Board games from the city of Vijayanagara (Hampi ... - Gioco dell'Oca.

SUMMARIES / RÉSUMÉS / ZUSAMMENFASSUNGEN 131
tables with symbols of war – this
combination seems to be a German
speciality of this time. Three splendid
games tables from the court of Max
Emanuel of Bavaria (end of the 17th
century) offer tactical games such as
chess/draughts, morris and backgammon;
they allude to the Turkish wars of the
17th century. These games tables are
related to the frequent depiction of battle
scenes towards the end of the 17th
century, when the Christians defeated
the Ottomans.
But games of chance can also be combined
with war allegories, as a gambling table in
the residence in Würzburg from 1741
shows it. Here, the ambiguous role of
gambling at court becomes evident: it was
morally condemned but at the same time
it was a privilege of the nobility and served
to express their wealth. Combined with
allegories of war, gambling expressed the
sovereign’s power. Maybe it was the
political situation in Germany which
caused the combination of games tables
and war symbols: Germany consisted of
small territorial courts. The territorial
sovereigns had to claim their power and
regency with all might. Games tables
represent the privileges of the nobility to
gamble, but also their education and
intelligence to be able to play chess. An
implication is also that only in times of
peace, which can only be assured by
success at war, there is a time to play
games.
ANDREW MORRIS-FRIEDMAN and
ULRICH SCHÄDLER
“Juden Raus!” (Jews Out!) –
History’s most infamous board
game
Board games can be used by cultural
historians to gain insights into the values
of different cultures. Many modern
games have been based on the theme of
teaching moral values of the cultures that
produce them. One game of moral values
however, stands out as the most infamous
board game of all time. The game from
Germany, “Juden Raus!” (Jews Out!)
depicts the policy of racial hatred that
defines the Nazi era. It was designed as a
family board game that simulates the
start of the persecution against the Jewish
people of that era. As to the surprise of
the producer of the game he had
miscalculated: heavily criticized by the
Nazis, the announced “bestseller”
flopped, even before it was properly
marketed.
MANFRED ZOLLINGER
Two unknown rules for the
Game of Goose: Ulisse
Aldrovandi and Duke August
the younger of Brunswick-
Luneburg
The Game of Goose is certainly one of
Europe’s best-known games. The earliest
records and examples are presented here
first and the place of the Game of Goose
in the game-related theories of early
Modern Times is examined. Although it
is a game of pure chance, it has never
been considered as a shocking game, but
as a permitted entertainment. From this
point of view the Author studies its
evolution towards a game specifically
designed for children. The article
presents two unknown hand-written
rules that come from a learned milieu.
The first one comes from the Bolognese
naturalist Ulisse Aldrovandi (late 16th
century), the other one (c. 1623) is owed
to Prince August the Younger of