Objects. History. Stories.

Between 1590 and 1620, many board game cassettes for Nine Men’s Morris, chess and backgammon were produced in the Prussian court sphere in Königsberg, marking an artistic high point in amber craftsmanship. This volume is the first to examine the context in which such precious objects were crafted against the backdrop of courtly (gaming) culture and dynastic alliance politics.

The acquisition of a Königsberg board game cassette dating from 1607 by the German Historical Museum in 2021 provided an opportunity to conduct interdisciplinary research into this culturally and historically significant subgroup of Prussian ‘amber diplomacy’. 

In the exhibition at the Deutsches Historisches Museum Berlin, as well as in the accompanying publication Spielerische Allianzen, the objects and their stories are now presented.

Deutsches Historisches Museum
Unter den Linden 2
10117 Berlin

More information about the exhibition.

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More on the book Spielerische Allianzen can be found here.