:
_The Art of Iugling [Juggling] or Legerdemaine_ by Samuel Rid, to be
sold by him in his shop in London, 1612. To get this manuscript, go to a
University with a _U.S. Govt. Doc. Microfilm Collection_ and ask for Reel 971,
Cat# 21027, Pr 1121.U6, MiU F63-378. Grainy photocopies of microfilm of
nearly illegible blackletter calligraphy of Old English grammar and spelling
make this difficult reading, but it's worth the effort.
Some very scholarly secondary sources include:
_Medieval Games_ by Salamallah the Corpulent, Raymond's Quiet Press
ISBN 0-943228-03-4,$10.00. I've also managed to track down about 3/4 of the
books he lists in the Bibliography. Among them, I'd recommend the following
two:
_Traditional Games of England, Scotland and Ireland_ by Alice Gomme,
pub. London 1894. in 2 vol. Normally, I avoid Victorian books as the
scholarship usually tends to be nearly non-existant. These books however,
are very well researched. I can't quote a price or ISBN, because I don't
own them.
_Board and Table Games from Many Civilizations_ by Richard C. Bell,
Dover Pub., ISBN 0-486-23855-5, $6.50. My edition is "revised edition - two
volumes bound as one" which makes it a bit confusing as the sequence goes;
table of contents, text, bibliography, index, table of contents, text, biblio-
graphy, index.
Some additional books:
_Games of the World: How to Make Them, How to Play Them, How They
Came to Be_ edited by Frederic V. Grunfeld, Holt Rinehart & Winston Pub,
ISBN 0-03-015261-5. My copy doesn't have the price listed on it. Richard
Bell (see listing above) is listed as one of the consultants for the book.
The book is documented to the nth degree with photographs of museum pieces
and medieval manuscripts. Instructions on building boards and playing pieces
are well written, well diagrammed and often photographed in intermediate stages
of construction. Games are categorized into: Board & Table Games, Street &
Playground Games, Field & Forest Games, Party & Festival Games, & Puzzles,
Tricks & Stunts. Additionally the table of contents has cross-indexed each
game for: Indoor or Outdoor; Solo, Pair or Group; Mental, Physical or Chance;
Playing Time - Short, Medium, Long & Prepartion Time - Short, Medium, Long.
_The History of Playing Cards: with Anecdotes of Their Use in
Conjuring, Fortune-Telling and Card-Sharping_ edited by Ed S. Taylor et al.
Originally pub. London 1865, my edition is pub. by Charles Tuttle Co 1973,
ISBN 0-8048-1026-5. No price listed on my copy. It doesn't have a biblio-
graphy :-(, but all of the direct quotes are adequately footnoted. The
illustrations are all modern drawings of medieval cards :-( I would have
preferred photographs, warts and all.
_Juggling: The Art and Its Artists_ by Karl-Heinz Ziethen & Andrew
Allen, 1986, Rausch & Luft Pub., ISBN 3-9801140-1-5, $69.00. Karl wrote
a book in French, which translates as _The Complete History of Juggling_.
Unfortunately :-( it's in French, 1,000+ pages, $200.00+, and only available
from France by custom order! Andrew talked him into publishing the American
Coffee Table version listed here. I'd suggest getting it from the library
as after the first ten pages of medieval history, it goes into 1940.
Additionally, the illustrations are simply labelled, "Greek Vase c240BC" or
"Danish Manuscript 1470" with no additional information.
_Street Magic -- An Illustrated History of Wandering Magicians and
Their Conjuring Arts_ by Edward Claflin and Jeff Sheridan, Doubleday and Co.,
ISBN 0-385-12864-9, $5.95. Well written, well documented and lots of photo-
graphs of museum pieces and manuscripts. Duncan, if you only use one book
from this list, it has to be this one!
Books strictly on techniques, or how to play:
_The Juggler's Handbook_ by Bob Stone, Spiritwood Publishing, ISBN
0-9611928-0-1, $12.95. This one contains something I've never seen anywhere
else, Juggling Notation. Juggling notation is to juggling what musical
notation is to music, a set of symbols for writing down how to do a sequence.
_Juggling with Finesse_ by Kit Summers, Finesse Press, ISBN
0-938981-00-5, $14.95. An American success story, Kit Summers is two time
winner of the International Jugglers Association World Championship. The
second time was AFTER he had been hit by a truck and told he would never
leave his hospital bed.
_The Juggling Book_ by Carlo, Random House, ISBN 0-394-71956-5, $6.95.
Carlo is a juggler for Barnum and Bailey Circus, nuff said!
_The Complete Juggler_ by Dave Finnigan, Random House, ISBN
0-394-74678-3. No price listed on my copy. I'm normally sceptical of any
book that calls itself _The Complete "X"_. In my opinion, "X" has to be
at least a dozen words to define a field of knowledge narrow enough to covered
completely in one book. This one however, comes real close. The author is
a former president of IJA and there's enough tricks here to keep a juggler
going for years. For those who like to compare their performance against
others, the book contains the Official Rank Requirements of the IJA, ie, what
you have to be able to do to earn the next rank.
_Hand Shadows_ & _Hand Shadows II_ I can't get my paws on these at
the moment, so I can't give you author, price or ISBN, but they're both
available from the Dover Pub. children's books catalog. They're just what
they sound like, illustrated books on how to cast shadow pictures on the
wall. Does anyone know if this is period?? By the by, I'd recommend getting
the Dover catalog, it's free. Write to: Dover Pub., 180 Varick St., N.Y., N.Y.
10014. Specify your fields of interest and ask for the general catalog as well.
_The Boardgame Book_ by Richard C. Bell. Nothing spectacular, but
rules for most of common board games all conveniently in one volume.
Books which have been recommended to me, but I haven't yet read myself.
_A History of Board Games Other Than Chess_ by H.J.R. Murray
_Games Ancient and Oriental and How to Play Them_ by E. Falkener
_A History of Playing Cards_ by Catherine P. Hargrave
- Dagonell
SCA Persona : Lord Dagonell Collingwood of Emerald Lake, CSC, CK, CTr
Habitat : East Kingdom, AEthelmearc Principality, Rhydderich Hael Barony
Disclaimer : A society that needs disclaimers has too many lawyers.
Internet : salley at klaatu.cs.canisius.edu
USnail-net : David P. Salley, 136 Shepard Street, Buffalo, New York 14212-2029
Re: Period games and magic
Date: 11 Feb 92
From: eadengle at watcgl.waterloo.edu (Ed "Cynwrig" Dengler)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Organization: University of Waterloo
(David Salley) writes:
>Margaret Macdubhsidhe writes:
>> I've recently started looking into period games, both atheletic and
>> otherwise. Unfortunately, aside from "The Compleat Gamester", which is
>> about 20 years out of period, and a few mentions of football, bowling,
>> tennis, and various card and dice games, I have been able to find very
>> little. Besides Master Samalluh's (please pardon the mangled spelling) book,
>> does anyone know of any good secondary or primary sources for games
>> descriptions? Is anyone else researching card, dice and athletic games
>> (outside of tourney/fencing/martial arts)? Want to share
>> research/ideas/sources?
I have been doing some of my own games research for some time now. Some
additional references that I have used for non-athletic games are:
_A History of Card Games_ (originally published as _The Oxford Guide to Card
Games_) by David Parlett, Oxford University Press, 1991. ISBN 0-19-282905-X.
Probably one of the best books I have ever seen on card games as it
seriously tries to describe where card games came from and what games were
played when (yes, I know that was a confusing sentence :-).
_A History of Board Games Other Than Chess_ by H.J.R. Murray. The copy I
have in front of me is from the Oxford University Press, 1952. I do believe
they still have it available for approximately 25 English pounds. A bit
slow going but a very good summary of most board games.
_A History of Chess_ by H.J.R. Murray. The copy I have in front of me is
from the Oxford University Press, 1962 (first published in 1913). Still
considered the classic book on the history of chess.
_Korean Games_ by Steward Culin. Dover, 1991 (originally published in 1895).
ISBN 0-486-26593-5. A light read through (no real in-depth history and some
out-and-out mistakes in some of the history it does describe (e.g. cards were
originally used for fortune-telling)) of some of the oriental games.
_The Game of Tarot_ by Micheal Dummett. London, 1980. It is not in front of
me right now, so I do not know its ISBN number. This is the book to see if
you are interested in the history and playing of Tarot cards.
All of the above books are easily obtained via inter-library loan from your
local library.
Sorry that this is such a short list, but the Games Museum at the University
of Waterloo is currently closed so I cannot cite some of the other references
I have used. Maybe tomorrow I will have some time to go over and get the
information on some of these books.
Cynwrig the Wanderer
(writer of _The Gambling Wolf_ gaming articles in the local newsletter)
Bryniau Tywynnog, Barony of Septentria
Principality of Ealdomere, Kingdon of the Middle
m.k.a. Ed Dengler
Truth or Dare, medieval style
Date: 11 Feb 92
From: lisch at relay.mentorg.COM (Ray Lischner)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
I have not made any seriour study of medieval games, but in my
reading, I have come across a couple interesting games. One is
"le roi qui ne ment" (the king who does not lie). This is
mentioned as early as 1285 (Le tournoi de Chauvenci), and I
have seen it in one of the fabliaux. (I don't remember which.)
As far as I can tell, the game is played among a group of people.
One is chosen as king or queen, who gets to ask any question
of his or her "subjects." Being royalty, the subject is forced
to answer the question truthfully. In return, the subject is
granted the favor of asking a question of the king or queen,
who must also answer truthfully. It seems the king or queen
would get to ask questions of many subjects, and then the
subjects get to ask their questions, and then it's time to
choose a new king or queen, or to play a different game.
There are other, similar, light-hearted games played by the noble
youth. Someday, I might sit down to try to figure out exactly
how and when they were played.
Peregrine Payne Dragon's Mist, An Tir
Ray Lischner UUCP: {uunet,apollo,decwrl}!mntgfx!lisch
Date: 16 Jun 92
From: ddfr at quads.uchicago.edu (david director friedman)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Organization: University of Chicago Computing Organizations
Islamic Board Games
Jeff Zeitlin asks about them. A good source is Sallamallah's book on
period games, which I believe is still available from Raymond's Quiet
Press.
Backgammon, probably the game called "nard" in Arabic, was played in
Islam, with slightly different rules. The various pit and pebble
games are, I think, North African in origin; I am pretty sure they
are period (and earlier), but am not sure if we know the particular
rules then. Chess (Shatranj) is an Islamic as well as European
(originally Indian) game.
The Caliph Ma'mun (May Allah be contented with him) was a passionate
chess player, but not one of the first rank. He used to say:
"I am the master of the world, and to that task I am sufficient. But
to master two spans square, that is beyond me."
Cariadoc/David
From: WILLIS%EIVAX at ualr.EDU (Brandr)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Flirtation
Date: 9 Apr 1993 15:37:35 -0400
> On the other hand, can someone post some alternative flirtatious
> games that can be played? That don't involve getting amorously
> involved with persons unknown? Or are less un-hygenic?
