Museum Collections
Luce Center
The Game of Tiddledy Winks
Object Number:
2000.578
Date:
ca. 1890
Medium:
Cardboard, wood, ivory, glass
Dimensions:
box: 2 1/8 x 5 1/4 x 6 1/8 in. ( 5.4 x 13.3 x 15.6 cm )
Marks:
lithographed: on the box cover: "GAME OF/ TIDDLEDY/ WINKS/ MILTON BRADLEY CO./ SPRINGFIELD, MASS."
Description:
"Game of Tiddledy Winks" table game with 16 ivory playing pieces, a glass cup, and 10 wooden pins in a paper covered cardboard box; box top chromolithographed with an image of a Victorian family seated around a table playing "Tiddledy Winks"; box cover inscribed, "GAME OF/ TIDDLEDY/ WINKS/ MILTON BRADLEY CO./ SPRINGFIELD, MASS.".
Gallery Label:
Tiddledy Winks, first patented in England in 1889 and marketed to an adult audience, captivated Americans during the 1890s. The game's general concept is flicking a game piece (wink) with another instrument (tiddledy or squidger) to make the wink fly into the air. The modern spelling, tiddlywinks, came into use during the 1950s.
Credit Line:
The Liman Collection
Due to ongoing research, information about this object is subject to change.





