Livre des Métiers

[Dan Sherer]

Hello all,

Does anyone happen to know if there exists an English translation of the sections of the Livre des Métiers that describe dice-makers?

Thanks,

Dan

[Bert Vertommen]

Hello

no, unfortunately, I don’t know of an english translation, but if you are talking about Le livre des métiers by Étienne Boileau, beware that the “dés d’ivoire…” are not dice made of ivory, but thimbles, the things one uses to protect your fingertips whilst sowing.

They are also calles “dés”.

Met vriendelijke groeten,

Bert Vertommen

   
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[Thierry Depaulis]

As far as the dice-makers are concerned, you are wrong, Bert.

The dice-makers’s craft is described in chapter LXXI (TITRE LXXI) of the Livre des Métiers, “Cist tytres parole des Deiciers de Paris”. The first paragraph of their statutes reads:

“Quiconques veut estre Deycier a Paris, ce est a savoir feseeur de dez a ta bles et a eschiés d'os et d'yvoire de cor et de toute autre maniere d'estoffe et de metal estre le puet franchement pour tant qu'il oeuvre aus us et as coustumes du mestier…”

(It's Old French)

 

Translated in English, it would be something like:

“Anyone who wishes to be a dice-maker in Paris, that is to say, a maker of dice for ‘tables’ (backgammon) and chess made of bone and ivory, horn and any other kind of fabric and metal, may be so free as long as he works according to the customs and practices of the trade…”

I think it is clear enough.

See René de Lespinasse & François Bonnardot, eds, Les métiers et corporations de la ville de Paris, XIIIe siècle : Le livre des métiers d'Étienne Boileau, Paris, 1879, p. 149++

https://books.google.fr/books?id=sydol077Q4AC&newbks=0&printsec=frontcover

Thierry Depaulis

Le 31 mai 2026 à 11:43, Bert Vertommen <bert.ve...@gmail.com> a écrit :

Hello

no, unfortunately, I don’t know of an english translation, but if you are talking about Le livre des métiers by Étienne Boileau, beware that the “dés d’ivoire…” are not dice made of ivory, but thimbles, the things one uses to protect your fingertips whilst sowing.

They are also calles “dés”.

Met vriendelijke groeten,

Bert Vertommen

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www.volksspelenbrugge.be

Op 31 mei 2026, om 11:33 heeft Dan Sherer <danshe...@gmail.com> het volgende geschreven:

Hello all,

Does anyone happen to know if there exists an English translation of the sections of the Livre des Métiers that describe dice-makers?

Thanks,

Dan

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[Bert Vertommen]

Hi

you are right, I was looking at the wrong profession: Deelier. 

Those were the ones making the sowing thimbles out of ivory, silver etc.

sorry, I just did a really quick search there. My mistake.

Looks like a really interesting source. You could try using transribus s an OCR to get a better source text for translation.

DEELIER, dér. du préc., fabricant de dés à coudre."
Dans LXX11, rubr., deelier a été confondu avec deicier
(v. c. m.) P. -è. ce mot était-il déjà suranné, et n'exis-
tait-il plus qu'en nom propre: Jehan le Deelier, Ri
clart le Deelier, XLII, où le texte porte mal à propos
Drelier.

It says that in LXX11, this word has been confused for Deicier. It was only used as a surname, not as a profession. Glad to read that i am not the only one in history mixing those two up :-)

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