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Object Timeline

1921

  • We acquired this object.

2015

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2025

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Cavagnole Game Board

This is a Game board. We acquired it in 1921. Its medium is papier mache, painted and gilded decoration. It is a part of the Product Design and Decorative Arts department.

Gambling has long been a part of the leisure activities and tempting habits of many countries of the world throughout history. The wagering of money on an event with an uncertain outcome requires consideration, chance, and a potential prize. Cavagnole, or biribi, is an Italian and French game of chance where players put their stakes on a number on the board from 1 to 70 and if their number is drawn they win 64 times their stake.

This object was donated by Eleanor Garnier Hewitt and Sarah Cooper Hewitt. It is credited Gift of Eleanor and Sarah Hewitt.

Its dimensions are

H x W x D: 33.1 x 22.2 x 0.3 cm (13 1/16 x 8 3/4 x 1/8 in.)

Cite this object as

Cavagnole Game Board; papier mache, painted and gilded decoration; H x W x D: 33.1 x 22.2 x 0.3 cm (13 1/16 x 8 3/4 x 1/8 in.); Gift of Eleanor and Sarah Hewitt; 1921-22-199

This object was previously on display as a part of the exhibition The Virtue in Vice.

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If you would like to cite this object in a Wikipedia article please use the following template:

<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://www-4.collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18215187/ |title=Cavagnole Game Board |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=7 February 2025 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>