I've always got an eye peeled for beautiful antique sets of Spillikins, also known as Spellicans, which were a predecessor to jack straws and pick up sticks, and which from what I understand originated in China but became very popular as a parlor game in Victorian England. I just think they are incredibly beautiful objects as well as very fun to play--a perfect way to pass the time these days, especially!
There may once have been a few more pieces in this set--they are made of very thin bone--there are 35 here, a great number to play with. Most are marked with hand-written point values on one side, and a number of them are hand-painted (several swords, and a bird, too.) To play, one drops--spills--the spillikins onto the table, then players alternately use the hook tool to try to lift and extract pieces without disturbing any others, continuing until failing. Once an "attack" has begun to extract one piece, a player may not shift their attempt to a different piece on that turn. The player with the most points at the end wins, though just playing as a solitaire endeavor is pretty consuming too!
The “hook” included works very well for lifting them, and all are in very good shape. Thay come in their original slide top box, with the name of their original owner written in pencil on the underside of the lid and more faintly on the top as well.
Pieces measure about 4 3/8” long. Box measures 5 1/4”l x 1 1/2”w x 1 1/4" t”.
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