The contribution of the printed board game to studies of material culture

Comparatively recently – and especially within the last few decades − the study of modern cultural history has been broadened to take explicit account of the information that can be derived from material objects, rather than solely from the written record. However, a general question arises in any investigation based on such objects:

The present chapter addresses this question: what can we learn that is distinctive from the study of printed board games about the cultures in which they were made? At the most obvious level, the survival of identifiable games provides evidence of their existence at particular times and places. Where they survive in numbers and variety, and commercial production is their source, we may infer that a market for them existed. A further level of inference is needed to conclude that they were actually played – but such inference can be a step too far in the case of game sheets whose primary purpose is as a conversation piece. With that caveat, the study of surviving board games can contribute usefully to our understanding of the culture of leisure in various places at various times. This is particularly so, since the written record of ‘who played what, and when’ is scant, or non-existent, at least until the 19th century.

Though the study of the games themselves cannot answer questions about the extent of their actual use, it can provide other insights. The rich iconography found in many games provides a visual record not only of objects but also of people and their costumes, activities, concerns and pleasures. The thematic treatment found in many games can be astonishingly detailed. Often, these games are also very specific as to the circumstances of their time and place, so they form useful contemporary witnesses. Of course, the printed word, whether appearing as text on the game sheet or in a separate booklet, is crucial to the interpretation, so that the game as material culture shades into the written record.