My lady, Glennys nic Kinley has developed a game she calls the Castle of Love,
based on her reading about the games of the middle ages. She discovered a
passage which said the "Castle of Love" was played as a diversion at
tournaments and courts. The basic concept of the game was a Lady defends her
castle while the Lord lays seige with words as his missles and flowers as his
weapons.
We play the game thusly. The lords and ladies are suggested to form pairs but
this is not necessarily so. At the first playing many of the young single
ladies accepted all attackers to their castle. The lady stands in the castle
(if you wish I can snail mail diagrams and instructions for the portable on I
built) Then in front of the castle stands a gate keeper, usually a lady. The
lord approaches the castle and must first remove the gatekeeper. We have
seen everything from bribes to taunting to picking up the gatekeeper and
setting her to the side. Then the lord must convince the lady to allow him
into the castle. This can be with words, songs (sung by hired bards is my way)
gifts or anything short of physically forcing his way into the castle. We
gave a gift to the best interacting couple that played. It was a great hit
after we played the actual game the gentles at the ball kept playing the game
over and over. It was very fun.
Brandr
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: eadengle at watcgl.uwaterloo.ca (Ed "Cynwrig" Dengler)
Subject: Re: Mead and Backgamon
Organization: University of Waterloo
Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1993 19:16:55 GMT
Greetings to the Rialto and m'lord Nahum!
You wrote in your missive:
>Seeking information, would some kind gentle (or Jew) :-) please help me.
>
>Two questions
>1 - I love playing Backgamon but can not practice because I have forgotten
>how to set up. I would be incredibly embarased if I came to some event
>say a year down the line and was absolutely unable to play.
> Please, please, please would someone post or e-mail the set up configuration
>My most extreme gratitude!
>Nahum haZev <FNKLSHTN at acfcluster.nyu.edu>
Well, there are about 25 or so variants that I could tease your playing
skills with, but I believe that the one you want is traditional medieval
backgammon (sometimes mistakenly referred to as "American" backgammon,
even though it originated in Europe). The layout is as follows:
m l k j h g f e d c b a
+-+-+-+-+-+-+ +-+-+-+-+-+-+ White: enters on a-f
|w| | | |b| | |b| | | | |w| moves from a-m-n-z
|5| | | |3| | |5| | | | |2| bears off on t-z
| | 2 on a, 3 on r, 5 on m and t
| | Black: enters on z-t
|2| | | |3| | |5| | | | |2| moves from z-n-m-a
|b| | | |w| | |w| | | | |b| bears off on f-a
+-+-+-+-+-+-+ +-+-+-+-+-+-+ 2 on z, 3 on h, 5 on n and f
n o p q r s t u w x y z
Addendum:
1) in some variations, the men on r and h are moved to q and j respectively
2) doubles can be handled in one of three manners:
a) are played again
b) the player has a second throw
c) are treated as normal throws (ie. no special favours)
Hope this helps in your playing! If you want to know about other varients,
try the books:
A History of Boardgames Other than Chess
by H.J.R. Murray
Board and Table Games of Many Civilizations (1 & 2)
by R.C. Bell
In service to at least my version of the dream,
Cynwrig the Wanderer
From: haslock at rust.zso.dec.com (Nigel Haslock)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Chinese - yes or no ??
Date: 29 Jun 1993 18:00:23 GMT
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation - DECwest Engineering
Greetings from Fiacha,
As a gamesmaster, I have had cause to investigate the origins and
distributions of various games. This had led me to define cultural contact
in terms of the spread of various games.
Western Europe in late period played chess, cards and various dice games.
Chess was learned from the moslem lands, possibly via Byzantium and
possibly via Al-Andalus.
Cards were a local invention, first recorded in 1377 and rapidly spreading
through Italy France and Spain. Spreading a little more slowly into England
and Germany.
Dice were largely cubical and used for a variety of games, hazard being the
most popular in England (and slowly changing into the modern American game
of Craps). Cubical dice are standard throughout western Europe.
In China, the games were WeiChi (Go), a variant of chess and some games
played with long thin tiles or cards. There is no suggestion that the concepts
of these games appeared in Europe in period and so I judge that there was no
cultural contact.
Japanese games are equally unique and unknown.
Indian games include a large number of four sided games, particularly Parcheesi
which was unknown in period.
Africa is the home of Owari (or Mancalah). This game was undoubtable known in
Moslem countries as a game played by black slaves but it too was unknown in
Europe.
I conclude that trading contact is not the same as cultural contact because
traders such as Marco Polo did visit these remote lands, but did not bring
back any of their games.
I conclude that the transmission of chess and chackers from the moslem to the
European countries does equate to cultural contact.
I do not know of any Mongol games so I make no judgement in that area.
I conclude that Africa south of the Sahara, India, China and Japan are all
out of place in the SCA.
However, the unbridled curiosity that got me into the SCA (or set my persona
travelling far from his birthplace) and the courtesy I am trying to develop
will not permit me to object to any individual who choses to claim one of
those lands as their place of origin.
Fiacha
AnTir
haslock at zso.dec.com
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: mfy at sli.com (Mike Yoder)
Subject: Re: SCA Palatine Selection Methods
Organization: Software Leverage, Inc. Arlington, Ma
Date: Sat, 16 Oct 1993 15:34:22 GMT
Good day to Jennifer Geard and all other Rialtans. Jennifer wrote:
> Disadvantages: chess is not the world's greatest spectator sport --
> playing with live chesspieces might make it better to watch but
> would probably have to be framed as a masque in order to look at all
> period. (Hmmm... actually this could be fun.)
My sources assert that living chess is "recorded at least as early as the 15th
C.," and "often" the moves are determined in advance. I don't remember whether
I got this from Murray's _History of Chess_ or some other source.
According to legend, in 1454 a game of living chess was played in Marostica for
the hand of a lady. (Marostica is a town between Venice and Lake Garda.) For
several years starting in 1954, an annual game of living chess was played in
Marostica to commemorate this; I do not know if the custom still continues.
I do not know how likely it is that this "legendary game" actually happened.
Nor do I know whether the first references to the legend occur in period. If
anyone on the Rialto is going to northern Italy sometime soon, maybe they will
be tempted by this information to make a side trip to Marostica. :-)
Franz Joder von Joderhuebel (Michael F. Yoder) [mfy at sli.com]
From: DDF2 at cornell.edu (David Friedman)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: help with a period games tourney
Date: 5 Dec 1993 04:40:25 GMT
Organization: Cornell Law School
gl8f at fermi.clas.Virginia.EDU (Greg Lindahl) wrote:
> My shire holds an annual (board) games tournament, and we are
> attempting to do a better job this year with our research.
...
Do you have Master Salaamallah's book of games? It has been available, I
believe, both from the stock clerk and from Raymond's Quiet Press; I do not
know whether either has it at the moment.
> Second, I am having a hard time tracing backgammon (table) to before
> 1600.
I believe that Nard is the Islamic name for backgammon, and that the
medieval Islamic version was reasonably close to the modern one, absent the
doubling cube. This is from my memory of what Sallamallah says, and may
well be wrong--I read the book some time ago.
Salaamallah is, I think, still active in the Society (East Kingdom); you
might see if anyone has his address.
--
David/Cariadoc
DDF2 at Cornell.Edu
From: andrew at bransle.ucs.mun.ca (Andrew Draskoy)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: game board references, great book
Date: 23 Oct 1994 18:03:42 GMT
Organization: Memorial University of Newfoundland
I recently found a wonderful book which should probably be in the private
library of everyone in the SCA. It's called "History of Everyday Things"*
On page 99 there's an illustration of a 15th century folding game board
with multiple games on it.
The boards I recognise are for Fox and Geese, Chess, and Nine Men's Morris.
There is another board that looks most intriguing. If anyone can tell me
what it is, I'd be grateful. The board consists of four concentric rings,
the outer one consisting of about 55 alternating red and black segments,
each about four times as long as wide. At the top(?) of this band, aprox.
five of these are replaced with a (black?) diamond shape on a white background.
On the other side of the board, there are little white triangles outside
the band attached to every seventh segment. The next band towards the
centre is quite thin and alternates black(?) and white segments corresponding
to three segments of the outer band. The next band in has the same number
of segments, with blue corresponding to the black, and black to the white.
In the centre is a white circle containing a black star pattern with each
point connecting to the inner side of a blue segment in the previous band.
The book gives no sources for anything, but it is apparent that it is
well researched and that the things shown in it are real. Therefore,
if anyone knows of a reference for this portable game board, please
let us know.
Miklos Sandorfia
andrew at bransle.ucs.mun.ca
From: ah488 at dayton.wright.EDU (Patrick J. Smith)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: History of Chess
Date: 20 Oct 1994 21:08:02 -0400
Sorry to take up bandwidth with this, but system problems lost me the name
and Email address of the gentle who asked for this information.
H.J.R. Murray's "A History of Chess" is available from the Benjamin Press,
Northampton Massachusetts. IBSN 0-936-317-01-9
To the best of my knowledge, his "A Short History of Chess" has not been
reprinted since Oxford University originally did so in 1963.
Jerzy Gizycki's "History of Chess was published in English Translation
of B.H. Wood by Abbey Press in 1972, an is out of print now.
John Gollon's "Chess Variations: Ancient, Regional, and Modern" was
published by Charles Tuttle Co in 1968, and also is not in print now.
Richard Eales "Chess: The history of a Game" was published by Facts on File
Inc. in 1985, and should be still in print. Unfortunately, I can't find my
copy to get the ISBN right now.
Murray's work, while a classic, has been dated somewhat by new findings
in the last 100 years. Gollon's or Gizycki's are probably best, but not
easily found. Eales is still good, if not the best.
If I can be of further help, pleas Email me at ah488 at dayton.wright.edu,
and not take up space on the network.
I remain,
Brusten de Bearsul, O.L.
From: nusbache at d1.rmc.ca (2LT Aryeh JS Nusbacher)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: History of Chess
Date: 25 Oct 1994 18:22:16 GMT
Organization: Royal Military College of Canada
Richard McAteer (rmcateer at chat.carleton.ca) wrote:
> Does anyone know how to play Hnefatafl "King-board".
I have in interesting book called _The English at Play in the Middle Ages_
which opines that as soon as chess was introduced to an area, people
dropped hneftafl, never to play it again, 'cause it was such a pointless
game compared with chess.
--
Aryk Nusbacher
Post-Graduate War Studies Programme
Royal Military College of Canada
From: kbm at pts.PRof.COM (Karen Murphy)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Hnefatafl a dead game??? Nah ...
Date: 1 Nov 1994 14:20:40 -0500
Unto the Rialto, greetings from Arnora.
Regarding Richard's request for information on hnefatafl (hereafter
referred to in its norse/icelandic abbreviation, tafl, 'cuz i'm too lazy
to spell the whole thing :), I know the game well, and, in spite of
Aryk's words that it died out of popular play becuase of chess, I much
prefer the game to chess.
Granted, it is nowhere near as intricate game as chess is, in that each
piece can only move in straight lines, vertically and horizontally along
the board, but as a teacher of basic strategy and tactics, it has always
struck me as far more practical an example than chess.
