LATE 18TH CENTURY

Details

AN INDIAN IVORY GAMES BOARD
LATE 18TH CENTURY
The turned circular box enclosing two compartments, the circular foliate-carved games-board with four detachable paw feet, with twenty-four natural coloured urn-shaped pegs and two green-stained pegs, in a contemporary english lignum vitae box
The box: 7 in. (18 cm.) diam.

Special notice

This lot is offered without reserve. No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 15% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

Lot Essay

The game played on this board is that of "fox and geese", which is thought to have its origins in medieval England. It is an unequal contest between one or sometimes two foxes and a much larger number (usually 13 or 15) of geese. The fox can "eat" the geese, by jumping over them, but the geese have weight of numbers, which they can use to hem in the fox.

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