This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 5/19/2018
String Game. American, ca. 1890. “String Game” hand painted on top board. 52 playing cards attached to wooden blocks. A string is attached to each wood block. Wood block and playing card is spring-loaded and rises as the appropriate string is pulled, then settles down to its original position. Wood blocks housed in a 47 x 22” frame, 52 strings hang from a metal 20” bar jutting out from its top. A few strings broken or missing, a few cards with minor damage otherwise excellent. A unique device previously unknown to all in the hobby. How the prizes were awarded is not known but best guess is that a shelf at the back of the operator’s booth held the prizes each card represented. A gaff would have been easy to apply by simply not connecting string to cards that represented the high value prizes. The game may also be seen as a secondary use for playing cards.