Mind you, I also have a limited attention span, so learning the rules to
tafl was much easier for me than learning the rules to chess. At best, I
play chess poorly, but I play a mean game of tafl, and I also play
several different types of tafl (there are at least three different and
documentable board sizes, the 11, 13 and 19 boards, with at least one
convincing argument for a 17 board as well). in all variants, the
attackers outnumber the defenders by a substantial margin, making the
defenders the harder role to play.
If Richard (or anyone else :) has any specific questions on the game or
one of its variations, there are a number of people in my area who play
these games frequently and well; let me know, and if i can't answer the
questions myself, I'll pass them along to those who can (hello, Cynwrig
... :)
Arnora
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Period kissing games
From: una at bregeuf.stonemarche.org (Honour Horne-Jaruk)
Date: Mon, 28 Nov 94 07:42:14 EST
Summary: how to do it right
From una Mon, 28 Nov 94 06:39:29 EST
Respected friends:
This was written in response to an Email request, but I decided to
inflict it on you all. }:->
"Prinkum Prankum" is a true carol- the singers dance in a ring, a
very simple bransle type dance. For steps and tune you would have to find
an old Carolingian. ("Old Marion" and Vissevald Selkirksson are on the Rialto
now and then.)
The words are:
"Prinkum-prankum is a fine dance
And shall we go dancing once again?
And once again, and once again,
And shall we go dancing once again?"
"This dance it shall no furthur go."
"I pray you, good sir, (madam) why say you so?"
"because Joan (John) sanderson will not come to"
"She (he) must come to and she will come to,
She (he) must come whether she (he) will or no."
Then the dance stops, the man in the middle leads a lady from the
circle to a pillow , on which they kneel for the kiss. the lady remains in
the middle while the man rejoins the dancers. Repeat until everyone's had
enough, or (my preference) stop as soon as it's obvious to one of the
experienced dancers that the less popular dancers will soon realize they're
being skipped.
Kissing bough:
-It seems to have begun in Pagan days as a way of designating the
person who would speak next at the Yule storytelling. But by the time it's
`nailed down', in medieval France, it's become a courtly game.
An evergreen branch, light enough to be easily lifted and as perfect
as possible, is selected. It is decorated with ribbons holding small bells.
I don't remember anymore who starts this one, but the man who holds
the bough carries it to the lady of his favour. She gives him a subject upon
which he must compose a poem `ex tempore'.
When he has one, he rings the bells on the kissing bough, recites
his poem and claims his reward. Then the lady gives the bough to another
gentleman (It is to be hoped she selects one who is capable of poetry)
- he does not, however, get a kiss at that point. He, in turn, must find
a _different_ lady to approach, etc.
The original version of clove lemon:
(This is more a middle-class thing: the poor give homemade trinkets.)
A citrus fruit, or at least a citrus rind, is obtained. (Remember, at this point
lemon rinds were inches thick. This is one reason why so few period recipes,
relatively speaking, call for lemon juice.)
If a rind, the center is packed with whatever spices the young man
can obtain.
In either case, the outside is scored and the scores rubbed with
spice. A prudent person will score in a pattern suitable for the number of
cloves he can afford.
Once the cloves are set in, the lemon is set in a warm, dry place
until the skin begins to harden. (Ideally, this will occur at the proper
time- St. Valentine's day in some areas, twelfthnight or midsummers's morn,
whatever suits the local custom.)
Then the suitor presents it to his sweet-heart. (One assumes a kiss
would be returned if the gift is a welcome one.) If the hearts are true, the
pomander will finish drying pure and sweet. If there is a flaw, it will show
in the fruit.
(A clever, but unwilling, girl could probably manage the matter so
that her superstitious parents declared the suitor as rotten as his gift...)
That's all I can remember at the moment. Do me a favor, if you would-
see if you can get any of these to take hold in your area...
The sins of the lazy researcher are visited upon the Society, unto the
thousandth generation thereof.
Honour/Una/Alizaunde
(Friend) Honour Horne-Jaruk R.S.F.
Alizaunde, Demoiselle de Bregeuf C.O.L. SCA
From: alfredo1 at aol.com (Alfredo1)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Period Games
Date: 9 Jan 1995 12:28:45 -0500
> i have recently taken up carving gameboards from in Period. so far I have
> found a large group of games to work with, but i am always in search of more.
> I have checked out all of the sources from the Compleat Anachronist:Period
> Pastimes. what i would like to know is: what are some other good sources
> available for Period games. if you can, also give an isbn number, price, and
> what library i might be able to get it from via interlibrary loan.
Games of the World, Frederic V. Grunfeld, ed., ISBN 0-03-015261
Especially geared toward making games.
The Boardgame Book by R C Bell, ISBN 0 89535 007 6
This is supposed to work as boards itself, moving cut-out pieces on the
pages, but it doesn't work to well. Still the photos of the authors collection
are great. Be sure to see the hidden side of the dust-jacket.
The Book of Games, Peter Arnold, ed., ISBN 0-671-07732-5
Mostly deals with rules and strategies. Some period illustrations.
The Games Treasury by Merilyn Simonds Mohr, ISBN 1-881527-23-9 (pbk)
100 Indoor Games You Can Play by Peter Arnold, ISBN 0-517-65409
These are all "coffee-table" books; the first three have period
illustrations and photographs that will help you with design details.
Alfredo el Bufon
From: kellmer at u.washington.edu (Brent Kellmer)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: (More) Tablero Questions
Date: 31 Jan 1995 22:33:37 GMT
Organization: University of Washington
Greetings to those gentles gathered on this bridge, from Rodrigo Ramirez
de Valencia!
I haven't been following this thread closely, so I'm not sure if it's
been mentioned, but there's the Creative Anachronist "How to While Away a
Seige" that has Tablero rules and an explanation in it. There is also a
drawing of a late period Tablero board (around 1560's I think, but I may
be off a bit). I'm sure the author would be happy to help out if you
contact him -- it's Baron Gerhardt Kendall of Westmoreland, one of the
pillars on which An Tir stands (he is quite a wonder). I don't know if
he has an e-mail address, but I can dig out a postal address if you'd like.
Point of note: I've only seen it referred to as "Tablero de JESUS,"
rather than "Tablero de Jeses" (although one might be a corruption of the
other).
There is also a traditional game of An Tir known as Tablero de Gucci,
after a well-known family in the kingdom -- generally done with beer
rather than with coins. Games rarely last too long, even for the
strong-willed and hollow-legged.
In Service to St.Bunstable, Madrone, and AnTir,
Rodrigo Ramirez de Valencia
Madrone, AnTir
kellmer at u.washington.edu
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: greyk at netcom.com (Grey Knowles)
Subject: Re: Help with Gambling Games
Date: Thu, 2 Feb 1995 23:51:09 GMT
-Otto,M.R. (motto at usgp4.ih.att.com) wrote:
: My beloved Angus is interested in holding an event where the good gentles
: of the area can enjoy an evening in pursuit of games of chance. I would
: appreciate information any of you might have on such games as were played
: in our period. Also, if any have held or attended a similar evening's
: festivities, I would be interested in tips and stories of how it went.
You may think about a name 'Rock n' bone' which would refer to both
barony and bones, ie dice.
As far as games go, I can tell you two good gambling games:
1) The predecessor to craps, Hazard. Almost excatly the same.
to play hazard: roll 2 dice (6 sided) after placing an ante. if 7 or 11
comes up, you win. if neither appears, take note of the number and roll
until you hit it. getting the number means you win, but if you roll 7 or
11 you lose. Pretty simple. Bets can be placed all over, on the number
that comes up on firstroll, whether he winns or loses, what the losing
number is.... etc.
2) German game: Lucky Pig (I forgot the translation). Much more
involved game. Can be played continuously throughout the day as 1 game.
board looks like:
\-------------------\
\ \ 12 \ \
\------\------\-----\
\11 \ 9 \ 10 \
\------\------\-----\
\8 \ 6 \ 4 \
\------\------\-----\
\3 \ 2 \blank\
\-------------------\
Rolling the dice is fairly simple: Roll the number and, unless there's a
coin there, put one there. If there's a coin there, take it. Here's the
trick: 12 is the king and 10 is the wedding. the pig is 2. The idea is
that if you roll the king, you get everything on the board BUT the
wedding. if you roll the wedding, you must put a coin, only (it's a gift
for the groom/bride). If you roll the pig, you get the entire board, even
the wedding. Also, note there's no 5. If you roll a 5, it's house choice.
This could be ANYTHING - from downing all your ale, to ...?
Have fun.
--
greyk at netcom.com
From: Alfredo1 at aol.COM
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: games of chance and such...
Date: 3 Apr 1995 01:17:28 -0400
> Once again I beseech ye for help! I am giving my first revel soon, and
> I plan on offering various games for the revelers, unfortunately...as
> with most of my knowledge...I am only familiar with a few. If any of
> you have suggestions, they would be so greatly appreciated.
I heartily suggest the ancient game of Morra. It needs no equipment,
and it makes Scissors-Rock-Paper look like child's play. If you've
never played Morra, then you've probably never stood facing an opponent,
holding out a hand displaying from 0 to 4 fingers, shouting (preferably
in Italian) a number from 0 to 8, while your opponent did likewise, and
repeated the action until one of you had shouted a number that matched
the total number of fingers thrust forward. There is an old Italian
proverb about someone who would play Morra for money in the dark being
exceptionally trustworthy, or trusting, or something (they were talking
so fast!). Here is a table of the Italian numbers.
0 zero /DZEH-ro/
1 uno /OO-no/
2 due /DOO-ey/
3 tre /TREY/
4 quattro /KWAT-tro/
5 cinque /CHEEN-kwey/
6 sei /SEY-ee/
7 sette /SET-teh/
8 otto /OUGHT-toe/
Although I am Spanish (not Italian) I remain,
Alfredo
From: mugjf at uxa.ecn.bgu.EDU (Gwyndlyn J Ferguson)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: games of chance and such
Date: 13 Apr 1995 12:27:20 -0400
Unto Wllm MacA, Melys, and those upon the bridge,
This is in response to requests for rules for _Road to
Jerusalem_, so here it is.
I first encountered this game at a games eent, and my lord has
subsequently made it his favorite to make and play.
As near as I can tell (minimal research and much hearsay) _Road
to Jerusalem_ sprang from the 3rd Crusade and appears to have been a
tavern game. The original board is a spiral of 63 spaces, with start on
the outside and Jerusalem in the center. There are several special spaces:
1. Start
5. Spur
6. London Bridge--Pay one coin, go to space no.12
9. Spur
14. Spur
18. Spur
19. Paris Inn--Pay one coin for a drink, spend two turns drinking.
23. Spur
26. Play at Dice--Must roll a 5 to continue.
27. Spur
31. Roman Fountain--Toss in one coin, spend one turn wishing.
32. Spur
36. Spur
41. Spur
42. Bad directions from Venetians, go to space no.24.
45. Spur
50. Spur
52. Ransomed by Germans, stay here until someone passes you.
53. Play at dice--Must roll 9 to continue.
54. Spur
58. Black Death! To continue, go back to start and pay one coin.
59. Spur
61. Oasis--Pay one coin for a sip of water.
63. Jerusalem!
You need: A pair of dice, the game board, coins or tokens, and markers
for the players (buttons or such).
