Antique Coffee Table Horse Racing Steeplechase Game
Antique Coffee Table Horse Racing Steeplechase Game
32066
Rare Victorian Coffee Table Horse Racing Board Game.
An exceptionally rare and high-quality Victorian 'Royal Race Game', offering an entertaining representation of a traditional Steeplechase. Beautifully made and remarkably complete, this superb racing game contains everything required to stage your own nineteenth-century equestrian derby, even comes with a new instruction leaflet. Originally this would have been a tabletop game but has been converted into a coffee table with the racetrack now under glass.
The playing board is inset with a finely gilt-tooled leather racecourse, surrounding the track is a red leather band numbered from 0 to 100. Each numbered position corresponds to the marked divisions on the playing surface, the final position, numbered 100, is the Winning Post, marking the finish of the race.
Accompanying the board is the original fitted mahogany box with a velvet-lined interior, housing a complete set of accessories. These include twelve individually hand-painted and numbered lead horses with jockeys, four patinated cast lead fences, a cast lead water jump, two dice shakers and two original dice. The fitted compartments ensure the set remains both practical and beautifully presented.
Unlike the more commonly encountered Victorian racing games produced on printed card or cloth, this is a superior-quality example with a gilt-tooled embossed leather playing surface mounted onto a substantial mahogany board. The course recreates a classic steeplechase, allowing the lead horses to negotiate fences and the water jump in a realistic and engaging simulation of a nineteenth-century race meeting.
Games of this calibre were produced for affluent Victorian households as elegant drawing-room entertainment and are considerably scarcer than the later commercially printed examples. Comparable pieces are occasionally found within the finest Victorian games compendiums by makers such as Jaques of London and F.H. Ayres, although large standalone leather steeplechase sets of this quality are encountered far less frequently.
The board displays a rich patina consistent with its age, with expected wear to the leather playing surface. The lead horses retain their original hand-painted decoration with honest age-related wear, while the fitted mahogany box remains in very good original condition and houses a remarkably complete set of original playing pieces.
A wonderful example of Victorian craftsmanship and ingenuity, this exceptionally rare game is not only an engaging piece of social history but also an outstanding display item for collectors of antique games, horse racing memorabilia, and Victorian sporting antiques.
Dimensions:
1850-1899
Circa 1880-1900
Mahogany & lead
United Kingdom
The original folding board has been laid under glass and is now a coffee table. The lead horses have been slightly adapted so they stand straight, one jockey is missing as are three horses tails.
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