German book

[Arie van der Stoep]

Dear all,

Recently, Fritz Backhaus, Wolfgang Cortiaens and Thomas Weissbrich
published "Spielerische Allianzen" on behalf of the Deutsches
Historisches Museum. Subtitle: "Bernsteinpolitik und höfische Kultur
in der Frühen Neuzeit". Subject: the function of preserved
16th-century amber game boxes. They served as a chessboard, the
authors argue, and thus prove the important place that chess played in
post-medieval society. In the Middle Ages, chess had a major influence
on the lifestyle of the highest social classes and that influence, the
authors assume, continued unabated. Shouldn't the 38 very expensive
game boxes that were made in the former German city of Eger, now Cheb
(Czech Republic), between 1635-1636 and 1720 by furniture makers who
were artists too, be a warning that chess was less popular in the
highest circles than they assume? Each gaming box was delivered with a
chequered pattern and 2x15 flat pieces, but almost always without
chess pieces [Jochen Voigt, "Für die Kunstkammern Europas.
Reliefintarsien aus Eger". Halle an der Salle 1999].

The study “Schaken, dammen, molenspel en triktrak. Een
Nederlands/Vlaamse cultuurhistorie” (2025), the result of fifty years
of research by Wim van Mourik, Jan de Ruiter and myself, fits in
seamlessly with Voigt. The highest social classes of European society
played tables and draughts, hardly chess. Chess was a pastime for the
lowest classes, who tried to supplement their meagre income with chess
in pubs of suspicious character. To this end, they played dice chess.
Research question: was dice chess common in the Middle Ages?

In the middle of the 15th century, the game box emerged. The French
name is damier, the Dutch dambord. This confirms the result of our
research: in the Middle Ages, draughts was a popular game. And the
name for the gaming box indicates an undiminished popularity of
draughts. Research question: despite this, chess was much more often
the subject of a painter than draughts, how to explain that?

We recorded 534 full-colour reproductions, including an exuberant
number of chess and draughts scenes.

A treasure from the past that has been handed down to us in the form
of amber game boxes deserves a correct description of their place in
time. This requires cooperation, cooperation that we are happy to
offer, approach us. Of course, our book remains the basis. It is for
sale at Wim van Mourik: wavan...@planet.nl. You will receive a PDF
with the help of which you can make a translation.

With my best wishes, Arie van der Stoep, historian linguist