The game will support as many players as wish to play, the more players,
the richer the pot!
Each player pays one coin into the pot at Jerusalem and puts his marker
on start.
Determine who is to go first, and proceed clockwise from there. Roll two
dice and move the same number of spaces as the total. You MUST do waht
the space tells you to do.
You must pay one coin to Jerusalem whenever you are a) on start, or b) a
space that tells you to pay.
You must roll the exact number to get into Jerusalem, excess points are
moved backwards. Example: Player A is two spaces from Jerusalem, he
rolls a five. He would count two spaces into Jerusalem, and 3 spaces
back. If he does not land on a spur, he may move forward again on his
next turn.
Spur spaces indicate that you MUST roll again and move. You continue
moving in whichever direction you were moving when you landed on the spur
(yes, even backwards).
You have one chance per turn to roll an exact number when caught Playing
at Dice. When the correct number is rolled, you may immediately proceed
with a normal turn (roll again and move).
If you are Ransomed by Germans, you are released when another player
passes you, even if he's going backward.
When you roll the exact amount and enter Jerusalem, you sack the city and
get all of the coins in the pot (yay!).
Game play continues with all of the players paying a coin to Jerusalem,
AND CONTINUING FROM WHEREVER THEY ARE ON THE BOARD. If the winning
player wishes to continue playing, he may pay one coin to Jerusalem and
begin at start.
Anyone can join in at an time by paying one coin to Jerusalem and
beginning at start.
This game is good fun, and can easily be played with poker chips as well
as pennies (or cookies, or whatever).
My lord has created a version of the board in which the track is uncoiled
and laid out over a map of Europe, so that London, Paris, Rome, Germany
and Jerusalem are in approximately correct positions. It is painted on
fabric and can be rolled up to store. (He sells them for $30, which
includes dice and markers for four to six players) Ok, it was a blatant
pitch :)
I hope you enjoy the game!
gf
*Gwyn Ferguson***Western Illinois University
*SCA: Lady Gwyndlyn Caer Vyrddin***Lochmorrow-Midrealm
*Internet: mugjf at bgu.edu
From: iys6lri at mvs.oac.ucla.edu (Lori Iversen)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: A Book of Games
Date: 20 Apr 1995 21:43:40 GMT
Organization: ucla
To all gentles who were looking for period games and the like:
A fellow with whom I work on stage occasionally has self-published
a book of board, card, and dice games from Rome to the Cavaliers.
I don't know what the book is called, but Wally gave me his permission
to post his name and phone here on the Rialto for any who are interested.
The book costs somewhere in the neighborhood of $16.00, I think, and
worth every penny, too. Incidentally, Wally took his degree in
medieval history and has made a second career of supplying stuff
to the historical re-enactor.
Walter and Sheila Murphy-Nelson
(aka Wat of Coombe and Shelagh na Morphaidh)
Merchant Adventurers, Ltd.
(818) 342-3482
Alexis Vladescu Lori Iversen
WyvernHo-ette (IYS6LRI at mvs.oac.ucla.edu)
Altavia, CAID The Valley, CA
From: DUNHAM%EUGLIB at mred.lane.EDU (PATSY DUNHAM)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Alfonso's Book of Games in Cincinnati
Date: 4 May 1995 14:27:24 -0400
>On Thu, 4 May 1995 "John R. Schmidt" <jschmidt at netcom.com> wrote:
>Secondly, I have heard a rumor that a translation of Alphonse the Wise
>book of games (Alphonse X, and I've mangled another name) exists in the
>main city library in Cinncinati. If so, any information on it would be
>wonderful. If a copy could be made, I would pay all costs and some time
>(negotiated ahead of time), if not, I'll have to come visit, but I've got
>to confirm it's existance first.
>John Theophilous/John Schmidt
Well, I'm not from Cincinnati, but I do know how to get books. According to
OCLC, there is one copy in Cincinnati of _Alfonso_ 's (that's how the library
world spells it) _Libro de los juegos_ (OCLC #10920473). It is, however, a
photo facsimile with 4 pages to the page; but the illustrations have been hand
colored... So it looks like it would be real small; and I think it was an
edition from the 1920's or earlier so it may be in pretty fragile condition.
It took a bit of work to figure this one out, as my Spanish is pretty rusty,
but... The Cincinatti copy is the only one called "Libro de los juegos" (Book
of the games). The other editions that are around go mostly by the title
"Libros de ajedrez, dados y tablas" or some combination of the following
phrases: El tratado de ajedrez/Libro de acedrex (Treatise/book of Chess)
Libro de los dados (book of Dice?)
Libro de las tablas (book of Board-games?)
Libro del alquerque (Book of ...)
(actually, according to my scribbles, the Tratado contains the 4 Libros listed
above)
I also found references to a microfiche edition from the "Spanish series" of
the "Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies" (no. 2, item 13, 3 microfiche)
(OCLC#11639281).
There's a BIG German treatise (448 p.) on OCLC #4384536 (somebody writing about
the book, in German--at this size it probably contains a complete copy of the
original item, which would be in the original language).
At OCLC #4229990 there's a 58 p. "estudio" that I'm pretty sure is just about
the illustrations (which are GREAT, marvelous references for costume, the games
and even musical instruments... there are copies of some of them in one of the
"popular" titles at home (title is "Chivalry"))
And, probably the most likely, there's a 1987 2-volume set published by the
Spanish government, an "edicion facsimile" at OCLC #17601554, with 5 copies in
the U.S.
Most of these come from various Spanish (government) presses, so would probably
be fairly difficult for civilians to order copies of (librarian tho I am, does
_ANYBODY_ out there have a good contact that can regularly order books from
European sources???)
And I did not get the sense that ANY of the books listed above were in
English. So how's your medieval Spanish? (Altho, Alfonso apparently was a
real Danielle Steel--he wrote TONS of stuff (maybe 250 entries on OCLC for all
the various editions of various titles, 1400 to present), there's probably at
least one graduate thesis out there somewhere analyzing his language =>
glossaries or a dictionary??? Anybody have any clues?)
So... off to Inter-Library Loan at your local public or university library...
Chimene
From: ansteorra at eden.com (5/23/95)
To: ansteorra at eden.com
Subject: Shove-Groat
On Mon, 22 May 1995, Chris Walden wrote:
> Last night I had the misfortune of losing over thirty-five pistoles against
> an excellent opponent of Shove-Groat. It is my understanding that this
> gentlemanly game is to be banned from the court of England and I fear that
> this trend shall carry over into the courts of other countries as my
> original home of Italy, and my current home of France.
>
> Shove-Groat is obviously a game of skill, unlike many of the games played
> with cards or dice that are simply trusting one's money to blind and fickle
> luck. Though I shall certainly feel the loss of my thirty-five pistoles, I
> must bow to the greater skill of my opponent who won them from me. Given
> time I shall return the favour to him. I heard rumour that the censure was
> begun as the result of an unfortunate game between a Royal and a more
> skilled player. The official story, however, is that the game is too
> distracting from the business of court.
>
> I remain Yours, etc.
> Antonio Bastiano
> or cmwalden at bga.com
Well, as you know, the loser in an evenly matched game of shove groat is
likely to lose much more than the loser in a game where the winner is
much better than his oponent. So I am SURE you will be able to recoup
your funds. That is, if you would care for a rematch...
---------------------------------------
| | SHOVE GROAT BOARD
| ---------------------------------- |
| | | |
| | | | <----- Out area
|_|__________________________________|_|
| | <----- Bed (1 of 9)
|______________________________________|
| | <----- Another Bed...
|______________________________________|
| |
|______________________________________|
| O| <---- Coins that have scored
|______________________________________|
| O|
|______________________________________|
|O |
|______________________________________|
| O|
|______________________________________|
| |
|______________________________________|
| |
|______________________________________|
| |
| |
| | <---- Shooting area
| |
|--------------------O-----------------|
^ ^ ^
| | |
His Side Coin ready to shoot My side
A simple game, the basic idea is to be the first to get three coins in
each bed. Each player gets five shots (coins) per turn. To shoot a player
puts a coin on the edge of the shooting area and wacks it with their palm
to make it slide down the board, hopefuly into one of the beds.
- Coins on a line don't count. After a player's five shots, any coins
still on a line are removed.
- Any coin that goes into the Out area is removed at once.
- A player may strike coins he has shot with his following shots
(to try and get them off a line for instance)
- After a player has shot his five coins any that are in a bed are
stacked up on his side of the board in that bed. Until he reaches
three, that is. After that the coins go into his opponent's side.
- Play alternates kinda like darts. 5 shots for one player, 5 for
the next, and so on.
There are 9 beds, and at 3 coins each you need 27 scores to win. That
means you could have 26 coins on the board when you lose. Or even more
if you have over filled some beds and ended up with some coins on your
opponent's side. A skilled and crafty opponent will let you do this by
avoiding the areas you have already filled.
You can play for the coins on the board, winner take all, or you can
wager on the outcome before starting. You can also play in teams of two
with alternating turns, and split the winnings. This game is much more
fun with gambling invloved, so if you plan to play be sure to bring some
fake-o coin-of-the-relm to play with and be prepared to lose big. <g>
One more thing, this simple little game is real addictive and an amazing
time eater. I guess you don't need CPUs, LEDs and Active Matrix Color
Displays to find entertainment after all.
Savian
From: charlie.cain at twisted.COM (Charlie Cain)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Tablero de Jesus
Date: 6 Jul 1995 06:27:09 -0400
> Date: 29 Jun 1995 15:56:55 GMT
> From: "Benjamin J. Tilly" <Benjamin.J.Tilly at dartmouth.edu>
> Organization: Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
> Subject: Tablero?
> Can somebody send me the rules to it?
Done. For others who might wish, they can be found in "The
Compleat Anachronist #71, p.38ff.
In service,
Larkin O'Kane
Charlie Cain
charlie.cain at twisted.com
The Twisted Pair! (915)949-0721
West Texas Online Communications
San Angelo, Texas
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: a-mikem at ac.tandem.com (mckay_michael)
Subject: Recommendation for book with Period Card Games
Organization: Atalla Corporation - San Jose, CA.
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 1995 17:18:45 GMT
At least for our Americian members, I wanted to give a head up about a
good book. David Parlett's "A History of Card Games" is available from
some books stores at a discount because of over-printing. It is a large
soft-cover format book from Oxford, and was selling for $7. It is basically
the same book (w/o the color plates) as the "Oxford Guide to Card Games".
About 1/4 of the book discusses card games in our period, and it is pretty
well written (extensive footnotes, although no formal bibliography). One
thing I should note, is that this is not a good "how to play book". Although
he spends a lot of time on history and form, the rules are mentioned with
the assumption that you are familar with card games in general. Even with
this stipulation, I highly recommend the book.
Seaan McAy Caer Darth; Darkwood; Mists; West (Santa Cruz, CA)
From: Kathryn Ballard (10/24/95)
To: Mark.S Harris
CC: Lillith Kylan Lerien
RE>Nine Pins
On Wed, 4 Oct 1995, Mark.S Harris wrote:
> Greetings,
>
> If you get any useful replies could you please send them my way? I'd
> also be interested in info on the size of the pins and balls. I don't
> have any information on this game in my SCA games files, but would love
> to add it.
>
> Thanks.
> Stefan li Rous
> markh at risc.sps.mot.com
>
> In article <446msp$57u at lynx.unm.edu> you write:
> >Does anyone have information on how to play nine pins? A gentleman in
> >our Barony just made a lathe and started making the pins and balls, so
> >now he's like to know where to find info on the medieval game. Send info
> >to kballar at unm.edu
> >
> >Thanks
> >--
> >Kathryn Ballard SCA: Countess Kathryn of Iveragh, MP, ML, etc.
> >UNM CIRT IBM Systems Barony of al-Barran, Outlands
> >kballar at unm.edu http://www.unm.edu/~kballar/
Here's what was referred to me. In "Medieval Games" by Salamallah the
Compulent (sold by SCA or Sir Raymond), page 107:
Nine-pins was a game using the pin (or cone) of early bowling, but
employing nine of them. The players contested to see who could knock
them down in th least number of bowls or how many they could knock down
in a set of bowls. The pins were set up in either a square of three rows
of three, or in a diamond shape of 1, 2, 3, 2, 1. Two more pins were
added when the ball was cut in hald for half-bowls. The unusal motion of
the hemisphere made the game quite difficult. The trick was to roll the
ball so that it came around back of the pins and hit the two additional
pins so that they fell upon the others. Half bowls died, but the biased
ball remained in the English game of lawm bowling.
That's all I've heard. Enjoy.
Kathryn Ballard
UNM CIRT IBM Systems
Email: kballar at unm.edu WWW: http://www.unm.edu/~kballar/
From: leeu at celsiustech.se (Leif Euren)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: norse dice
Date: 20 Oct 1995 11:06:38 +0100
Organization: CelsiusTech AB
Blandur and Katherine wrote:
> Good Gentles: Could someone please tell us how to make Norse
> Dice. The ones I am refering to were made out of hex keys(?). They
> had the dots punched out of them. Is this correct to make them out
> of hex keys and what position do the dots go. Thank you
As I'm very interested is games (especially Braede, i.e. a game played
with the same pieces andw on the same board as Backgammon, but with
different setup and rules), I've seen viking-age and medieval dice in
museums in Sweden, Denmark and Norway; and also in British Museum and
Victoria & Albert Museum in London.
Frankly I don't grasp what you are referring to by "hex keys".
The dice I've seen have been of two types: one more or less a hexaeder
(i.e. a cube), the other a short hexagonal rod. The material of the
dice I've seen has been bone (or ivory), but it's speculated that
hardwood was used for simpler designs.
The cube-form dice has a side from 5 to 15 mm (1/4" to 5/8"), and the
dots are ivariably set as on our modern day dice on each, althougn the
placment of the faces varied (modern dice, as you surely know,
opposite faces always has the sum 7).
The rod-form dice seems to have been made due to shortage of material,
and have a diameter of about 6 to 10 mm (1/4" to 3/8") and a length of
25-35 mm (1"-1"1/4). As you realize, the faces are quite narrow, and
the dots are always placed in a row.
Hopefully this has been informative to you.
your humble servant
Peder Klingrode | Leif Euren Stockholm, Sweden
Holmrike, Nordmark, Drachenwald | leeu at celsiustech.se
From: justin at dsd.camb.inmet.COM (Mark Waks)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Games Home Page
Date: 13 Nov 1995 13:17:24 -0500
While I think of it -- I don't *think* I've mentioned this before...
There is now a Period Games Homepage. It's pretty small to start with,
but growing -- I've now got a couple of articles on period games and
a few bibliographies on the topic. Anyone who wants to send stuff for
the page should feel free to do so. (HTML or plain text, please.)
The URL is:
http://www.inmet.com/~justin/game-hist.html
-- Justin
From: Alfredo el Bufon <hopkins at dg-rtp.dg.com>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: hnafetafl (was something about Dalmuti)
Date: 16 Nov 1995 19:51:45 GMT
Organization: Data General Corporation, RTP, NC
Mistress Huette Aliza von und zu Ahrens und Mechthildberg
(Pat Lammerts (pat at lalaw.lib.CA.US)) wrote:
>
>I usually play boardgames, especially my very favorite, that
>wonderful Viking game, hnafetafl
> [...]
>BTW this is not the commercial game sold as "The Viking Game" which
>is a pale, watered-down version of the original, but one based on
>the remains of a gameboard found in a 13th century Viking long boat.
Is your version the same as that presented by Lady Gunnora Hallakarva
in her treatise "King's Table: Game of the Noble Scandinavians"?
Lady Gunnora's article is available on the Gard-Girding Grid at
http://fermi.clas.virginia.edu/~gl8f/articles/kings_table.html
-- Alfredo el Bufon
hopkins at dg-rtp.dg.com
From: Alfredo el Bufon <hopkins at dg-rtp.dg.com>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Rules for Jactus?
Date: 8 Dec 1995 16:54:49 GMT
Organization: Data General Corporation, RTP, NC
mulvanem at fp.co.nz (Muireann ingen Eoghain) wrote:
>
>A friend of mine is getting into dicing games at the moment, and
>wants to make a Jactus set. All that is lacking is the rules of
>the game. Does anyone know what they are, and if so, could you
>share them with us?
I must admit that I have never heard of a game called Jactus,
but I do know of an early precursor of backgammon that was
called "alea", and according to at least one Roman authority
that this was the same game as "iacta".
("Alea est iacta" -- Julius Caesar)
I'm guessing that "jactus" is a more masculine version.
I hope this helps.
-- Alfredo el Bufon
From: "Jeffrey L. Singman" <jsingman at umich.edu>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Period marble games
Date: 20 Jan 1996 12:44:19 GMT
Organization: University of Michigan
> Is there anyone out there who can help me find information on
> period games with marbles? I tried writing the Marble Collectors
> of America, no good. They are mostly interested in buying,
> selling and trading marbles.
Marbles were certainly being used in the 17c in England, but I can't
guarantee earlier. There's some good historical info on them in
Henry Rene d'Allemagne, *Recreations et Passe-Temps* (or possibly
in another of his books on the history of games, but I think it's
this one). Early (ie. late 17c)
refs to marbles often call them 'marvels', and
mention various versions of the game 'taw', but there are no early
rules to my knowledge--though in a case like this one can legitimately
use later rules for the game. JLS
From: hrjones at uclink.berkeley.edu (Heather Rose Jones)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Period Marbles Games
Date: 17 Jan 1996 01:02:49 GMT
Organization: University of California, Berkeley
Mark Waks (justin at dsd.camb.inmet.COM) wrote:
: Francesco asks:
: >Is there anyone out there who can help me find information on
: >period games with marbles?
: Hmm; do you have any good reason to believe such exist? I can believe
: that it's possible (there's nothing particularly esoteric about the
: technology of making marbles, or the games themselves, I think), but I
: can't think of any references. Seems to me (off the top of my head)
: that most of the marbles references I've seen seem to be 19th
: century...
: (Also: although I suspect marbles could well have been made in period,
: I wonder if they were an easy enough commodity that they would have
: been used this way. Anyone have any idea how cheap glass-working
: technology was in period?)
Ah, but why are you assuming period marbles would have been made out of
glass, instead of ... oh, say, marble, for instance. (Although a
reasonable explanation of the name could be a "marbled" appearance of the
original material.) Glass marbles are not universal even today. When I
purchased marbles in Czechoslovakia in the late '60s, they were ceramic
(and prone to crumbling if you used them to harshly).
The OED notes: "Marble 4. A little ball (varying from about 1/2 inch to
an inch in diameter), originally made of marble, now usually of baked
clay, porcelain, or composition, used in a children's game; hence in pl.
the game itself. Also a similar ball (e.g. of glass) used in other games."
The dated citations for this usage begin in 1694 with "The next are
marbles for boys to play with." [Collect. Husb. & Trade]
This would appear to cast doubt on the use of marbles in period in
England. It does not, however, indicate whether the playing of marbles
was brought to England from some place where they had been in use
significantly earlier.
In French, for example, the word for a toy marble is "bille", which
literally means "little ball". (As represented, for example, in
"billiards".) According to Dauzat's etymological dictionary of French,
the _word_ "bille" appears as early as the 12th century, but no context
is given for the usage, and it certainly cannot be assumed that this
means specifically "a marble" at that point.
Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn
From: rayotte at badlands.NoDak.edu (Rayotte)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Period Marbles Games
Date: 18 Jan 1996 00:24:52 GMT
Organization: North Dakota Higher Eduation Network
Marbles WERE made in period, and there were games for them.
My brother makes marbles and while searching for info on glass
molding found a 13th C referance to marbles in Germany, seems that they
were often made at the end of the day from leftovers and scraps.
I have tried to get this information but as of yet I have not.
Try looking under glass making.
Horace
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Period Marbles Games
From: una at bregeuf.stonemarche.org (Honour Horne-Jaruk)
Date: Thu, 18 Jan 96 16:51:18 EST
justin at dsd.camb.inmet.COM (Mark Waks) writes:
> Francesco asks:
> >Is there anyone out there who can help me find information on
> >period games with marbles?
>
...
>
> (Also: although I suspect marbles could well have been made in period,
> I wonder if they were an easy enough commodity that they would have
> been used this way. Anyone have any idea how cheap glass-working
> technology was in period?)
>
> -- Justin
Respected friend:
You, I fear, have been had. Anyplace with either a river (tumbled
pebbles) or a bank of clay and a fire had marbles.
As for how they played them, check out Breughel's painting
_Children's Games_ . There's at least one marble game in progress.
Una Wicca (will spin for marbles!) &/or
Alizaunde, Demoiselle de Bregeuf- MKA:
(Friend) Honour Horne-Jaruk, R.S.F.
From: Eugene M. Pitard (1/18/96)
To: "Mark S Harris"
Antiquity of Marbles
The Encyclopaedia Brittanica in its article on marbles reports that Octavian who
later became Caesar Augustus played games with marbles. It also indicates that
the marbles were made of baked clay. Sometimes they were stones which had had
some "lapidary" work performed on them.
Marbles certainly became much more widespread during the Industrial revolution
with the application of mass production techniques. But while they were much
more widespread then, unfortunately, most people, including myself previously,
thought they came into being during that time.
My own research, which has been very limited--mostly to having read only one
book--indicates that there is a surviving game of marbles from the Elizabethan
Era still being played today. As to the antiquity of other marble games, I do
not know.
I have consulted with a Shakespearean scholar who belongs to our group here in
Iron Mountain and she informs me that there is a reference to marble games in a
Shakespearean Play. However, she can't recall the name of the play.
Francesco Alberti.
From: justin at dsd.camb.inmet.COM (Mark Waks)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Marbles
Date: 22 Jan 1996 13:27:18 -0500
Tangwystyl goes to the OED, and pulls out:
>The dated citations for this usage begin in 1694 with "The next are
>marbles for boys to play with." [Collect. Husb. & Trade]
>
>This would appear to cast doubt on the use of marbles in period in
>England.
To some degree; on the other hand, it's actually considerably closer
than I'd expected. It indicates that not only are marbles nearly
period, but marble *games* are 17th century. That's actually quite
interesting -- while I'm still mildly skeptical (since it's still
most of a century off), I'm willing to give it rather more benefit
of the doubt. Worth keeping an eye out for other references,
especially in other countries -- even if it wasn't being done
in England in period, it's possible that it was being done
elsewhere. Thanks for the pointer; I'll have to keep this in
mind for future research.
The allusion to billiards, BTW, is an interesting one. Billiards is
definitely closer to period -- a game somewhat similar to modern
billiards, with the same table and balls, was apparently widespread in
England by the 1670's, and might well reach back into period. It's
possible that children's marbles could have evolved as a sort of
junior variant of this game or one of its continental relatives. Worth
exploring...
(And as for the point that marbles might have been made of marble
in period: Doh! I really should have thought of that...)
-- Justin
From: justin at dsd.camb.inmet.COM (Mark Waks)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: 15-16th century gaming
Date: 15 Apr 1996 16:58:03 -0400
>Could somebody direct me to some Internet sources of information about
>gaming in the Renaissance time period, pref. Tudor England?
The Medieval and Renaissance Games Home Page is at:
http://www.inmet.com/~justin/game-hist.html
This has a moderate amount on Renaissance Games; the documentation
is actually most solid for really late-period, but some of the
games are probably Tudor or earlier. (Eg, Picket.)
-- Justin
From: Gretchen M Beck <grm+ at andrew.cmu.edu>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: The "Evils" of Pennsic
Date: Thu, 20 Jun 1996 13:06:38 -0400
Organization: Computer Operations, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA
Excerpts from netnews.rec.org.sca: 20-Jun-96 Re: The "Evils" of Pennsic
by David M. Razler at postoffi
> Craps and poker are not period!
Poker ain't, but craps is. There's medieval treatises on the playing of
a game whose rules are almost identical to craps.
toodles, margaret
From: rhayes at powerup.com.au (Robin Hayes)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Card Games, and the 14th century
Date: 17 Sep 1996 08:03:28 GMT
Another useful book is
Fun and Games in Old Europe
W. Endrei & L. Zolnay
(A translation of an Hungarian original)
Budapest 1986 - Corvina
1988 ISBN 963 13 2386 2
(Flyleaf says - orders to Kultura Budapest 62
P.O.B. 149 H-1389)
A considerable emphasis on medieval things, pictures, etc. Cards are but a
small section...
You may find this of interest, if you can track it down. I got mine from a
disposal source.
Robin
From: kolton at mustique.u.arizona.edu (Jason C Kolton)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Chess in Iceland- looking for
Date: 14 Jan 1997 07:34:31 GMT
Organization: The University of Arizona
drusilus (76065.727 at CompuServe.COM) wrote:
: Please help, I have a lady looking for a copy of this book and any
: other books with period references on backgammon.
: drusilus
Greetings Your Excellency,
You might want to try these web sites. I have found a large
amount of info chess as I have been doing research on period chess.
http://www.cs.ruu.nl/~hansb/d.chessvar/Gacedrex.html
" "Gcotadel.html
" "/~ha....chessvar/Gshatranj.html
" "marinelli.html
" "/~hansb/d.chessvar/historic
" "G4seiz.html
" "Gcourier.html
I had found these sites back in August while looking for information on
Byzantian chess, or chess in the round. The rule changes are very
interesting. I think I liked the dice variant the best though.
Good luck and happy hunting.
Jason
---------------------- ||
Jason C Kolton | at ======||========================>
kolton at U.Arizona.EDU | || In Deo est Veritas
From: scottb at ucr.campus.mci.net (Scott Begg)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: A question regarding the medieval game of Nine Mens' Morris...
Date: Mon, 17 Feb 1997 08:12:13 GMT
stircraz at concentric.net (stircraz) wrote:
>I can't answer your questions, but have a question for you instead....do
>you know of any really good webpages out there on Medieval gaming??
>Especially dice games??
>Lady Rhondalynn MacLeod
No, I don't really, although I can give you a couple of web sites
which give some information and other possiblities concerning ancient
and medieval board games...
1. Games of the VIkings and Anglo Saxons
http://www.ftech.net/~regia/games.htm
2. Medieval and Renaissance Games Home Page
http://www.inmet.com/~justin/game-hist.html
3. Museum and Archive of Games Home Page, U. of Waterloo, CA.
http://www.ahs.uwaterloo.ca/~museum/index.html#exhibits
4. Gamefinders: Boardgames of the Old World
http://www.vashonisland.com/gamefinder/
5. Traditional Games Web Site
http://www.gamecabinet.com/deeperDrawers/Traditional.html
6. Games People Played (collection of Historical Games)
http://www.pinc.com/home/hstone/GamesPeoplePlayed.html
7. Mancala Games
http://www.cs.ruu.nl/people/hansb/d.gam/mancala.html
8. The Chess Variant Pages: Historic Variants.
http://www.cs.ruu.nl/~hansb/d.chessvar/Ihistoric.html
9. The Chessmaster Network--History of Chess
http://www.chessmaster.com/history/early.html
10. Twenty Squares (an ancient Egyptian Game much like Senet)...
http://elaine.teleport.com/~ddonahue/20sqr.html
That's all I can find right now.
I'm still looking for information on Nine Mens' Morris!!!
Scott
From: wmills at BSDI.COM (William Mills)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Glukhaus
Date: 14 Sep 1997 18:32:56 -0600
Organization: Berkeley Software Design, Inc.
Todd Spencer (lildog at inreach.com) wrote:
: Last year at the Ren faire I came across a game called
: Glukhaus. (sp?) Pronounced Glook-house I believe. I have a board and
: some die but cannot remember the rules. It is a gambling game with
: numbered squares from 1to 12 I think in the middle is a married couple
: and when and if you land on them I think you pay all of your money to
: the house. Ring any bells? Please let me know if you can refresh my
: memory on this game.
Gluckhaus is described in
www.st-mike.org/groups/germans
I think that is the right URL. definitely the site name is right.
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 23:00:28 +0000
From: "James Pratt" <cathal at mindspring.com>
To: sca-arts at raven.cc.ukans.edu
Subject: Re: Irish questions: board games
> I have recently been doing some research on various things Irish in
> period. In the process I have discovered _Early Medieval Ireland
> 400-1200_ by Daibhi O'Cronin which has a wealth of information. There are
> several things in the book that I thought the people on this list could
> help me with The Irish law texts mention three board games, bandub,
> fidshell and bunanfach. I would be very interested in any further
> information on them that I could get.
>
> Charles O'Connor
> jphughes at raven.cc.ukans.edu
"BRANDUB" is a game for 2 players.
It is played on a board comprised of 49 alternating white and black
squares arranged in seven parallel rows of seven. The center square
is "black" and called "Tara" or "Home".
Pieces are different coloured stones or objects as described below.
One player has eight pieces which are placed on the white squares on
the edge of the board nearest the corners. These pieces are called
"Barons" and move first.
The other player has five pieces: four "Princes" and one "King".
These pieces are arranged in an "X" radiating from the central
or "Tara" square. The "King" is always placed on "Tara"
Players move any of their peices one square in any direction.
If a piece, other than the King, chooses to move diagonally on
the _white_ squares, then it may move two squares at a time.
Only the King may enter Tara.
The object of the game is for the Barons to capture all the Princes
or for the King and the Princes to capture all the Barons.
Capture is effected by moving into the same square as an opposing
piece. Yo _cannot_ jump over another piece (either friend or foe)
to effect any movement. The King _cannot_ be captured but
may capture other pieces. Finally, _no_ Prince may remain in
a corner square for more than three turns.
These rules are from a copy of the game I purchased years ago
from a company called "Godiva Productions" out of Louisville, KY.
The crafter was a William Levy.
Salve,
Cathal.
Date: Thu, 15 May 1997 04:40:49 -0500
From: gunnora at bga.com (Gunnora Hallakarva)
To: sca-arts at raven.cc.ukans.edu
Subject: Fidchell, Irish Board Games
Some mention has been made of the Irish board game fidchell. One
commentator suggested that the game might be identical to or derived from
hnefatafl, the Norse game which gives us our modern game of fox-and-geese.
So far as I am aware from my research, fidchell is not one of the
tafl-derived games.
The nearest equivalent I have record of is tawll-bwrdd, a Welsh game derived
from the Norse hnefatafl (or more likely, from Anglo-Saxon alea evangelii,
the Saxon variant of the same game). The Welsh used the same basic rules as
other tafl games, however they added the element of chance as well,
requiring that players throw a four-sided, rectangular knucklebone die.
Each player rolls the die at the beginning of his turn: if an odd number is
rolled, the player may move a piece, but if an even number results,the
player must skip his turn.
For more information about hnefatafl, tablut, tawll-bwrdd, and alea
evangelii, see the complete article at:
http://www.realtime.com/~gunnora/games.htm
This same article appeared in one of the last two or three Tournament
Illuminated issues as well (although missing the nifty color graphics).
Gunnora Hallakarva
Herskerinde
Subject: Re: Period Games of All Sorts / Let's Try the last one again.
Date: Tue, 24 Feb 98 16:28:06 MST
From: rmhowe <magnusm at ncsu.edu>
To: stefan at texas.net, "Mark.S Harris" <rsve60 at msgphx1>
> Poster: Josh <dungeon at norfolk.infi.net>
> I was wondering if any lord or lady of this list would know where Period
> Game Board Designs may be found on the web. I wish to make period boards
> made as they where in period. Whether this be homespun fabric for 9 man
> morris or piece of pale leather for pente I would like to know.
>
> Tristan
> AKA Myrddin of Marinus (soon to be changed)
Since so many people play games, I keep a list of them on
my Medieval Bookmarks. Here are some of the more useful
ones, not just board games, but games also suitable to
events.
Having recently learned to cut and paste web addresses these
should all be correct and were up and running today.
http://www-cs.canisius.edu/~salley/articles.html#games
Dagonells games page
http://www-cs.canisius.edu/~salley/articles.html#games
Game of Merels
http://members.iex.net/~norseman/games.html
Page of various games and contests
http://www.ftech.net/~regia/games.htm
Games of the Viking and Anglo-Saxon Age
http://www.inmet.com/~justin/holme.html
Games from Holmes Academy of Armory 1688
http://www.inmet.com/~justin/justin_bib.html
Justin's Games Bibliography
http://www.inmet.com/~justin/game-hist.html
Medieval and Rennaissance Games Page
http://www.ahs.uwaterloo.ca/~museum/index.html
Museum and Archive of Games from Waterloo, Canada
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/PSNeeley/
P.S.Neeley's Ancient Games
http://math.bu.edu/INDIVIDUAL/jeffs/primero.html
Primero: A Renaissance Cardgame
http://www.cs.cmu.edu/afs/andrew.cmu.edu/org/Medieval/www/src/contributed/grm/games/piquet.html
Royal and Delightful Game of Piquet
http://www.netlink.co.uk/users/pagat/alpha.html#k
Alphabetical Rules of Cardgames
http://www.inmet.com/~justin/game-rules.html
Rules to Period Games
http://users.aol.com/maist/17cgames.htm
Some 17th Century Games
http://www.expomedia.se/tablut/eng/
Tablut / Hnefatafl - this one plays with you, from Sweden.
http://www.realtime.net/~gunnora/games.htm
Viking Answer Lady's Page on Kings Table and other games
...............................................
Magnus Malleus, Windmasters' Hill, Atlantia and the GDH
From: DDFr at best.com (David Friedman)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Chess with dice: rules anyone?
Date: Fri, 03 Apr 1998 10:54:50 -0800
Organization: Santa Clara University
> If anyone has medieval rules for playing chess with dice, I'd appreciate
> hearing from them.
I don't know about medieval European, but chess is a descendant of an
Indian game. As best I recall, there were four players, possibly operating
as teams of two (that's why there are two rooks, two knights, etc. in the
modern game). Each player rolled a (four sided, long stick with four
sides) die, and that determined which of his pieces he was allowed to
move. Salaamalah's book on games may have the details.
David/Cariadoc
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
From: Mark Waks <justin at intermetrics.com>
Subject: Re: Chess with dice: rules anyone?
Organization: Intermetrics, Inc
Date: Fri, 3 Apr 1998 19:08:54 GMT
GeoNLeigh wrote:
> >If anyone has medieval rules for playing chess with dice, I'd appreciate
> >hearing from them.
> >
> >Finnvarr
>
> I'm not sure if I have the source anywhere, but as I remember it was fairly
> simple. A single die is rolled to determine what piece you can move. 1=pawn,
> 2=rook, 3=knight, 4=bishop, 5=queen and 6=king.
> If you roll a number that doesn't allow a legal move you forfeit your turn.
Yes, this matches my sources. The only period game for which I have
explicitly heard about dicing variants is Oblong Chess (played on a 4 x
16 board), but I've heard that dice were used with other variants as
well.
For a pretty comprehensive examination of chess variations, check out
the Chess Variants Page:
http://www.cs.ruu.nl/~hansb/d.chessvar/index.html
Especially the Historic Variants section:
http://www.cs.ruu.nl/~hansb/d.chessvar/Ihistoric.html
All of this can be found from the Period Games Homepage:
http://www.inmet.com/~justin/game-hist.html
There are also several good books on the subject, particularly HJR
Murray's A History of Chess. Baron Salaamallah's book, Medieval Games,
also deals with a number of chess variants, albeit more briefly...
-- Justin
Subject: Re: Activity games
Date: Sun, 5 Apr 1998 09:39:00 -0500
From: "Karl A Haefner" <RENAISSANCE-COOK at prodigy.net>
To: "Stefan li Rous" <stefan at texas.net>
>What is this Barleye Breake? I'd love to have descriptions and rules
>for this to add to my files.
A more complete explanation can be found in *Daily Life in Elizabethan
England*. It's played by three couples. One couple is *it* and occupies
the center of the field. The other couples have a goal at opposited ends of
the field. One of the goal couples yells BARLEY; the other couple yells
BREAK. Immediately, they then attempt to cross the field without being
captured by the *it* couple. If somebody is captured, that person's couple
becomes *it* and takes the center of the field. The capturing couple takes
the empty goal. The process repeats itself until all participants are too
damn tired from running to continue.
>Lord Stefan li Rous
Karl H.
aka Original Ostler, Innkeeper
The Dirty Duck, Bristol
From: Charles Knutson <charles at historicgames.com>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: New Medieval Games Site
Date: Mon, 10 Aug 1998 17:12:29 -0600
Organization: Rose & Pentagram Design
For people interested in period games, I've started creating a web
site devoted to King Alphonso X's 13th century Ms. "Libro de Juegos,"
or Book of Games. Although it's still under construction, (no
descriptions of the graphics yet) it is located at:
http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/Gorge/3154
Charles
MacGregor Historic Games
http://www.historicgames.com
From: "Trevor Barker" <barkert at delete.logica.com>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Alquerque (medieval game)
Date: 14 Sep 1998 12:41:03 GMT
Organization: Logica UK Limited
I know that many of you are interested in medieval board games, so I would
like to invite you to view my article on Alquerque (a board game similar to
Draughts/Checkers):
http://www.weylea.demon.co.uk/farisles/games/alquerq.htm
If you have any comments, I'd be interested to receive them, (e-address
below).
Trevor
(Robert fitz John)
--
sheriff (at) weylea (dot) demon.co.uk
Date: Mon, 28 Sep 1998 10:03:39 -0400
From: Melanie Wilson <MelanieWilson at compuserve.com>
To: LIST SCA arts <sca-arts at raven.cc.ukans.edu>
Subject: Chess by John of Wales 13th C
Thought you might be interested in this folks !
The world resembles a chess-board which is cheq uered white and black, the
colours showing the two conditions of life and death, or praise and blame.
The chessmen are men of the world who have a common birth, occupy different
stations and hold different titles in this life, who contend together, and
finally have a common fate which levels all ranks. The King often lies
under the other pieces in the bag.
The King's move and powers of capture are in all directions, because the
King's will is law.
The Queen's move is aslant only, because women are so greedy that they will
take nothing except by rapine and injustice.
The Rook stands for the itinerant justices who travel over the whole realm,
and their move is always straight, because the judge must deal justly.
The Knight's move is compounded of a straight move and an oblique one; the
former betokens his legal power of collecting rents, &c, the latter his
extortions and wrong-doings.
The Aufins are prelates wearing horns (but not like those that Moses had
when he descended from Sinai). They move and take obliquely because nearly
every Bishop misuses his office through cupidity.
The Pawns are poor men. Their move is straight, except when they take
anything: so also the poor man does well so long as he keeps from ambition.
After the Pawn is promoted he becomes a Fers and moves obliquely, which
shows how hard it is for a poor man to deal rightly when he is raised above
his proper station.
In this game the Devil says 'Check!' when a man falls into sin; and unless
he quickly covers the check by turning to repciitailce, the Devil says
'Mate!' aiid carries him off to hell, whence is no escape. For the Devil
has as many kinds of temptations to catch different types of men, as the
hunter has dogs to catch different types of animals.
Mel
Subject: Re: Period Games
Date: Mon, 8 Mar 1999 20:27:50 EST
From: EoganOg at aol.com
To: skeys at millenicom.com
CC: atlantia at atlantia.sca.org
> I am searching fro two
> things: first, rules to period card and board games, and second, people
> who know the games well enough to teach them to others.
I would love to come and teach, but unfortunately my college graduation is on
the same weekend (don't want to blow that off!). But I would be happy to help
out in any other way I can. I have run gaming tourneys before, and have a
general idea of what games are quick enough to fit in, and enjoyable. I'll be
happy to work with you. Please feel free to write me with questions. I'll try
to type in the rules for the games I usually use and send them to you (or post
tehm to the list at large). These are the games I have had the most success
with:
Fitchneil (and other Hneftafl games)
Brandub
Assaulto
Nine-Men's Morris
These games are strategy based and quick enough to hold most beginner's
attention. Games such as Gluckshause, Tablero de Jesus, etc. are fun, too,
but take longer. Same with Senet...... I'll try and get those rules
typed in.
Eogan Og
Subject: ANST - Roman board games
Date: Fri, 31 Mar 2000 15:02:56 MST
From: "Patrick St. Jean" <stjeanp at flash.net>
To: Kingdom of Ansteorra <ansteorra at ansteorra.org>
I just found this link to a site that has some information on Roman
board games. It looks pretty interesting...
http://www.personal.psu.edu/users/w/x/wxk116/roma/rbgames.html
Felipe'
Subject: Re: ANST - How to play Hazard
Date: Sun, 30 Apr 2000 19:41:41 MST
From: Robert Gonzalez <robgonzo at prodigy.net>
To: ansteorra at ansteorra.org
|domino7 at texas.net writes:
|> Not to take away from the wonderful dsicussion of Ansteorran history,
|> but who can tell me how to play the dice game Hazard? I know it's in The
|> Known World Handbook, but those directions are as clear as mud. Could
|> someone describe the rules in clear, any-child-could understand terms?
|>
|> Jovian
|>
|I found the game in "Medieval games" by Salamallah the Corpulent, and
|started to type them out and found that they were really long and the words in
|the middle of the instrutions got really confusing. so you might try looking
|for the book and see if you can understand it. I have played it before but
|never really understood.
|
|Pieter.
I found this site that seemed to make things fairly clear.
http://sd.znet.com/~savaskan/germans/hazard.html
Plus check out their main page for some other games and lots of good info.
Roberto
Bjornsborg
ate: Thu, 25 May 2000 18:46:37 -0400
From: "Daniel Phelps" <phelpsd at gate.net>
Subject: Re: SC - OT Alert--Dominoes in China--was Authenticity buffs
Regards Dominoes was written:
> Well, they are perfectly period for China, in the 12th century....
> but alas dominoes did ot make it to europe until after period.
I seem to recall a single domino in a picture of artifacts recovered from
the "Vasa" as published in "Scientific American". The "Vasa" is out of
period but only slightly as I recall. The Vasa was if I remember correctly
was Danish? and turned turtle and sank upon launching in the first decade of
the 17th century. Please anyone who knows better correct me if I am wrong.
Daniel Raoul
Date: Fri, 26 May 2000 10:12:26 +1000
From: "Glenda Robinson" <glendar at compassnet.com.au>
Subject: Re: SC - OT Alert--Dominoes in China--was Authenticity buffs
> I seem to recall a single domino in a picture of artifacts recovered from
> the "Vasa" as published in "Scientific American". The "Vasa" is out of
> period but only slightly as I recall. The Vasa was if I remember correctly
> was Danish? and turned turtle and sank upon launching in the first decade of
> the 17th century. Please anyone who knows better correct me if I am wrong.
>
> Daniel Raoul
There was a single domino found on the Mary Rose, and published on their
website. My husband emailed them to get a definite place where it was found
etc, for our research, and was told "Oh, how did that get on THAT part of
the site? It's a Napoleonic period domino that must have been dropped (or
thrown) off the side of a later period ship, and was found in the mud."
I'd be wondering about this one 'on' the Vasa. I'd be REALLY interested if
it was on the ship, as I also reenact the 17th century.
Glenda.
From: mittle at panix.com (Arval d'Espas Nord)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: 13th century game ragman rolle
Date: 22 Aug 2001 10:30:07 -0400
Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and UNIX, NYC
Greetings from Arval!
Random House's Word of the Day page today has an interesting history of the word "rigamarole", including this:
Late in the 13th century, a popular game of chance developed that
consisted of a roll on which were written verses describing a person's
character and appearance. It seems that each verse was attached to a
string and seal, and players drew them from the roll. The collection of
verses was called a rag(e)man rolle, and the supposed composer of the
verses was King Rag(e)man.
Anyone know more about this game?
===========================================================================
Arval d'Espas Nord mittle at panix.com
From: Charlene Charette <charlene at flash.net>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: 13th century game ragman rolle
Date: Thu, 23 Aug 2001 05:38:27 GMT
Looking up "rigmarole" in the OED:
[App. a colloquial survival and alteration of RAGMAN ROLL (sense 2); the
latter seems to have gone out of literary use about 1600.]
Under Ragman:
3. A game of chance, app. played with a written roll having strings
attached to the various items contained in it, one of which the player
selected or Îdrewâ at random.
In one form the game was a mere amusement, the items in the roll being
verses descriptive of personal character: see Wright Anecd. Lit. (1844)
76-82 and Hazlitt E. Pop. Poetry (1864) I. 68. But that of quot. 1377
was probably a method of gambling, forbidden under penalty of a fine. In
the other quots. the word may be a proper name, as in b.
c1290 MS. Digby 86, lf. 162 [Heading of a set of French verses.] Ragemon
le bon. 1377 Durham Halmote Rolls (Surtees) 140 De Thoma Breuster et
Ricardo de Holm quia ludaverunt ad ragement contra pnam in diversis
Halmotis positam 20s. condonatur usque 2s. 1390 GOWER Conf. III. 355
Venus, which stant..In noncertein, but as men drawe Of Rageman upon the
chance.
Perhaps some of these citations will lead to more info.
--Perronnelle
From: Charlene Charette <charlene at flash.net>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: 13th century game ragman rolle
Date: Thu, 23 Aug 2001 06:06:40 GMT
Oops, after I hit the send and went to sign out of the OED, I finally
found "ragman's roll" which it kept telling me didn't exist. *sigh*
1. The roll used in the game of Ragman. Obs.
c1400 MS. Fairfax 16 in Hazl. E.P.P. I. 68 Here begynnyth Ragmane
roelle. c1500 in Dodsley O. Pl. (1827) XII. 308 Explicit Ragmannes
Rolle.
Sounds as though MS Fairfax 16 might provide some info. A quick search
of Worldcat/OCLC...
This title is cataloged two ways. The first appears to be only in AS
(Asia, I think) and the EU. The second has copies all over the US
(including UT Austin, about 3 hrs from here. One of these days I've got
to go check out that library. I keep finding copies of manuscripts in
the OCLC that they have.) BTW, I *had* to look: Amazon has it for a
mere $275. You *don't* want to know what used copies are going for.
YIKES!
Title: Bodleian Library, MS Fairfax 16
Publication: London : Scolar Press
Year: 1979
ISBN: 0859675130
Note(s): Leaves printed on both sides./ Facsimile reprint./
Bibliography
Responsibility: with an introduction by John Norton-Smith.
Title: MS Fairfax 16
Author(s): Norton-Smith, John.
Corp Author: Bodleian Library. Manuscript.
Publication: London : Scolar Press,
Year: 1979
ISBN: 0859675130
Note(s): Introd. in English; manuscript in Middle English./
Bibliography
There's a microfilm at Virginia Tech:
Title: [Middle English manuscripts].
Author(s): Chaucer, Geoffrey,; d. 1400.
Publication: Bicester, [Eng.] : Micromedia
Year: 1980 uuuu
Description: 7 reels ; p., 35 mm.
TOC: reel 1. Arch. Seld. B.24.--reel 2. Fairfax 16.--reel 3. Bodley
638.--reel 4. Rawl. C.86.--reel 5. Digby 181.--reel 6. Tanner 346.--reel
7. Vernon manuscript.
Note(s): Microfilm reproductions of various manuscripts held in the
Bodleian Library, Oxford University./ Includes various works by G.
Chaucer.
Other Titles: Vernon manuscript.
More Corp Auth: Bodleian Library. ; Bodleian Library. ; Manuscript.;
Arch. Seld. B.24.; Bodleian Library. ; Manuscript.; Fairfax 16.;
Bodleian Library. ; Manuscript.; Bodley 638.; Bodleian Library. ;
Manuscript.; Rawl. C.86.; Bodleian Library. ; Manuscript.; Digby 181.;
Bodleian Library. ; Manuscript.; Tanner 346.
This one looks interesting and there's copies all over the US:
Title: Ragman roll.
Ein spŠtmittelenglisches gedicht ...
Author(s): Lydgate, John,; 1370?-1451? ; supposed author.;
Freudenberger, Andreas,; 1870- ; ed.
Publication: Erlangen, K.B. Hof un UniversitŠts-Buchdruckerei von Junge
& Sohn
Year: 1909
Note(s): Lebenslauf./ Texts from cod. Fairfax 16 and Bodley 638 on
opposite pages./ Ascribed by bp. Tanner to John Lydgate. cf. MacCracken,
H.N. The minor poems of John Lydgate. 1911. (Early English text society.
Extra series, CVII) p. xli./ Dissertation: Inaug.-Diss.--Erlangen.
--Perronnelle
From: rmhowe <MMagnusM at bellsouth.net>
Date: Thu Aug 28, 2003 7:48:59 PM US/Central
To: - SCA Arts and Sciences 7/03 <Artssciences at lists.gallowglass.org>, - Stephan's Florilegium <stefan at florilegium.org>
Subject: That Ballinderry Crannong I Yew Game Board.
I seriously doubt if I will ever make one as I am not that
inclined towards games myself, but some of you probably
would like to make one. Here are some sources so you can.
The board has a sunken playing area that is framed by
a fairly wide carved interlaced boarder. On either side are
two necked handles in the shape of men's heads.
I had wondered how it was made as you generally see only
the top view of the board. I had figured it might be
assembled of many pieces.
I got in Henry's book this week (which is really excellent
if you want carving designs on the order of interlaced
animals, men, or strapwork from a wide variety of sources
[art, scupture, carvings, crosses, metalwork] and I could
see very clearly in the black and white photo that the
grain was consistent through the whole piece.
Edwards, Nancy: The Archaeology of Early Medieval Ireland,
University of Pennsylvania Press, 418 Service Dr.,
Philadelphia, 10914:
1990. 1st edition. ISBN 081223085X
(1996 /Pbk 240 pages ills, 55 figs, 40 b/w photos $42.30)
Critical survey of the archaeological evidence remaining
from the early Middle Ages in Ireland. Illustrated with
site-plans, and a range of artifacts.
Line drawings prepared by Jean Williamson. Contents:
(30) Wooden Vessels.(77) stave-built bucket,
Ballinderry I; Stave-built Butter Churn, Lissue; Lathe-turned bowl,
Lissue; Lathe-turning waste, Lissue [Bersu,G.: 1947,
The rath at Townland Islan Lissue, UJA 10: 30-58.]
31 Wooden Objects (78) Oar, right footed shoe last,
scoop from Lagore, wheel-hub broken in half, Lough
Faughan; musical horn found in the River Erne bound
with metal strips. (32) top only view of Yew-wood gaming
board from Ballinderry I crannog, Co. Westmeath.
No dimensions are given. This is the one with head handles. National Museum of Ireland.
Henry, Francoise: Irish Art During the Viking Invasion
(800-1020 A.D.) ; London, Methuen, 1973. Softcover with
illustrated glossy cover. 6x8.5" beautiful illustrations. Profusely illustrated. 1st pb ed.
Has a wonderful picture of the ONE PIECE Viking Game
Board in Acta Archaeologia 1933. The wood grain can be
clearly seen going through the whole thing - clearly
through the board into the handles at either end.
Top only view of Yew-wood gaming board from Ballinderry I
crannog, Co. Westmeath.
Hencken, H. O`Neill. - A Gaming Board of the Viking Age. Kobenhavn: Levin & Munkgaard, 1933, - quarto, 20 pp., 1 plate, illustrations in text, reprinted from Acta Archaeologica
1933; preliminary speculations on a yew game board
discovered at Ballinderry, Ireland the previous year;
punched for a three ring binder and restapled, paper
wrappers - games. This was the primary source material.
Connecting the dots...one by one by one.
Master Magnus, OL, Barony of Windmasters' Hill, SCA,
Regia Anglorum, Manx, GDH.
From: Louise Craig <lcraig at louisecraig.com>
Date: September 16, 2005 8:06:06 AM CDT
To: Barony of Bryn Gwlad <bryn-gwlad at ansteorra.org>
Subject: [Bryn-gwlad] Too Fun - Games
I had not seen this painting before or the museum --"a public institution dedicated to research and the collection, preservation, and exhibition of games and game-related objects."
ELLIOTT AVEDON MUSEUM & ARCHIVE OF GAMES
http://www.ahs.uwaterloo.ca/~museum/index.html
The painting shows many different games that were played at the time (1560), it includes over 200 children playing about 80 different games or activities.
Breughel painting of Young Folk at Play.
http://www.ahs.uwaterloo.ca/~museum/Brueghel/imgmap.html
Have fun!
Louise
From: Coblaith Mhuimhneach <Coblaith at sbcglobal.net>
Date: September 16, 2005 4:50:45 PM CDT
To: Barony of Bryn Gwlad <bryn-gwlad at ansteorra.org>
Subject: Re: [Bryn-gwlad] Too Fun - Games
Louise wrote:
> I had not seen this painting before. . .Breughel painting of Young
> Folk at Play. http://www.ahs.uwaterloo.ca/~museum/Brueghel/
> imgmap.html
There's a much better image of this in the Artchive <http://
www.artchive.com/artchive/B/bruegel/bruegel_games.jpg.html>. The
picture is clearer to begin with, and you can zoom in to see details.
Coblaith
Date: Mon, 12 Dec 2005 14:56:22 -0600
From: "Terry Decker" <t.d.decker at worldnet.att.net>
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Lebkuchen question
To: "Cooks within the SCA" <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
> Stefan
> (Hmmm.I wonder if the game of dominos goes back to medieval times?)
As for dominoes, the game is referenced in Chinese literature around 1120,
but it may be 2000 to 3000 years older than that. A single domino was found
on the Mary Rose (16th Century), but it may be an invasive artifact. 18th
Century is one of the accepted dates for dominoes in Europe.
Bear
From: Brett Chandler-Finch <goldweard at yahoo.com>
Date: March 23, 2007 5:54:33 PM CDT
To: bryn-gwlad at lists.ansteorra.org
Subject: [Bryn-gwlad] cloth board game documentation
Rune cloths were used by the Norse, as well cloth game
bags by the Bedouins in Persia. I just do not have
the sources anymore. Part of the documentation
problem is that they were primarily used by travelers
who would not have been the subject of many
illustrators paintings. that and the volatile nature
of cloth only the pieces remain. game boards then as
now would have been sought out more for artistic
beauty then portability. it would be like comparing a
modern plastic piece chess set for 2-3 dollars to a
set that was carved and inlaid with silver on a
mahogany board. no one cares about the lower end
items.
If we do make the set out of wood we may need to watch
out for one thing. a woman who made a book of games
in Bjornesburg told me she had a problem with the
thinner wood on the boards warping on her. we may
have a similar problem with thin boards in a box set.
<the end>